According to The Daily Mail, Tottenham are among a number of clubs to have made an enquiry for Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.

What’s the word?

The upcoming transfer window will be Jose Mourinho’s first summer in charge of the north London side, and changes to the squad are to be expected as he attempts to rebuild the squad left to him by Mauricio Pochettino.

And as per The Daily Mail, the Lilywhites, along with Premier League rivals Manchester United and Chelsea have asked about Milinkovic-Savic’s availability, and that the Serbia international “is looking for his next challenge and the chance to step up to one of Europe’s biggest clubs”.

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The report further adds that Mourinho “saw the young Serb as a potential replacement for Pogba when he was in charge at Manchester United and has made it clear he would like to bring him to Tottenham”.

Dembele’s heir

Since the departure of Belgian midfield maestro Mousa Dembele, Spurs haven’t had a real powerhouse with some elegance and craft in the engine room.

Tanguy Ndombele has flattered to deceive ever since his arrival from Lyon last summer, with reports even linking him with a potentially quick north London exit.

But in the £57.6m-rated Milinkovic-Savic, Spurs could finally have someone who can help run the show in the middle of the park, and offer some real power and thrust. This season in Serie A, he has managed four goals and four assists, whilst his underlying numbers are particularly impressive.

He averages two shots, 1.2 key passes, 1.2 dribbles, 1.6 tackles and 1.3 interceptions per game – the complete midfield package. In his final season in north London, Dembele averaged fairly similar defensive numbers, but had more dribbles per game at 2.4.

If Mourinho takes the shackles off Milinkovic-Savic, then there’s no reason why he can’t become a more offensive threat with his driving runs from midfield. At 6 foot 3, he is slightly taller than the 6 ft 1 Dembele, so the raw physical attributes are all there for the Lazio star to become a real presence for Spurs, and perhaps even end up erasing those painful memories of losing the latter.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans are elated by this transfer report.