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What's the story?
Oh, Chelsea! Oh, Antonio Conte! After having been pipped to the tape by Manchester United for Romelu Lukaku, it appears that Chelsea have lost out on yet another Premier League striker they'd been targeting.
And that's thanks to Mauricio Pochettino and Tottenham Hotspur. The good folk at Sky Sports are reporting that Spurs have agreed terms with Swansea City over their talismanic striker Fernando Llorente.
In case you didn't know
Nicknamed El Rey Leon, the Lion King, the Basque striker played a massive role in Swansea staying afloat last season scoring 15 vital goals in 35 games for the otherwise goal-shy Welsh outfit.
Antonio Conte is a huge admirer of Llorente - having lured him for Atheltic Bilbao to Juve during his time there - and he'd have added a new, direct, dimension to the Blues attack. Fernando Llorente's aerial prowess is pretty darn amazing and with Premier League defences all over struggling to defend set-pieces, he'd be a superb addition to any squad aiming for a high finish this season.
The heart of the matter
Tottenham have struggled off the blocks this season with their woeful lack of squad depth having been exposed repeatedly. Fernando Llorente would go a long way in correcting that - and his introduction would bring out the best of Christian Eriksen as well... imagine having to defend both Harry Kane and Fernando Llorente on a set piece!
Chelsea, meanwhile, are having a pretty bad transfer window, by their standards and are still looking to add to their slightly shallow squad.
Video
Here's the Lion King at his best under Conte for Juventus, he spent three years playing for the Seria A goliaths:
The Basque striker is a force to reckon with, and virtually unstoppable on his day.
Author's Take
Tottenham Hotspur finished 2nd last season but never really looked a real contender for the league title that they haven't won since 1960-61. With Harry Kane, Dele Alli, and Christian Eriksen in the form of their lives what Pochettino really requires is some attacking firepower to supplement them on their off days and/or rest days.
Fernando Llorente is that, and much more, and the Basque would be a superb addition to the Spurs squad - and would enable Pochettino to change up their tactics at will.
