Tottenham Hotspur are at the dawn of a new era under the stewardship of manager Thomas Frank. The Lilywhites have identified some players that they could target to improve their roster.
Spurs finished 17th in the Premier League last season, and though they won the Europa League, they desperately need Frank to turn things around in the upcoming season as they will also feature in the Champions League.
However, one of the biggest uncertainties around Spurs has to be Cristian Romero's future in North London. There were multiple rumours of him pushing for a move to Atletico Madrid this summer.
While it has cooled down in recent weeks, Spurs are still looking to sign a centre-back who can step up even if the Argentine decides to leave the club.
Hence, as per journalist Ben Jacobs, Tottenham are monitoring Genoa defender Koni De Winter. The young centre-back has received a lot of plaudits for his exceptional performances last season.
He could be a viable option for Tottenham as he is expected to be available for a transfer fee in the region of €25m-€30 million.
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Who is Genoa's defensive stalwart Koni De Winter?
The 23-year-old centre-back had a breakthrough 2024/25 campaign for Genoa, attracting a lot of limelight from multiple clubs from all across Europe.
🚨 NEW:#Tottenham have added Koni De Winter to their shortlist of centre-back options should Cristian Romero leave the club.
— Spurs Connect (@Spurs_Connect) June 23, 2025
He would be available for around €25m-€30m.@JacobsBen pic.twitter.com/M1nVCMLJLY
Hailing from Antwerp, Belgium, De Winter is often compared with 'Vincent Kompany' due to his style of play and physicality in the backline. At 23, he has that leadership quality and therefore multiple clubs are interested.
He featured for Juventus at youth level and later broke into the first team. But due to lack of opportunities, he was loaned out to Empoli in the 2022/23 season, followed by another loan stint at Genoa with an obligation to buy.
Following the 2023/24 season, Genoa saw his potential and made the move permanent, and he proved them right with a solid 2024/25 campaign for the club.
He featured in 26 appearances for Genoa last season across competitions and scored three goals. The 23-year-old started in almost all of the games and was extremely solid.
While he is far from a finished article, Tottenham are reportedly ready to take a risk on him. De Winter will have immense pressure to replace someone as experienced as Romero in the backline.
But this is how they secured Micky van de Ven from Wolfsburg in 2023, and they are willing to take another punt on De Winter, hoping that they end up on the right side like they did with the Dutchman a few years ago.
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