Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly interested in sealing a move for Stuttgart defender, Hiroki Ito, as Ange Postecoglou looks to bolster his defensive ranks this summer.
What is the latest on Ito to Tottenham?
A report from 90min last week suggested that the new Spurs boss had approved the club's search to find a new centre-back addition, with the likes of Harry Maguire and Aymeric Laporte having been mooted as potential targets.
According to Japanese outlet, Sponichi, however, the ex-Celtic man could be opting to make a more left-field move with the signing of the aforementioned Ito, with the 24-year-old having spent the last two seasons with the Bundesliga outfit.
The report suggests that the north Londoners are 'interested' in signing the 6 foot 2 ace ahead of next season, with the former Jubilo Iwata man – who made the move to Germany on an initial loan deal in 2021 – having just two years remaining on his current contract.
Who is Hiroki Ito?
The nine-cap Japan international has caught the eye due to his standout form for Stuttgart over the last two years, having praised as having an "unbelievable" left foot by the club's former sporting director, Sven Mislintat.
With the versatile rock having the ability to feature at both left-back and in the centre of the defence, the £9m-rated ace could potentially prove a dream upgrade on long-serving Tottenham man, Ben Davies, amid reports that Postecoglou and co are willing to listen to offers for the Welshman this summer.
As pundit Gabby Agbonlahor suggested, the 30-year-old seemingly "just isn't good enough anymore", hence the need to bring in a figure like Ito to take his place ahead of next season.
The difference in quality between the pair was particularly evident in the most recent campaign, with Ito illustrating his ball-winning brilliance after averaging 1.3 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game from his 30 league appearances, while Davies averaged just 0.9 and 0.6 per game for those same two metrics, respectively.
While both Davies and Ito created four big chances in the league in 2022/23 as a sign of their attacking intent, it does appear to be the latter man who offers a greater creative outlet, as he ranks in the top 5% among his European peers for progressive passes – with the current Spurs man ranking in just the top 20% in that regard.
Equally, with the former Swansea City ace having been described by Agbonlahor as being "so poor on the ball" during a recent encounter, Postecoglou could ditch the £80k-per-week liability by bringing Ito into the fold.
With the former Yokohama F Marinos boss having utilised his knowledge of the Japanese game to acquire the likes of Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda during his time at Parkhead, the 57-year-old could well repeat that masterstroke with the addition of the Stuttgart sensation.
