Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly expressed a strong interest in Monaco's Youssouf Fofana ahead of a potential summer swoop.
Having featured six times for France at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the 25-year-old is currently competing at his second major tournament, with Les Bleus gunning for Euro 2024 glory in Germany.
Largely down to the form of former Leicester City and Chelsea star N'Golo Kante, Fofana has been unable to force his way into Didier Deschamps's preferred XI this summer, managing just 10 minutes across all three Group D contests.
In club football, the midfielder is a regular for Monaco, where he made 32 appearances in Ligue 1 last season, finding the net on four occasions and providing four assists.
Known for his robustness and versatility to play a number of roles in the engine room, Fofana has featured in at least 35 matches across all competitions for the Principality giants in four straight seasons.
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Tottenham 'keen' on Monaco and France star Fofana
Despite only being afforded brief cameos by Deschamps at this summer's continental competition in Germany, Fofana is still attracting plenty of interest from around Europe, according to Football Insider.
Looking to bolster their engine room ranks ahead of the 2024-25 term, it is understood that Tottenham have registered their interest in bringing the 25-year-old to North London this summer.
That being said, the report claims that Italian giants AC Milan remain in pole position to sign Fofana, who has openly admitted that he is on the lookout for a new challenge, strongly hinting at a move away from Monaco.
Aiming to be intelligent in their dealings, Spurs are supposedly waiting for a collapse in talks between Monaco and I Rossoneri before attempting to hash out a transfer to the Premier League for the midfielder.
As well as Ange Postecoglou's side, Manchester United have also been credited with an interest in Fofana this year, however it is the Lilywhites who are closer to launching a genuine attempt to sign the Frenchman.
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Who could Fofana replace at Tottenham?
With the ability to operate either deep or more advanced in midfield, Fofana could turn out to be a useful acquisition for Tottenham as Postecoglou's troops prepare for a return to European football.
There are unknowns surrounding the future of a number of engine room options in North London, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Giovani Lo Celso both linked with transfers this summer.
James Maddison is the obvious pick in the advanced-midfield role for Spurs, with Fofana likely to replace either Yves Bissouma or Pape Sarr in the double pivot.
Hoping to make a third appearance at this summer's Euros, the 25-year-old will likely start on the bench as France battle with Belgium for a place in the quarter-finals in Dusseldorf on Monday evening.
Carter White
