Tottenham were serious contenders to sign Eli Junior Kroupi in the summer before an injury forced them to look elsewhere. Now back in action for Bournemouth, could the Frenchman be the answer to Spurs’ ongoing striker problems?Tottenham have enjoyed a very good spread of goalscorers this season. Of the 10 goals they have scored in the Premier League, nine different players have found the net, with defender Jan Paul van Hecke an unlikely top scorer after registering twice.Perhaps more concerningly, however, Spurs’ actual strikers, Dominic Solanke and Omar Marmoush, have been left some way behind, with just one goal each. The number nine position was always going to be an area Tottenham looked to strengthen after their struggles in front of goal last season, which played a significant part in the club’s relegation battle.For much of the summer, Bournemouth’s Eli Junior Kroupi was the striker Tottenham were seriously pursuing, and many expected him to be the eventual signing. Unfortunately, the Frenchman suffered a fractured metatarsal during pre-season and required surgery in July. Spurs, desperate to bring in a striker, could not afford to wait for his recovery and eventually turned elsewhere.That alternative was Marmoush, who arrived from Manchester City on a season-long loan in all but name – with Tottenham holding a £60m obligation to make the move permanent next summer.However, the Egyptian is not traditionally an out-and-out physical Premier League number nine, even if he has established himself as a goalscorer throughout his career. Marmoush has struggled to impose himself inside the box when leading the line, which explains why De Zerbi has recently used him on the left and in the deeper number 10 role.Solanke, meanwhile, continues to struggle with consistency and availability. He has managed just eight goals since the beginning of last season and has made only 31 appearances during that period.With Tottenham already exploring striker options ahead of January, perhaps it is time to revisit their interest in Kroupi.StatisticEli Junior Kroupi (Bournemouth)Dominic Solanke (Tottenham)Omar Marmoush (Man City)Appearances331521Starts2111—Minutes played1,6741,001701Goals1333Assists003Goal involvements1336Goals per 900.700.270.38Minutes per goal129334234Photo by MB Media/Getty ImagesEli Junior Kroupi: The good and the bad for TottenhamThe biggest positive is that Kroupi is back – and sooner than many might have expected. He has already made three brief substitute appearances across Bournemouth’s last three fixtures, receiving progressively more minutes each time: three against Manchester United, 10 against Aston Villa and 22 most recently against Leeds United.He even played a key role in Bournemouth’s second goal against Leeds, producing a well-weighted through ball for Amine Adli to finish. It was the sort of position from which Kroupi could easily have taken on the shot himself, but his decision to pick out his teammate showed another side to his game.The former Lorient man is an exciting prospect, having enjoyed an excellent debut Premier League campaign last season, scoring 13 goals in just 21 starts. It is perhaps no surprise that Bournemouth were so reluctant to let him leave in the summer.Tottenham also lack a player with Kroupi’s particular and unique profile. Anyone who has watched him will appreciate his exceptional ball-striking and finishing ability. ‘He moves like a winger, finishes like a number nine and thinks like a number 10‘ – thanks to his low centre of gravity, which allows him to roam between the lines, find pockets of space and attack the half-spaces very easily.And that takes us to the first bit of bad – low centre of gravity. Standing at 5ft 10in (179cm), Kroupi is not the most physically imposing striker, nor is he particularly dominant in the air. Of the 13 goals he scored last season, only one came from a header (Crystal Palace, 18 October 2025).That could be a problem when considering the way De Zerbi’s Tottenham have played this season – featuring plenty of crosses into the opposition box. And Kroupi may not be the ideal profile for a system that could benefit from a bigger, stronger presence leading the line, someone like Will Lankshear, perhaps. Whoops! More on that in a moment.Would a front line of Savio, Kudus, and Eli Junior Kroupi be enough of a threat beyond tricky dribbling, or do Tottenham need that central figure to bring others into the game?There is also the small matter of actually getting Kroupi out of Bournemouth. As Spurs Web recently reported, the Cherries have no intention of letting the Frenchman leave midway through the campaign.Bournemouth wanted more than £80m for him in the summer, and for them to change their stance, they could well demand something similar in the next transfer windows, where Tottenham could face competition from several elite clubs, including Paris Saint-Germain and Man United.Even in a parallel universe where Kroupi were to snub those other suitors and decide that north London was his preferred destination, would Tottenham really be willing to outbid those clubs for a 20-year-old who has only just returned from a serious injury?Tottenham may regret selling Will Lankshear too soonThere are not many practical strikers on the market who fit the profile described above Tottenham could arguably do with right now: a big, physically imposing goalscorer who can lead the line. Unfortunately, Spurs may already have had one of their own in Will Lankshear, before selling the academy graduate to Championship side Middlesbrough for around £10m in the summer.Tottenham can at least take some comfort from retaining a 20 per cent sell-on clause, which could prove extremely valuable if the Englishman’s current form is anything to go by.The 21-year-old has scored 15 goals in 16 appearances for Middlesbrough this season already, and is currently the Championship’s leading scorer.It is a significant return, and one that will inevitably raise questions about whether Tottenham were too quick to let him go without giving him a proper opportunity in the first team during his time in north London.Perhaps the answer to Spurs’ striker problem was closer to home than they realised.READ MORE: ‘I’m going to win a trophy at Tottenham’ – How Ange Postecoglou convinced Montgomery to join Spurs project – Spurs WebThe post Eli Junior Kroupi is class but Tottenham may be better off dropping out of £80m race appeared first on Spurs Web.