According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte ‘wants to bring someone in’ to bolster his options at centre-back.

Spurs have been linked with several intriguing players in recent months after struggling at the back, although they were unable to sign any defensive reinforcements in the January transfer window.

What is the latest news involving Spurs?

According to The Telegraph, Conte is now eyeing up a new central defender after bringing Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur to the club from Juventus to strengthen his attack and midfield.

The report states that the Tottenham hierarchy have identified three potential candidates to come in and shore things up in north London.

Lille’s Sven Botman was the subject of intense interest from Newcastle United last month before staying put, but the 22-year-old is now also on the radar of Spurs.

Meanwhile, Inter’s Alessandro Bastoni and RB Leipzig’s Josko Gvardiol are also believed to be on Conte’s wish list after putting in some promising displays.

Conte is already familiar with Bastoni’s qualities following their time together at San Siro, which resulted in a Serie A title success last term and could be reunited with the Italy international.

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And it seems Gvardiol’s consistent performances have also caught the eye despite only making the switch from boyhood club Dinamo Zagreb last summer.

What has O’Rourke said about Spurs?

Spurs haven’t performed terribly at the back this season, keeping eight clean sheets in their 21 Premier League fixtures to date, the fifth-highest tally in the top-flight.

However, the top three teams in the division have all conceded significantly fewer efforts than the 27 that have flown past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, and O’Rourke revealed Conte wants a new centre-back to combat that problem.

He told GiveMeSport: “It's a position that Conte wants to bring someone in, he wants to play with that three-man defence.”

Do Spurs need a new centre-back?

Conte has played a three-man defence throughout the majority of his managerial career, having great success with that system at Juve, Chelsea and Inter, winning five league titles in total.

Therefore, it’s no surprise to see Spurs linked with three left-footed players in Botman, Bastoni and Gvardiol.

All of Conte’s current centre-back options are right-footed, meaning Ben Davies has been forced to fill in on the left-hand side, but a long-term solution will surely be needed if Tottenham are to win any silverware.