Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly added Flamengo striker Pedro to their list of potential successors to Harry Kane.
As things stand, Kane will be free to walk away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for nothing when his contract expires at the end of the upcoming campaign.
Despite the danger of losing his star man on a free transfer, Lilywhites chairman Daniel Levy continues to rebuff attempts to prise Spurs' all-time top scorer away from North London this summer.
Bayern Munich are thought to be the only team left in the race for the England captain, who was previously linked with Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain but recently ruled out a move to the latter.
Levy is also not expected to entertain bids from a Premier League rival, while Bayern have had two offers of their own turned down but are not throwing in the towel just yet.
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Spurs may eventually be pressured into a sale if Kane makes it clear that he will not sign a new deal, and a host of strikers have been tipped to replace the 29-year-old if he does depart imminently.
Lille's Jonathan David and Juventus' Dusan Vlahovic are said to be on the Lilywhites' shortlist, as is Brentford's Ivan Toney, but Spurs are unlikely to move for the latter until his eighth-month ban ends in January.
Alternatively, The Independent claims that Flamengo attacker Pedro is seen as a possible candidate to take over from Kane, having consistently delivered on the goalscoring front over the past few years.
The 26-year-old represented Fluminense and Fiorentina before returning to his homeland with Flamengo in 2020, originally on loan before his stay was made permanent in January 2021.
Pedro has since registered an impressive 93 goals and 23 assists in 190 matches for the Brazilian giants, including a tournament-high 12 strikes en route to the 2022 Copa Libertadores title.
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The Brazil international also topped the scoring charts at the most recent Club World Cup with four goals, and he has already netted 26 times from 35 games in Flamengo's 2023 season.
Pedro's exploits with Flamengo earned him a place in Brazil's 2022 World Cup squad, where he played two games off the bench as the Selecao lost on penalties to Croatia in the quarter-finals, although he converted his attempt from 12 yards.
However, Flamengo can afford to play hardball in negotiations, as Pedro remains contracted to the club until December 2027, although there is a consensus that the striker is now ready to test himself in Europe once again.
Pedro would supposedly be seen as a good fit for a new-look attack under Ange Postecoglou, who has already added Manor Solomon and James Maddison to his frontline this summer.
A new centre-back is also on the agenda for Tottenham, who are soon expected to close a £3m deal for Blackburn Rovers' 18-year-old protege Ashley Phillips and reportedly remain interested in Micky van de Ven, Edmond Tapsoba and Marc Guehi.
Ben Knapton
