Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad reportedly plan to move for Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min in the summer transfer window.
The 31-year-old - already captain for South Korea - was bestowed with the Lilywhites armband by Ange Postecoglou for the 2023-24 season, taking over from MLS-bound Hugo Lloris.
Last term, Son experienced his second-worst goalscoring season in the Premier League - albeit still netting a respectable 10 goals in the top flight - a tally he has already bettered in the current campaign.
From 22 Premier League outings this season, the South Korea skipper has already come up with 12 goals and six assists, setting up Brennan Johnson's winner in a 2-1 fightback success over Brighton & Hove Albion two weekends ago.
However, the former Bayer Leverkusen man is only under contract at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium until the end of the 2024-25 season, although Spurs can apparently trigger a one-year extension in his terms and plan to do so.
© Reuters
According to a report from FootballTransfers, though, the Lilywhites could have their resolve tested in the upcoming window by Al-Ittihad, who want both Son and Liverpool's Mohamed Salah to reinforce their frontline.
The reigning Saudi Pro League champions poached former Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema from Real Madrid last summer, but the Frenchman has experienced a troubled first season in the Middle East and allegedly stormed out of a training session earlier this month.
Benzema - who was briefly linked with a Premier League move in January - was missing from a top-flight tie with Al-Tai and AFC Champions League clash with Navbahor following the incident, but he returned for last weekend's 2-0 win over Al-Riyadh.
Benzema's off-field controversies have inevitably led to speculation over his long-term future, though, and Jota - another summer signing from Celtic - was not registered for their Saudi Pro League squad and has been tipped to reunite with Postecoglou in North London.
Regardless of Benzema or Jota's future, Al-Ittihad are targeting some of Europe's most celebrated names to lead their new-look attack, and they have supposedly been given hope of adding Son to their ranks for 2024-25.
© Reuters
While the 31-year-old reaffirmed his commitment to Spurs in the summer, the report claims that he could consider calling time on his Spurs career if Postecoglou's side fail to qualify for the Champions League.
A place in the revamped tournament is currently out of Tottenham's hands, as last weekend's 2-1 loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers left the Lilywhites fifth in the table, two points behind Aston Villa.
Son played the full 90 in that clash with Wolves, his first start for Spurs since the Asian Cup, in which he bizarrely sustained a fractured finger in an altercation with teammates, for which Paris Saint-Germain's Lee Kang-in has apologised for.
Son is now five games away from reaching the 400-appearance mark for Tottenham, and the attacker has registered 157 goals and 86 assists in 395 matches for the Lilywhites since joining in 2015.
Tottenham have no Premier League fixture this weekend due to Chelsea's involvement in the EFL Cup final, giving Postecoglou's men ample time to rest before a London derby at home to Crystal Palace on March 2.
Ben Knapton
