Signing a centre-back should be close to the top of Nuno Espirito Santo’s shopping list this summer, and Dean Windass reckons that James Tarkowski could solve some of their defensive problems.
Toby Alderweireld’s future is now in doubt following his wish to leave the club, whilst neither Eric Dier nor Davinson Sanchez have performed well enough to be considered first-choice moving forward, meaning Santo is going to need to bring in two central defenders.
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Tottenham ended the season in better form, they conceded 45 times in the Premier League, and need a couple of additions to fix their problems.
Meanwhile, Tarkowski featured 36 times for a Burnley back-four that shipped 55 goals and finished just one place above the relegation-zone.
The England defender has been strongly linked away from Turf Moor in recent years, but with just one year remaining on his deal, his future at Burnley could reach crunch time.
Spurs are reportedly close to bringing in Japanese centre-back Takehiro Tomiyasu, but Windass exclusively told This is Futbol that Tarkowski could be a more affordable option:
“You’ll get him on the cheap and he’s certainly a good player, certainly a good defender. He’s no-nonsense, like [Lewis] Dunk, and unless he signs a new contract, I can’t see him being Burnley for much longer.”