Tottenham Hotspur are now “betting heavily” on FC Porto striker Mehdi Taremi as a replacement for Harry Kane, having already tabled an offer of €24m (£21m), however the Portuguese side are holding out for €30m (£26m), according to reports.
Bayern Munich have seen another offer rejected for Kane, so time may be running out for the German champions to sign the striker, as he wants to have his future sorted before Tottenham’s Premier League opener against Brentford on Sunday.
Ange Postecoglou has recently told the media that he also wants a decision to be made sooner rather than later, in order to have clarity about where he needs to strengthen his squad ahead of the new season, but the striker’s future remains up in the air.
The Lilywhites can now sit patiently and see if Bayern were being genuine about their third offer being the final one, though they will of course need to line up potential replacements in case the Bavarians come back and meet the price tag all of a sudden.
As such, the Lilywhites haveallegedly now made an offer of €24m (£21m) for Taremi, just shy of Porto’s asking price of €30m (£26m), according to reports from Portugal (via Sport Witness).
The striker has “always” desired to play in England, but Porto will not make his departure easy, and he is protected by the €60m (£52m) release clause included in his contract, although his deal is due to expire next year.
Jorge Mendes is intermediating the talks between Tottenham and Porto, delivering the first bid, and it seems as though the north Londoners only need to increase their offer by £5m to secure the Iranian’s signature.
The 31-year-old forward started out in his homeland of Iran, but it is with Porto where he has started to make a real name for himself, weighing in with an outstanding 31 goals and ten assists for the Portuguese side in all competitions last season.
Seven of those goal contributions came in the Champions League, indicating the Iran international, who has 33 goals for his country, is very much capable of competing at the highest level, and he has received high praise from members of the media.
Back in March, journalist Zach Lowy claimed the 6 foot 1 striker could be “the best Asian player in football right now”, as a result of Heung-Min Son’s poor form last season, and he could be a very good signing at around £26m, despite his age.
That said, Taremi is unlikely to be a long-term replacement for Kane, and there may be some concerns over the fact that he is still yet to play in one of Europe’s “top five” leagues at this stage of his career.
If Spurs do lose their captain this summer, it is important they re-invest the money they receive on another top striker, and it is unclear whether the FC Porto striker is truly in that bracket.
