Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Tottenham will definitely sign a centre-back this summer.

Tottenham have been linked with Bologna defender Takehiro Tomiyasu in recent weeks, and Romano has revealed that they are closing in on landing the 22-year-old.

However, he has also added that regardless of whether Spurs get Tomiyasu or not, they will certainly buy at least one centre-back in the current transfer window.

Romano said on The Here We Go Podcast“Tomiyasu is getting closer because they offered €18m (£15.3m), add-ons included. They are progressing in talks and the player wants to join Tottenham, and Arsenal are not an option for Tomiyasu right now, so Tottenham are going for it.

“They are going for a centre-back. It’s still an open situation but 100% they will sign at least one centre-back.”

[gmsStartingEleven url="https://givemesport.starting11.co.uk/2019-12-11/"]

Why are Tottenham so eager to sign a centre-back?

Tottenham currently have four central defenders at their disposal - Toby Alderweireld, Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier and Joe Rodon.

The former two have been linked with moves away from the club this summer, though, and Dier had a difficult time in 2020/21 which led to him being left out of England's squad for Euro 2020. Meanwhile, Rodon was restricted to just eight league starts last season, so has very limited experience in the top-flight.

With this in mind, it is clear that Spurs need reinforcements at centre-back, and that is why they are looking to bring in at least one player for this position ahead of the new season.

Raphael Varane looks set to be the next DONE DEAL at Man United! Hear the latest on The Football Terrace...

Which other centre-backs have been linked with a move to Tottenham?

As well as Tomiyasu, it seems that Tottenham have some other options that they could go after to bolster their back line.

Sevilla's Jules Kounde has been linked with a move to north London, with Gianluca Di Marzio recently claiming that Tottenham have agreed a deal to sign him in a move which would see Sanchez going in the opposite direction.

The Italian journalist also mentions that Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar is on Tottenham's radar but that the Slovakia international is not keen on leaving the Serie A champions right now.

Is Nuno looking to build from the back at Spurs?

It seems that he might be.

During his time at Wolves, Nuno's side were rarely the most adventurous side when it came to attacking. In his three top-flight seasons at the club, they failed to score more than 51 goals in a campaign.

Much of Wolves' success in their first two Premier League seasons under Nuno was built on their solid defence, particularly in 2019/20 when they conceded just 40 league goals.

It appears that Nuno now wants to make Tottenham's defence tougher to breach next season after they shipped 45 goals in 2020/21.

By bringing in a defender or two in the transfer window, he could significantly strengthen the side's back line, which would then give the team a steady base, as they look to improve on last year's disappointing seventh-placed finish.