Ramos clout gives Spurs extra bite in transfer battle

With the final game of a bitterly disappointing league campaign just a few days away Juande Ramos would be forgiven for taking the first few weeks of his holiday to reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of his squad before commencing the search for new recruits. However, the fact that our season effectively ended with the inept swing of Pascal Chimbonda's right foot that saw us crash out of the Uefa Cup back in March has afforded Ramos the luxury of a head-start in the race to procure his main transfer targets.

The first palpable result of this preparation was the signing of the wily Luka Modric. Snatched from underneath the noses of a dozen of Europe's top clubs (and Newcastle) Modric represents an impressive coup for Ramos and a testament to the Spaniard's efficiency when it comes to improving his squad.

With £16.5m of his summer budget already spent you would have expected a lull in transfer speculation but rumours suggest Ramos' summer revolution is far from over (and it's not even summer yet). The rapid capture of Modric points not only to Ramos' hand being forced by interest from other clubs but that he is a manager who knows exactly who he wants to bring into the club, and exactly who he wants out.

After adding guile and creativity to his midfield, it appears Juande is looking to add some much needed bite and tenacity. In the past two days stories within two of the more respectable national newspapers tell of our interest in Portsmouth's Lassana Diarra and Michael Johnson of Manchester City, with the Pompey midfielder making no secret of his desire to move to a bigger club when he joined the south coast side in January.

Both players would offer Ramos strength and work-rate in the heart of his side but Diarra is the more finished product. The French international has been in superb form for Harry Redknapp's team and looks as though he has every chance of fulfilling the promise that saw him become one of the most sort after players in the league in the mid-season transfer window. Attitude problems aside, he would be an excellent addition to the squad.

Both Johnson and Diarra are realistic targets, which is perhaps more than can be said for Samuel Eto'o. According to reports in Spain Barcelona has been approached by officials from White Hart Lane with a view to thrashing out a deal that could cost the club anywhere between £15m to £28m, depending on what paper you read.

Now without wishing to urinate on anyone's heat producing device, this is a highly unlikely deal. Even if you factor in the sale of Berbatov - and the only factor stopping him from leaving is the hefty price tag we have justifiably slapped on him - Eto'o is one of the top strikers in the world and if he were to leave the Nou Camp it would surely be for a club who can guarantee him Champions League football.

It is fair to say, however, that it would take something truly special, or horrific, to surprise me this summer. Ramos is clearly a man with clout, so who knows who he might convince to join his north London revolution. I, for one, can't wait to find out who...

so long as it's not Anton Ferdinand.