Summer Transfer Window Review

Head coach Mauricio Pochettino likes signing a defender and this transfer window was no exception. Spurs saw three new additions at the back – Kevin Wimmer, Kieran Trippier and Toby Alderweireld – as the club looked to address the horrendously leaky defence we witnessed last season.

Article by Atour Toma

Goalkeeper

Not much change in the goalkeeper ranks to be honest.

This summer Brad Friedel decided to hang up his gloves and move back to the U.S. at the ripe old age of 44. While he didn’t feature much for the first team the last couple of years, his experience and professionalism must have been invaluable around the place. For that reason, it is good to see the club have retained a working relationship with him going forward even if it’s just in an ambassadorial role.

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However Spurs’ most important transfer move of the entire window was probably holding on to their captain, Hugo Lloris. The fact the club was able to retain a player of his undoubted quality is a big statement of intent, and credit must go to the Frenchman for not demanding the transfer that he probably deserves. The demonstration of commitment by Hugo is commendable and it is unfortunate the club weren’t able to reciprocate by bringing in a couple more players of similar quality.

Defence

Head coach Mauricio Pochettino likes signing a defender and this transfer window was no exception. Spurs saw three new additions at the back – Kevin Wimmer, Kieran Trippier and Toby Alderweireld – as the club looked to address the horrendously leaky defence we witnessed last season.

Wimmer has yet to feature but the left-sided centre back comes highly rated from the Bundesliga, having been part of a FC Koln that had the 5th tightest defence in the league last season. Initially the Austrian will probably provide cover for Jan Vertonghen, but could be a long-term replacement should he develop as planned.

Similarly Trippier has yet to feature but it is hoped the increased competition he provides will raise the performances and consistency of regular first-choice right back, Kyle Walker, in the same way Danny Rose improved so much last season.

Finally, Alderweireld arrived from Atletico Madrid having impressed on loan at Southampton last season. Long time friend and centre-back partner to Vertonghen, Alderweireld is expected to bring out the best in his compatriot and help form a solid and dependable centre back pairing for years to come.

On the way out was Vlad Chiriches, who moved to Serie A side, Napoli, as well as one-time captain, Younes Kaboul, transferring to Sunderland. Both had a torrid season last time and were generally an accident waiting to happen. In addition, Kaboul seemed to be part of the “bad apples” that didn’t buy into the Pochettino philosophy. Kaboul has had some great spells with the club over the years and that should be recognised, but from a footballing perspective neither will really be missed.

Midfield

Spurs saw a lot of outgoings in midfield and only a handful of arrivals. Paulinho moved to China. Watford signed Etienne Capoue. Benjamin Stambouli transferred to PSG, while Lewis Holtby made his Hamburg loan permanent.

It was largely agreed that most of these players were not contributing much to the side and it made sense to sell them off while they still retained some degree of market value. However the decision to let them go and not replace them has left the centre of midfield worrying light and lacking in experience. Stambouli and Capoue in particular could have still done a job for Spurs in terms of adding some much needed steel and defensive solidity in the middle of the park.

While Pochettino likes giving youth a chance, the decision to leave himself with just the talented but inexperienced quartet of Nabil Bentaleb, Ryan Mason, Eric Dier and Dele Alli is questionable at best and lamentable at worst – especially when he continues to play arguably his best central midfielder, Mousa Dembele, on the right wing.

As a side note, Paulinho has turned into a bit of a creative force with his new club Guangzhou Evergrande. Admittedly it’s only the Chinese league but it raises the question as to why Spurs persisted in playing him in an ineffective defensive midfielder role most of the time.

“As the last of Spurs’ popular Champions League side to leave the club, Lennon’s move truly represents the end of an era….”

Out wide, the club saw long-time servant, Aaron Lennon sign permanently for Everton. While he’s not the player he was a few years ago, he still could have contributed to the team and many would say he’s been treated a little unfairly. As the last of Spurs’ popular Champions League side to leave the club, his move truly represents the end of an era.

Coming the other way were Cameroon international, Clinton N’Jie and South Korea star, Son Heung-Min, who both joined Spurs in August. Neither player may be a household name, but the word is that they are versatile wingers who could bring some much needed pace to the attack. Son, in particular, looks impressive, having made 19 Champions League appearances for previous club, Bayer Leverkusen, scoring 5 goals in the process. Time will tell how good they are and how they’ll fit in, but it’s worth retaining judgement at least until they have played a few games for Spurs.

Attack

The attack saw just one departure – Roberto Soldado to Villarreal. The overwhelming majority of fans agreed it was time for him to go this summer – no matter what they might be saying now. He’d had long enough and it just wasn’t happening for him. The fact he’s scored two goals and got two assists in his first two La Liga games for the Yellow Submarine is not something that will be discussed in any detail in this article. Hindsight is a great thing.

What can be questioned is why Spurs signed him in the first place. The man thrived for years in a system that suited his strengths. Spurs signed him and played in a completely different way, effectively starving him of the service that made him such an effective frontman in Spain. Quite how this discrepancy wasn’t picked up in the initial scouting will never be known. With his confidence shot to bits he was never going to recover. And he is just that – a confidence player. While Spurs may not have been right for him, it’s hard not to question his own mental strength and passion for a fight. When things weren’t going his way he seemed to just accept it and let it overwhelm him (a la Torres), rather than fight back and overcome it (Diego Costa).

Predictably Emmanuel Adebayor didn’t budge. The lazy so-and-so preferred to sit it out for a year picking up his £100k a week while not even being given a squad number. Potential transfers to various clubs fell through due to such reasons as his reluctance to relocate from London, as well as the fact he didn’t get a sign from God. God must be an Arsenal fan.

“By not bringing anyone in to support Kane they’ve effectively hung him out to dry…”

No new additions came in upfront. And this is the big issue with this transfer window. By selling Soldado, freezing out Adebayor, and not bringing anyone in, Spurs have effectively left the lone figure of Harry Kane to shoulder the responsibility for leading the line. No backups, no alternatives, just him. He’s already struggling for goals this season and at only 22, will suffer dips in form at some point this season. By not bringing anyone in – whether it was Saido Berahino or someone else – to support him they’ve effectively hung him out to dry. Terrible decision making by Daniel Levy and co, and they must be made to answer for it in the near future.

So overall I’d give Spurs’ transfer activity this window a 6/10. The club addressed the weak defence from last season, added some pace to the side and got rid of a lot of deadwood. However there’s no forgiving leaving themselves with one striker, and the lack of experience in central midfield is also a worry. It seems they give with one hand and take away with the other most of the time.

#COYS

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