Tottenham Hotspur have the best young talent in the country in their ranks. The truth they always have.
From a young Harry Kane breaking through to Dele Alli making a splash in his early 20s and Gareth Bale becoming a world-beater, things have changed a lot since then in terms of playing on the pitch.
Still, there is great hope for the future. In Archie Gray, Mateus Fernandes and Lucas Bergvall, they have three young footballers waiting to explode in the senior game.
Perhaps the hottest thing is Luka Vuskovic, although it now looks like he will be heading to Brighton. It's a sad end to a story where he never played for Tottenham's first team in a competitive game.
All that said, none of them are as exciting as Eli Junior Kroupi. Spurs are in good form and are in the race to seal his signature. It would undoubtedly be their best knock-off of the entire window.
Why Spurs want to sign Kroupi
Why do Spurs want to sign Kroupi? Well, you'd be crazy as a club not to be interested in this unique French talent.
Hailed as the “next Mbappe” with GOAL before he became a household name, it can be said that the striker is starting to pay off in the Premier League.
Last year, the youngster replaced Lorient in Ligue 2 with Bournemouth in the English top flight and hasn't looked back.
Kroupi cost the Cherries just £12m and if he leaves this summer, he could bank a staggering profit. Amid interest from Spurs, it is thought he could leave the south coast in a massive £90m deal. Understandably, Marco Rose and Co do not want to sell.
That makes perfect sense. He is one of the best young players in Europe right now. Last term, aged 19, he became the first teenager to score 13 goals in their first Premier League season. No one as young as him has ever done that before.
He works very well in front of goal. Only four other pitchers had a better conversion rate in the entire league.
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Best conversion rates – Premier League 25/26 |
|
|---|---|
|
The player |
Conversion rate |
|
1) Is Osula |
30.4% |
|
2) Noah Okafor |
22.9% |
|
3) Danny Welbeck |
22.6% |
|
4) Nick Woltemade |
22.6% |
|
5) Eli Junior Kroupi |
22.0% |
Full of pace, clinical and versatile, he is a striker with the ability to become one of the best in the world in the years to come. After all, in the words of Daniel Sturridge, “he is still one of the best finishers in the Premier League”. The statistics fully support that statement.
If Roberto De Zerbi makes a deal with the young French striker, will they sign another striker? It seems possible.
The Spurs signing is likely to complement Kroupi
The Lilywhites have made a splash to improve their squad, beating out some of Europe's top clubs to sign both Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali for a combined £185m.
Next is to strengthen the forward line. Kroupi is marked but not alone. The Spurs outlet are also weighing up moves for AC Milan winger Rafael Leao and Liverpool's Cody Gakpo.
They are still looking at a move for Manchester City's Savinho. Speaking on his YouTube channel this week, Fabrizio Romano said: “Tottenham remains very interested in Savinho. It's a name I told you about a long time ago, months ago. Tottenham continues to work on Savinho's deal and is waiting for Manchester City to make a decision. Do they want to let him go or not? Negotiations are ongoing and Savinho is the next big name on the list.”
Honestly, on paper, this is not a very exciting move. He scored just three goals for City last season and started just seven Premier League games.
Alas, not every player should be judged by limited minutes. This is because when he played regular football in 2024/25, he was one of the most promising players in Europe.
For any striker, let alone Kroupi, Savinho is a dream. He is not a high scorer, rather he focuses most of his efforts on creating scoring opportunities for his teammates.
In his first campaign in England, the 22-year-old registered 13 assists in all competitions. He ended the term as City's top scorer. Not even the great Kevin De Bruyne has racked up more assists.
You scored a goal
out of 20
When it comes to key passes per 90 minutes, Savinho made 1.6. In that regard, only De Bruyne with 2.1 produced more per 90. That kind of output would be music to the ears of Kroupi or any other Spurs striker.
A key pass is a pass that leads directly to a shot at the opponent's goal.
The Brazilian is also one of the side's most promising players. Last season, he ranked in the top 1% of the same players in Europe for continuous 90 plays with 7.45 and in the best 3% for continuous actions, producing a great 9.76.
Having a winger as spirited and creative as the one on the flanks would be a huge advantage for De Zerbi. Sure, Savinho may not be a cheap goalscorer but he is a prolific creator. He would round off another potential addition to Kroupi nicely.
