Tottenham have opened talks with Club Brugge about a deal for winger Antonio Nusa.
Spurs have been tracking the Norway winger’s progress for some time and are now looking to act quickly to get ahead of competition and secure a potential star of the future.
Discussions are around a purchase now that would see him stay on loan at the Belgian club until the summer.
Tottenham already signed Timo Werner as a winger on loan from RB Leipzig this month, so Nusa would find a lot of competition for places and would benefit more from staying where he is in the short term.
Nusa was a player they looked into signing last summer and he has been tracked by a number of Premier League clubs including Brentford.
His signature would be seen as a coup for Spurs, who have acted bullishly in the January window to sign centre-back Radu Dragusin ahead of Bayern Munich and former Chelsea forward Werner.
Nusa scored the opening goal during the Europa Conference League match between Club Brugge and Bodo/Glimt
Could Hojbjerg leave?
They are also still potentially in the market for a central midfielder before the deadline, with uncertainty over the future of Pierre Emile-Hojbjerg.
They have a two-week break from action and do not play again until the FA Cup fourth-round tie against Manchester City on January 26 – and they might need Hojbjerg to start in that game.
Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr are away at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). James Maddison and Giovani Lo Celso are currently injured although there is hope one or both might be available in 10 days.
Hojbjerg played 90 minutes in the 2-2 draw at Manchester United on Sunday – only his fifth start in the Premier League this term – as manager Ange Postecoglou named only six subs on the bench due to the shortfall.
It is understood Tottenham will assess their options in the final days of the window and, considering who has returned by then, whether there is scope to let Hojbjerg go and a replacement brought in.
But Spurs are also not about to accept any cut-price deals for Hojbjerg, who still has 18 months left on his contract, and is of interest to Juventus and Napoli in Serie A as well as clubs in the Premier League.
Unless an obligation to buy is included, a loan is understood to be completely off the table, so any interested club must be ready to offer a permanent solution.
Spurs continue to work on younger, more long-term targets in every position and – as well as the established interest in Conor Gallagher at Chelsea, they have also been tracking Atalanta star Ederson.
Follow the January transfer window
The winter transfer window is now open and will close at 11pm in England and midnight in Scotland on Thursday 1 February, 2024.
To ensure harmonisation with the major leagues in Europe, the closing dates were set following discussions with the EFL, DFL, Serie A, LaLiga, and LFP, who will all close their summer and winter windows on 1 September and 1 February respectively
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports’ digital platforms, while you can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News, including daily transfer shows, and listen to our Transfer Talk podcast.