Christian Eriksen's potential Tottenham return has sparked much of the summer transfer window talk for Tottenham so far. football.london understands that the club haven't followed up on their interest in the Dane as of yet after their contact with the midfielder's camp only a few weeks ago.
N17 looked like a more likely destination for the 30-year-old, as he expressed his desire to play in the Champions League and he was believed to want to stay in London. However, with interest and offers from a number of Premier League clubs, this may not be so vital for Eriksen anymore.
After his cardiac arrest last summer, the Danish international made the miraculous return to football by joining Brentford on a short-term deal in January. Eriksen made a superb impact upon his return to the field, and his performance against Tottenham last season showed the quality the midfielder still has.
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At this current moment, it may not seem as likely as Spurs fans would've hoped that the 30-year-old will be back playing in white at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium next season. However, the transfer window never fails to throw up some twists and turns, so a move can't yet be ruled out completely.
If Eriksen does return to north London, it could allow Antonio Conte to make a change to his formation, which he wasn't easily able to do last season. Since his arrival last November, the Italian opted for a 3-4-3 set-up most of the time.
This consisted of Pierre Emile Hojbjerg in the middle, alongside Oliver Skipp until his injury and then Rodrigo Bentancur following his January arrival. Harry Winks was regularly side-lined and didn't do enough to replace one of the midfield duo when he was given an opportunity.
These were Conte's only real midfield options, which meant he didn't have a strong enough squad to make a regular change to a 3-5-2, which he has been known to use in the past. However, with Tottenham's summer transfer business so far, that could change next season.
Winks looks likely to make an exit this summer, but football.london understands that Skipp has already begun his pre-season training and will return early to Spurs next week, along with Japhet Tanganga and Matt Doherty.
The Lilywhites' third first team signing of the summer was Yves Bissouma, who has made the move from Brighton. The midfielder is a strong addition to Conte's squad and it now means he will have at least four strong candidates for the two central midfield roles.
If Eriksen also makes the move, this would take the tally up to five and could allow the 52-year-old to make a formation change. Conte has previously used a 3-5-2 and it also did seem to suit Tottenham, seen in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool last season.
It was the formation Thomas Frank opted for in the 0-0 draw against Spurs and it allowed the Dane to float about freely on the pitch, making an impact in various areas. This could be the same if he made the move to N17 and could allow him to bring extra creativity to Tottenham's attack, leaving the other two central midfielders to pick up more of the defensive work.
The ability to adapt the formation and make relevant changes isn't something Conte had the benefit of last season. The Lilywhites lacked quality in the depth of their squad and struggled to find players who could make a consistent impact off the bench in all positions.
With the business Spurs have already done, this is likely to improve and the time still left in the summer window will allow them to bring even more strong additions into the Italian's squad. If Eriksen isn't the midfielder to sign for Tottenham this summer, there are others who may be looked at.
The likes of James Maddison, Jesse Lingard and Lucas Paqueta have all been linked and they would all bring their individual qualities to a Spurs side. Therefore if another midfielder makes the move whether that be Eriksen or someone else, Conte will have more options and it will allow him to be versatile in his set-up, which will hopefully give Tottenham a boost next season.
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