With rumours abound that new Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou is set to oversee a mass clearout at N17 this summer, the Lilywhites will no doubt need to find suitable, quality replacements for those departing assets in the upcoming window.
Having been lauded for his "exceptional" recruitment record at former club Celtic – as hailed by ex-Hoops skipper, Scott Brown – the 57-year-old will seemingly be hoping to enjoy similar success with regard to his incomings in north London, with the aim of improving a squad that missed out on European qualification in 2022/23.
According to 90min, the Greek-Aussie could potentially return to his previous employers in order to make a handful of key additions, with the report suggesting that there are fears at Parkhead that the treble-winning coach could return to snap up Reo Hatate from the Glasgow side, among others.
The 25-year-old midfielder has proven a truly standout figure for the Old Firm outfit over the last 18 months or so, having initially been signed by Postecoglou for a fee of just £1.4m back in January 2022.
With 27 goals and assists to his name in just 66 games for his current side to date, the Japanese maestro has simply been a "joy to watch" in Scottish football in recent times – as per journalist Sacha Pisani – hence why it could prove an astute move for the Spurs boss to reunite with the 5 foot 8 dynamo over the coming weeks.
What's Reo Hatate's style of play?
It may be of interest to Tottenham supporters to note that the former Kawasaki Frontale sensation is believed to share a statistically, similar profile to that of Manchester City's, Ilkay Gundogan – according to analyst Ben Griffis – with the pair both thriving in the centre of the park for their respective clubs.
Much like Hatate – who bagged nine goals and registered 11 assists in all competitions this season – Gundogan has also been a reliable attacking presence for Pep Guardiola's side, having contributed 11 goals and seven assists so far this term.
That stellar haul for the German international notably includes a brace in last weekend's FA Cup final victory over rivals Manchester United, with the 32-year-old having previously been lauded as a "special player" by Red Devils legend, Roy Keane.
To be able to land their own version of the former Borussia Dortmund ace would then be a real coup for the north Londoners, as the club are arguably in need of a more reliable goalscoring presence in the centre of the park, with Rodrigo Bentancur having been the top scorer among his fellow midfielders with just six goals in 2022/23.
Hatate is also similar to the City star due to his creative quality having averaged 1.3 key passes and recorded ten big chances in 32 Scottish Premiership games, while Gundogan also averaged 1.3 key passes and created six big chances in his 31 Premier League outings.
Lauded as a "machine" and a "different animal" by pundit Kenny Miller, the Celtic man can also put in the hard yards defensively having averaged 1.2 tackles per game in the league, while the Etihad gem shares that willing work ethic having averaged one tackle per game in the top flight.
With Gundogan a player that can seemingly "do everything" – according to Guardiola – Hatate is also a jack of all trades, with pundit Alan Hutton previously stating of his talents: "He is all action, all energy, he is everywhere, tackling, scoring, creating".
As such, amid the chance to potentially acquire the latter man on the cheap – with the diminutive ace valued at just £6m, according to Football Transfers – Postecoglou must do all he can to push for a reunion.