REPORT: Tottenham in negotiations for Gent striker Gift Orban

Harry Kane is now gone, and Tottenham Hotspur are already working on signing a player who could very well eventually replace him. Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri — basically a tier 1 source for Belgian football — says Spurs are in preliminary negotiations through intermediaries towards signing 20-year old Gent striker Gift Orban.

Hell yeah. This is the good stuff. Orban’s numbers are outstanding for a young guy playing in a weaker league, even with a small sample size — the kind of profile you’d want if you’re looking to buy a pre-hype young forward before they explode into a £80m+ player. Is he a sure thing? Of course not, no 20-year old striker is, nor should he be expected to carry the incredible burden of succeeding Harry Kane.

But someone has to, at least eventually. And Orban’s numbers — 9g 2a, 1.23 npxG+xA/90 in limited minutes in the Jupiler Pro League last season — absolutely pop. Maybe he’d take a year or two to adjust from Belgian football to the Premier League, but this is exactly the kind of chance we should be making right now.

Think of it this way: Spurs aren’t going to be able to afford a £100m player, nor will they necessarily attract one. The best play is to get the NEXT £100m player in before they become that player. I’m stupid high on Gift Orban and think he’ll be very, very good.

They’ve got to sign him first, and they’ll have some competition. But this is very encouraging news.