Longtime Tottenham Hotspur target, Wilfried Zaha, officially stated his intentions to remain at Crystal Palace for the upcoming season. The 25-year-old was quoted, “I have no plans on leaving. I’m enjoying my football, you can see how much I’m enjoying it. This is my home and there’s no reason for me to leave.”
This might be a major blow for Spurs since they were the heavy favourites to sign him since interests from other top-six Premier League sides started to cool down. Mauricio Pochettino has long been looking to bring in a pacey wide man to get the team’s offence ticking and Zaha was his first priority.
He already has world-class options in Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Heung-min Son but none other than the latter can really play in the wide positions. Lucas Moura is yet to come into his own at the North London club and Erik Lamela is better suited centrally. Moussa Sissoko has been nothing more than just a sporadic consideration since failing to replicate his heroics from his Newcastle United days.
Tottenham have been exposed this season due to the lack of squad depth. They were able to make an inspiring run in the UEFA Champions Leauge but eventually lost out on winning any silverware.
They lost out to Manchester United in the FA Cup Semi-Finals and grabbed the fourth spot in the Premier League. Pochettino needs to make another offensive addition in order to match the talent pool of the elite English clubs.
Here are a few alternatives he could consider in the current market.
Anthony Martial
The Manchester United attacker has been heavily linked with Tottenham after his less-than-favourable season under Jose Mourinho. The Frenchman got dropped from the national team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and has looked unsettled with his rotational role at Old Trafford.
Leon Bailey
The Bayer Leverkusen winger is high on a lot of European club’s transfer list but Pochettino can still make a swoop offer. He will expectedly cost an eye-watering amount but judging by his past season antics, he might very well be worth it.
The Jamaican has a blistering pace to go with his goalscoring record and skills to match that of Zaha.
Xherdan Shaqiri
Stoke City ended their 2017/18 campaign rock bottom of the Premier League table, facing the drop to the Championship. This leaves talented options like Shaqiri cheap for an easy pickup. The Swiss international is simply far too good for the second division and deserves to play in England’s top-flight.
He has stood out in the dimly-lit Potters lineup and has still managed to maintain his quality for his national team. The 26-year-old has the skill and scoring potential to make a huge mark in the Tottenham squad.
