Tottenham 'monitoring' Watford forward Richarlison and could be open to future swap deal

Fears that Watford could soon be prematurely stripped of their two most successful summer additions are likely to grow amid reports that Tottenham Hotspur are closely monitoring the swift progress of Richarlison.

The versatile Brazilian forward was linked with high-profile Premier League rivals Chelsea and Manchester United as well as Eredivisie giants Ajax before moving to Vicarage Road from Fluminense in August for a fee of between £11m ($14.5m) and £13m.

Richarlison has quickly registered a significant impact during his early months in English football, scoring four goals and laying on three assists in 12 appearances across all competitions to help Watford break into the top four before dropping back into mid-table on the back of three consecutive losses.

Such an impressive start appears to have piqued the attention of Mauricio Pochettino, with the Evening Standard claiming that the Argentine is a noted fan of Richarlison as he seeks to make additions to his Tottenham squad during the January transfer window.

The same publication suggests that Spurs will continue to keep tabs on the 20-year-old and may even be willing to include Georges-Kevin Nkoudou or Josh Onomah in a future part-exchange deal.

Former France Under-21 winger Nkoudou has been a peripheral figure since joining Tottenham from Marseille in a £9m deal last summer, making just 21 appearances in total - 19 from the substitutes' bench. He has still yet to start a single league game under Pochettino and missed the beginning of his second season in north London with a foot injury.

Academy graduate midfielder Onomah, meanwhile, joined Championship promotion hopefuls Aston Villa on a season-long loan deal in August after helping England to win the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea and has shone since winning back his regular place in Steve Bruce's starting XI last month.

Bruce has since encouraged Villa to "break the bank" to secure a permanent deal for a player who has made 32 appearances for Tottenham since making his senior debut aged just 17.

Watford will presumably fend off any approaches for Richarlison, who signed a five-year deal in Hertfordshire after concerns that he would not be granted a work permit were successfully allayed.

The Hornets are also already battling to retain the services of highly-rated head coach Marco Silva. The former Hull City boss has further embellished his growing reputation since being appointed as Walter Mazzarri's successor in May and is being pursued by Everton as their number one target to replace Ronald Koeman, who was relieved of his duties last month.

Everton have reportedly offered a compensation package for Silva worth £10m, although that first offer was rejected and Watford - eager to avoid having to search for a 10th manager in just a five-year span - are seemingly refusing to negotiate.