Spurs will certainly look to add to their attack this summer but it was not the first priority; strengthening at the back was. There was also the small matter of £100m man Sandro Tonali arriving.

Now, however, De Zerbi and Co are looking to add at the top end of the pitch. As hard as it may be, the Lilywhites need to find their new versions of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son.

It is now three years since the former made his decision to leave north London behind and it is safe to say that things haven't gone according to plan since then.

How Spurs' attack has performed since Kane left

Replacing Kane was never going to be a walk in the park. He is one of the best strikers of his generation. This year, he has arguably been the best player in the world.

That said, very few fans will have expected Tottenham to be fighting relegation without him. Was Kane carrying the team? They were not a one man band but he did do a lot of the heavy lifting. Three years on, very little heavy lifting is being done.

The last two seasons, in particular, have been particularly hard on Spurs. They have finished 17th in consecutive seasons but during Ange Postecoglou's final season at the helm, they did score 64 Premier League goals, as many as fourth-placed Chelsea.

Sadly, 2025/26, was much more challenging. They only found the net on 48 occasions. To put that into context, Kane scored 36 Bundesliga goals and 61 times in all competitions.

There have been several reasons for the underperformance, not least Kane's departure but recurring injuries and several changes of managers.

The bottom line is that they have not been good enough. Dominic Solanke has been the man entrusted with replacing Kane and while he found the net on 16 occasions under Ange in 2024/25, he only bagged six times during an injury-riddled campaign last time out.

Elsewhere, Richarlison ended last season as Spurs' top scorer, albeit he only beat the goalkeeper on 12 occasions in all competitions. Randal Kolo Muani only netted five times while Mathys Tel and Brennan Johnson scored four apiece. It was not good enough.

Spurs are, unsurprisingly, looking to make a striker signing this summer but they may well already have their next Kane coming through.

How Spurs can find their new Kane

This summer the north Londoners have thrown the kitchen sink at the transfer window and they are not done yet with Bournemouth's Eli Junior Kroupi on their radar.

No teenager has ever scored more goals (13) in their debut Premier League season than Kroupi and since turning 20 this summer, he has attracted interest from plenty of top clubs, including Barcelona, Arsenal and Liverpool. Spurs are at the table too and there is a feeling he would like to join if a fee was agreed.

The Frenchman has demonstrated that he is one of Europe's most promising young players right now but Spurs may well have their own version in the form of Luca Williams-Barnett. Truthfully, he is one of the best young players we've seen come through at Hotspur Way in recent years and it would not be a surprise that if, by the time he turns 20, he is performing to a similar standard as Kroupi in the Premier League.

Why? Well, this 17-year-old is already making waves at first-team level. He made his senior bow last term but has still only appeared once on a competitive basis for Tottenham.

In pre-season, however, he has been electrifying. He really does look like the club's best talent to come through the academy since a certain Kane.

That said, Kane was something of a slow burner. He didn't set the world alight for the youth sides and had to rely on a series of loans away from Spurs before he got his chance at first-team level.

Williams-Barnett is likely to take a different route. Truthfully, he already looks ready to make an impact at the highest level.

Sure, the level of Tottenham's opponents - MK Dons and Auckland FC - may not be particularly high but you can only play against what you are given and the teenager has been on fire.

An attacking midfielder by trade, the teen is yet to score or assist in pre-season but he has undoubtedly been the star of the show across their two pre-season victories.

Williams-Barnett started the 2-0 win over Auckland in New Zealand on Sunday in more of an attacking midfield role and thrived, taking as many as five shots. His performance against MK only a few days before was even better.

This was the first time De Zerbi had been able to take a look at the youngster in match action and boy did he take his chance. The Italian selected him in more of a deep-lying midfield role, one he is not usually accustomed to playing in but it did not faze him one bit.

Mateus Fernandes scored a cracking goal just three minutes in but it was Williams-Barnett who attracted all of the plaudits post-game for a display in which he attempted a whopping six dribbles and created three key passes.

Celebrated as "one of England's best talents at youth level" by Como scout Ben Mattinson, this young boy is going to have an immense future in the game. Last season he scored as many as 16 goals in 19 matches at age group level.

For so long supporters have been looking at the likes of Dane Scarlett, Will Lankshear and Mikey Moore and thinking what if. What if they were the next Kane? Well, in the form of Williams-Barnett, it looks like the academy has produced another world-class player in the making akin to their all-time record scorer.

Expect him to become a key player in the years to come as he rises from academy darling to first-team icon, much like Kane.