Player analysis: Who is £9m Tottenham signing Etienne Capoue?

The lowdown on the French midfielder who today made the move to White Hart Lane

Etienne Capoue looks set to complete his move to Tottenham after a fee was agreed between Spurs and Toulouse (GETTY IMAGES)

As Andre Villas-Boas and Tottenham Hotspur continued to add a continental flavour to their squad for the impending season with the signing of Etienne Capoue from Toulouse on Thursday, many Spurs supporters were left asking who?

With Tom Huddlestone and seemingly Jake Livermore the latest English players to depart the club - both joining Hull this week - following the departures earlier this summer of Steven Caulker and David Bentley, Spurs’ squad for 2013/14 has a more cultured feel to it than the English players preferred by former manager Harry Redknapp in recent seasons.

Linked to Arsenal last year and heavily expected to join Premier League newcomers Cardiff City last month, 25-year-old Capoue has won seven caps for France, scoring once. He had previously spent the whole of his career in his homeland, making 174 appearances for Toulouse after signing as a professional in 2008, and has been a mainstay in the Ligue 1 side in recent seasons, making over 30 appearances in each of the last five campaigns as well as being named in the top flight’s team of the year in 2012.

His playing style is remarkably similar to that of Huddlestone, with the player equally at home in either defence or midfield. Stocky in frame, the 6ft2 has quick feet and can start attacks from deep with defence-splitting passes, but also favours venturing forward at times and possesses a powerful shot. Capoue’s arrival follows the earlier captures of midfielders Paulinho and Nacer Chadli and the forward Roberto Soldado.

Watch Capoue in action...