Tottenham Hotspur look to have suffered a major blow to their hopes of signing one of their top striker targets, Younes Ebnoutalib, in the January transfer window.

It’s no secret that Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi has instructed club chiefs to add a new No.9 to his squad in the upcoming winter window, especially given the ongoing struggles of current strikers Dominic Solanke and Omar Marmoush.

Indeed, the pair have scored just two of the club’s 10 Premier League goals to date between them, while the weekend defeat at Leeds United means Marmoush has still not registered an away goal in English football’s top flight since moving to Manchester City in January 2025.

Add in the fact that Solanke has largely been a flop in front of goal for Spurs too, with 13 goals in 48 Premier League outings for Tottenham, and it’s clear that something needs to happen in January.

Multiple names have been linked with a switch to north London, despite January traditionally being a much more difficult time to add quality signings, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Our friends over at TEAMtalk revealed on November 11 that Spurs are still exploring an ambitious move to sign Bournemouth sensation Eli Junior Kroupi ahead of north London rivals Arsenal.

The Cherries star is not the only frontman on the club’s radar, however, with Tottenham having also previously scouted Eintracht Frankfurt star Ebnoutalib.

The 23-year-old is attracting plenty of attention right now, with Italian giants Juventus also keen, after an impressive start to the new campaign. Indeed, he has scored eight goals in 11 outings in all competitions for the German outfit.

Tottenham target Ebnoutalib delivers signing blow 

While Spurs are one of a number of clubs currently monitoring the Germany international’s progress, it appears that he is ready to deliver a blow to their hopes of a January swoop for his signature.

According to German newspaper SportBILD (per Sport Witness), Ebnoutalib has ‘no interest in moving to the Premier League next year’. Instead, the centre-forward wants to’ stay in the Bundesliga if he decides to leave Frankfurt’.

Ebnoutalib, who won his first senior cap for Germany against the Netherlands during the September international break, has spent the entirety of his career to date in his homeland, outside of a short stint in Italy with Perugia.

To that end, it’s no real surprise to see him looking to remain in Germany, with only Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig considered upgrades to Frankfurt in Germany, if he was to move to another club there.

The news will come as a potential blow to Tottenham, however, especially when Ebnoutalib would cost considerably less than Bournemouth’s asking price for Kroupi.

That being said, Kroupi at least showcased last season that he can score goals in the Premier League, as De Zerbi looks to secure more firepower to his starting XI in the new year.