Mauricio Pochettino is on the lookout for a striker to ease the goalscoring burden on Harry Kane in the January window. But might a player who left Tottenham two years ago be the solution?
Stats from daily fantasy football game Oulala would suggest that far from a decent backup on current form Jermain Defoe might be competing for a place in the Spurs side were he still at White Hart Lane.
The past five Premier League games have seen Defoe find the back of the net on five occasions in just 360 minutes of action and from just 11 shots, a record far better than that of Kane in the same period.
His goals have propelled Sunderland to just a point behind Swansea, against whom he struck a crucial hat-trick on Wednesday in a battle of Premier League strugglers.
And on his return to the Lane he will doubtless be fired up to remind Spurs fans just what they have been missing since he moved to the MLS.
Pochettino is certainly aware of the threat he poses, labelling Defoe: “A great player, a top goalscorer.
“His quality is great. It's not new for us.”
Tottenham vs Leicester - FA Cup player ratings
Whilst Kane has continued to impress in 2016, scoring three times in his last five league games at a rate of better than a goal every other game, few would contend that Tottenham do not require another option up top should the 22-year-old suffer an injury.
Spurs chief targets for the January window remain Saido Berahino of West Brom and Fulham youngster Mousa Dembele with little to no chance of Defoe signing for Tottenham for a third time.
Still if the 33-year-old continues his current hot streak in front of goal Sunderland can feel confident that they can extricate themselves from the Premier League basement.
Graphic supplied by daily fantasy football game www.oulala.com. Follow Oulala on Twitter @OulalaGames
