Transfer windows used to be synonymous with Jim White’s luminous yellow tie; now they are more commonly associated with a #LevyOut hashtag on Twitter.
It has become something of a cliché that football clubs find it more difficult to conduct meaningful transfer business in January than they do in the summer, but that has certainly proven the case this month.
The window closes at 11pm on Monday and so far there have been only 21 signings made by Premier League clubs. Half of the clubs in the division are yet to make any and a handful – Aston Villa, Everton, Newcastle and Watford – account for over half of the deals completed.
Many expected Tottenham to freshen up their squad in what is Antonio Conte’s first transfer window since taking charge of November but it hasn’t panned out that way. Instead, they are part of the other group that have not made any additions, despite Conte repeatedly insisting that his current squad is not good enough.
More from Football
Rooney rejecting Everton isn't about Derby loyalty - it's a deeply unappealing job28 January, 2022
Liverpool beating Tottenham to Diaz summarises where the two clubs are at right now28 January, 2022
The making of Adam Idah - from the Cork Schoolboy's league to Norwich's survival battle28 January, 2022Spurs appear to be in the rather unique position of having the stadium, facilities and financial clout to attract a world-class manager at his peak, but not an overall package to persuade players to pick them over rival clubs. The past couple of days have been wounding ones for chairman Daniel Levy, director of football Fabio Paratici and of course, Conte himself, with two top transfer targets spurning Spurs in favour of moves elsewhere.
Throughout the window, it looked as if Spurs were in pole position to land Adama Traore from Wolves with the aim of transforming the inconsistent winger into an unstoppable force at right wing-back. That is until Barcelona, Traore’s former club, gazumped them on Thursday. Traore will join Barca on loan until the end of the season and sign permanently in the summer for £25m. In other words, for the same fee that Spurs paid Barcelona for their current first-choice right wing-back Emerson Royal in August.
Then on Friday, Spurs’ pursuit of the prolific Colombian wide forward Luis Diaz from Porto also hit a snag as Liverpool hijacked their bid. The 25-year-old was reportedly on Liverpool’s summer shopping list, however, after catching wind of Spurs’ interest, they have acted decisively to beat them to the punch in order to further future-proof an ageing attack.
Spurs look destined to miss out on Ivorian midfielder Franck Kessie too, with the Ivorian preferring to sit tight and see out his contract with AC Milan instead.
Related Stories
Tottenham’s efforts haven’t been helped by their struggles to offload players that Conte has no use for. In 2019, Levy sanctioned £110m from the club’s transfer kitty to sign Tanguy Ndombele from Lyon and Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis to play alongside Dele Alli in an exciting new-look midfield; despite each being available, none were included in Conte’s most recent Premier League squad against Chelsea and all are free to leave before Monday’s deadline.
The club’s inability to replenish an underachieving squad is at the root of supporter unrest. Confidence in Paratici getting crucial deals done at this stage is the off-field equivalent to watching Harry Kane standing over a free-kick; there is a slither of hope that he may succeed but an overriding expectation that he most likely won’t. Spurs, like a typical Kane free-kick, keep hitting a wall.
More on Tottenham Hotspur FC
Another frequent criticism of Levy is over his apparent parsimony in the transfer market. When Spurs were the only club in Europe’s “big five” leagues not to make a signing in 2018-19, that was a fair accusation but it has been less so in the seasons since. Contrary to popular opinion, Tottenham’s issues are not down to a lack of investment – over £350m has been spent on players over the last five transfer windows – but rather what that money has been spent on.
Tottenham’s best and most consistent players have all been at the club for a considerable length of time. Hugo Lloris joined from Lyon in 2012, Eric Dier signed from Sporting Lisbon in 2014, Son Heung-min followed from Bayer Leverkusen in 2015 and Kane progressed through the academy. For one reason or another, far too many of the club’s recent signings have failed to have the desired impact.
The outlook of Tottenham’s transfer window may be altogether more positive by Monday’s deadline. Fresh from the disappointment of missing out on Traore and Diaz, Spurs are pursuing a deal for Juventus’s Dejan Kulusevski, a talented young player who would add depth and quality up front. Sofyan Amrabat, a midfielder who has fallen out of favour at Fiorentina but impressed for Morocco at the Africa Cup of Nations, is another loan target.
Only time will tell whether any business Spurs do manage to conclude is enough to propel them into the top four by the end of the season and more pertinently persuade Conte to stick around for the long term. It is that latter point that is most concerning to Spurs supporters.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/33UXzKi
Post a Comment