Mauro Icardi and 4 Strikers Tottenham Should Sign in January Transfer Window

With the January transfer window approaching, the time has come for Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino to strengthen his team's striking options.

Both Roberto Soldado and Emmanuel Adebayor have been below-par in the opening months of the season and there is little reason to believe that either is the man to lead the line going forward.

Harry Kane's emergence as a viable starting striker has taken some of the pressure off so far but an injury or loss of form would leave Spurs desperately short.

According to reports in the Italian press from Tuttosport (h/t Here Is The City), Spurs have joined the race for Inter Milan's Mauro Icardi.

Icardi is one of Inter's brightest talents, but his personality issues could facilitate a sale.

Looking further afield, there are plenty of talented strikers that Spurs could pursue to strengthen their attack. Here are a few of the best options. 

Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan)

Mauro Icardi burst onto the scene in January 2013 with a remarkable haul of four goals for Sampdoria against Pescara. 

He turned 20 during a highly successful first full season in Italy, scoring 10 goals as Samp finished 14th in Serie A. 

That success earned him a transfer to Inter, where he scored nine goals in an injury-hit campaign. This year, though, with injury problems behind him, Icardi has scored 11 goals in 16 games including four in five in Europe. 

The Argentinian originally moved to Europe to join Barcelona's academy as a 14-year-old. He failed to make an appearance before being acquired by Samp. 

Despite being a prodigiously talented young striker, Icardi is unfortunately better known for his off-field exploits. 

While playing at Samp, Icardi reportedly developed a strong relationship with senior team-mate Maxi Lopez. Lopez, it is said, took the young man under his wing. Unfortunately, Lopez's wife Wanda Nara and Icardi struck up a relationship and she has since left Lopez to marry Icardi. 

Matches between Icardi's Inter and Lopez's Sampdoria were soon to be known as the "Wanda Derby."

If Icardi's personality is not a major distraction, his talent makes him an obvious target for Spurs. 

Despite his youth, Icardi is a senior member of the Inter squad. 

He is an aggressive forward that attacks the ball with vicious intensity. He possesses a keen sense for how the play will unfold and drifts away from defenders nicely. 

Icardi wouldn't be cheap, but his talent makes him a gamble worth taking. 

Paulo Dybala (Palermo)

Alessandro Fucarini/Associated Press

Staying in Italy, and with another young Argentinian, Paulo Dybala is a name that is fast becoming very well known. 

Dybala was signed in 2012, with some of the cash Palermo had earned in the sales of Edinson Cavani and Javier Pastore. 

Compared with countryman Sergio Aguero's rapid adaption to the Premier League, he took some time to find his feet in Serie B and then Serie A last season after his team won promotion. 

This season, he has scored five league goals already and club president Gian Piero Gasperini has declared him "the best striker in Serie A" and demanded £31 million from any would-be suitors in an interview with Italian broadcaster Mediaset (h/t the Express). 

However, according to the Mirror, his contract is running down so a bargain could be sought by a fast-moving club. 

He told Sky Sport Italia he is keen to stay in Sicily (h/t Football Italia) where the club have carefully fostered his development, but Palermo are known sellers. 

If Spurs offer an attractive fee, they'll get their man. 

Dybala is slight and would likely take some time to adapt to the Premier League, but his potential is staggering. 

He has the kind of stop-start acceleration that would unsettle any defender and, as well as being capable at dead ball situations, possesses a powerful shot.

Dybala is more exciting and potentially more talented than Erik Lamela. Of course, as with Lamela, there is the risk that Dybala might be unable to produce his best form in England. 

Carlos Bacca (Sevilla)

Lefteris Pitarakis/Associated Press

If Spurs are keen on a more experienced and predictable option, they could do far worse than Sevilla striker Carlos Bacca. 

The 28-year-old has been a journeyman of sorts in his career, but he's been prolific wherever he has gone. 

First moving to Europe with Club Brugge, he scored at a rate of two goals in every three games. That scoring record prompted Sevilla to move for him in 2013. 

His brilliant debut season (he scored 21 goals in all competitions) helped restore his international career and he was selected for Colombia in Brazil 2014. 

Not particularly fast, tall or strong, Bacca's most predictable attribute is his goalscoring. 

Some superficial similarities to Roberto Soldado might give some Spurs fans pause, but Bacca is proven in three very different leagues. 

Unfortunately, Sevilla and Spurs don't have a great relationship. The fallout from Spurs' poaching of Juande Ramos in 2008 might make this transfer too difficult for Daniel Levy to pull off. 

Jonathan Soriano (Red Bull Salzburg)

Uncredited/Associated Press

Tottenham's newly appointed Head of Recruitment and Analysis, Paul Mitchell, secured one of the signings of the summer in Sadio Mane while at his former club Southampton. 

Mane's former team-mate Jonathan Soriano could be the next star to make the jump from Austria's Bundesliga to the Premier League. 

Soriano scored an astonishing 48 goals in all competitions last season and this term has already notched 28 in 26 games. He was schooled in Barcelona with both Espanyol and the Barca B team. 

He scores all kinds of goals but has a particular eye for free-kicks. 

Sky Sports pundit Gerry Armstrong doesn't believe Soriano is a particularly impressive player, per the Daily Record, but his goal return alone surely makes him worthy of consideration. 

Southampton took a gamble in signing Mane and it looks to have paid off, with the unconventional attacker playing a major role in Saints' stunning start to the season. 

Red Bull would be unhappy to lose their prize asset but Spurs could surely lure Soriano with the glamour of the Premier League and the promise of potential domestic and European glory. 

Michy Batshuayi (Marseille)

Claude Paris/Associated Press

Michy Batshuayi may be a surprise inclusion on this list given the fact that he only joined Marseille in the summer. Unfortunately for Marseille, the move doesn't seem to have worked out. 

New manager Marcelo Bielsa made a statement denying involvement in any of Marseille's summer signings and, as a result, he has given Batshuayi precious little playing time. 

With that in mind, Batshuayi is likely to be made available in January.

Spurs were linked with Batshuayi in the summer transfer window, per the Daily Mail, and the chance to snatch a player that had seemingly got away will surely delight Daniel Levy. 

Bielsa is a mentor of Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino and that relationship could help move Tottenham to the front of the queue. 

The Belgian striker was prolific last season, scoring 21 league goals for Standard Liege, and his transfer fee of just £4.8 million makes him easily affordable. 

Batshuayi is a rough diamond but, much like Liverpool's acquisition of countryman Divock Origi, could prove a shrewd signing given time to perfect his trade.