It means Spurs head into the summer with their tail between their legs. Despite their plight over the last two seasons, this is still an incredibly appealing side to play for. The stadium is perhaps the best in the country and the chance to live in London helps matters too.

It's safe to say their first two signings of the window would not have happened if relegation was confirmed.

The Lilywhites were working behind the scenes to seal moves for Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi and both of those deals look to have been wrapped up.

Robertson moves from Liverpool as one of the best left-backs the division has ever seen while Senesi arrives as one of the league's leading centre-backs. It's a great start to the window but there is more to come.

Spurs in talks to seal big signing this week

After the arrivals of Senesi and Robertson, the north Londoners are ramping up their plans to seal two more new signings with Manchester City's Savinho their top target in attack.

The Brazilian nearly joined Spurs last summer but now he is reportedly pushing to join the Lilywhites in what could be a £50m move.

Tottenham are keen to get a deal done and the likelihood of this one going through is now more likely than it looked nearly a year ago.

Savinho is not the only Premier League target for Roberto De Zerbi and Co. Indeed, he's looking to bring in one or two players from former employers Brighton.

Midfielder Carlos Baleba has been the subject of interest from Tottenham, as too has been his colleague in defence, Jan Paul van Hecke.

Last week it was reported that Spurs had seen a bid rejected for the big Dutch defender but fresh reports and quotes indicate they are ramping up their efforts to land the centre-back.

Indeed, Dutch journalist Joost Blaauwhof shared late on Sunday night that Tottenham had now agreed personal terms with Van Hecke as they edge towards concluding a deal.

An insider with close connections to the story, working with Blaauwhof, further revealed that the deal is now in its 'final stages' with the player wanting everything completed this week before the World Cup gets underway.

Spurs are said to be preparing a bid worth £45m plus £5m in add-ons.

Why Van Hecke would be a better signing than Savinho

The arrival of Savinho could be a game-changer for a Tottenham attack that looked all at sea in 2025/26. Truthfully, the whole squad looked all at sea but they were particularly lacking on the flanks.

They took the strange decision to sell Brennan Johnson in January and just weeks after were dealt the blow of Mohammed Kudus being ruled out through injury. If Spurs could turn back time they likely would have waited until the summer to get rid of Johnson.

Alas, they could correct things in the forthcoming months with the arrival of Manchester City's Brazilian winger.

That said, he did only score one goal last season and even if he did have reduced minutes, there are better use of funds.

While Spurs did struggle in attack, the defence needs to be the priority. Only the relegated sides conceded more goals than Spurs did in the Premier League last season.

It explains why De Zerbi and his transfer team have already concluded moves for Robertson and Senesi. Yet, Van Hecke would be the marquee addition, the Virgil van Dijk-like signing that could transform Spurs.

You may well recall when Van Dijk moved to Tottenham in a £75m deal from Southampton. That felt expensive at the time but he has quickly established himself as one of the finest defenders the league has ever seen.

That's not to say Van Hecke could become the same but it's context over the fee. Given his qualities, perhaps it's not ridiculous whatsoever to pay around £50m to sign the Brighton man.

The backline at Spurs have been nothing short of a horror show over the last years and with skipper Cristian Romero also likely to depart, signing somebody like the Netherlands centre-half makes a lot of sense.

A strong defender and good in the air, he ranks in the top 8% of positionally similar players in Europe for aerial duels won per 90 minutes.

Van Hecke isn't just a monster in the air but he's also a graceful giant at the same time. He's one of the most progressive defenders around, ranking in the best 1% for progressive carries per 90 and the best 1% for progressive passes.

In that regard, Van Hecke is elite and it quickly becomes apparent why Spurs are so willing to pay £50m for him this summer.

Savinho would be a solid pick up in attack but he's not a massive upgrade on the likes of Kudus and James Maddison. He is not the transformational signing that the Brighton man could be.