The seconds continuously tick down to the close of the transfer window. Tottenham Hotspur have just come off the back of a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Championship outfit Leeds United and with it, have exited the FA Cup at the fourth round.
Meanwhile, a sleepy chairman is enjoying his stretch, wiping the sand away from his eyes and preparing for the week ahead. I am, of course, referring to Spurs supremo Daniel Levy. Yes, regardless of the transfer window being open for the past four weeks, the 50-year-old is now prepared to roll up his sleeves and get to work.
Despite the signings of Ezekiel Fryers and Lewis Holtby on a pre-contract earlier this month, now is the time that Levy decides gets down and dirty to find the precious nuggets of gold that we mere mortals refer to as new players.
The methods of the Spurs man have often been criticised in the past, with Levy confident that waiting until the dying embers of any window leaves the club in a better position to negotiate a deal that would benefit the north London side, whether it saves anything from £250,000 to £2m.
From a business perspective, this is essential. Spurs are looking to fund a new stadium on the current site of White Hart Lane and after registering a loss of £700,000 recently, coupled with the fall down the footballing rich list; every penny counts.
However, in doing so it can at times leave the squad lacking talent. This case was proven last season when, after being linked with a host of players across the month, Spurs were left that tiny iota worse after Harry Redknapp secured the signings of Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha. This, regardless of the last minute deal to bring in Rafael van der Vaart 18 months earlier, has at time irked fans, who many, if not all, will agree the squad detrimentally needs strengthening before Thursday's 11pm deadline.
It was painstakingly evident during the defeat to Leeds that Spurs need to invest before February if they're to have any chance of securing a Champions League place. Reports emanating from Germany suggest that FC Schalke 04 general manager Horst Heldt has been in London over the weekend, prodding and poking Levy to wake up from his January slumber to secure the sale of Holtby before the close of the window.
But is it enough? The FA Cup loss shows Spurs still need attacking talent, be it on the front-line or an attacking midfielder than can cover on the wings, for example; Younes Belhanda. Young, relatively cheap and available; the Montpellier's Moroccan fits the bill of what affectionately is known as 'A Levy Signing'.
Either way as the seconds tick closer and closer towards the transfer window slamming shut, there are those urging Levy to delve into the market sooner rather than later. But, as he dusts off his cheque-book and heads out the front door, the only thing running through the Spurs supremo's head is, in Cristiano Ronaldo-esque fashion: 'Chill: I got this.'
