Antonio Conte looks to have already found Tottenham Hotspur's perfect understudy to Harry Kane ahead of the summer transfer window. The 28-year-old has been tasked with a heavy workload this season having appeared 45 times for the north Londoners, featuring in all but four games.
And, following a summer with little rest due to England's road to the European championship final, the responsibility seemingly took a toll on Kane in the early stages. He failed to find the net inside his opening six Premier League appearances, though the England captain has rekindled his form in spectacular fashion, directly contributing towards 13 goals in his previous 11 Premier League outings.
Despite being heavily linked with a move away from White Hart Lane this season, Kane is not yet looking beyond the end of this campaign and there are hopes within the club that he will remain a Spurs player ahead of next season, football.london understands. Therefore, Conte will need a summer arrival who can deputise his acclaimed striker in the coming months — and the Italian boss has already been notified who to bring in.
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Edinson Cavani's brother and agent encouraged Conte to take the striker to Chelsea in the summer of 2016. The Uruguay international was reportedly frustrated at his lack of action and at being played out wide to accommodate Zlatan Ibrahimovic down the middle.
According to the Mirror, the former Blues boss was among those interested in signing the striker, who was aged 29 at the time. Conte was only one of three to be handpicked by Cavani's brother and agent, but a deal failed to materialise.
The Manchester United striker's brother Fernando Guglielmone proclaimed his fondness in the Italian boss. He said: "They are three big coaches, but for Edy I’d prefer the attacking game of Conte or Allegri."
Cavani has struggled to nail down a first-team role in the Red Devils side following the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo. The 35-year-old has featured just 17 times this season for United, though only seven of which have been starts.
He's incurred a growing injury record over the last few months, missing 25 games via injury whether it be tendon irritation, strained groin or a calf injury. Regardless to say, Fabio Paratici has found Conte an innate finisher who could be the perfect deputy to Kane.
