Tottenham have been urged by former defender William Gallas to make sweeping changes across the backline in the January transfer window. It comes as head coach Antonio Conte faces a challenge to refresh his squad ahead of the latter half of the Premier League season.
Spurs made an ideal start to their campaign, but currently face an uphill battle against their rivals to finish inside the top four, with back-to-back Champions League finishes offering a huge financial base for the club. Discussing transfer policy, Conte said: "At the start of the season, I was very, very clear with the club. I said: 'Okay, we can be competitive to win, but try to continue to improve in a way we can do it.'
"Because, also, you have to know there are clubs who can invest £200m, £300m and then other clubs who have different [policies]. You have to respect other [policies]. But that has to be very clear to the people, because otherwise we create an expectation and it's not positive for the environment to create expectations that, in this moment, are not realistic."
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It means the side have little time to waste in the transfer market, with plenty of their Premier League rivals already looking to strengthen. With that in mind, former defender Gallas believes that the defence is a particular area to address during the next few weeks.
He told GentingCasino: "For Spurs, it all depends on the players who came in for the summer. If he said he needs more players, he will fail to reach the top four. Conte definitely needs players at the back - as the defence is not playing up to the level they need to at the moment."
As it currently stands, World Cup winner Cristian Romero has been the only undroppable in the backline, suggesting that sweeping changes could be required across the backline.
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