Tottenham Hotspur’s approach to the summer transfer window this year has been calm and composed but with less than two weeks left in the transfer market, they should now hurry up to complete any potential deals this summer. However, Pochettino is still looking to get rid of the deadwood, before making any signings and one such player, who might be sold this summer is Spanish striker Fernando Llorente.
Having started his senior career in Basque, Llorente spent eight long years in the La Liga with Athletic Bilbao, where he registered 111 goals and 36 assists in 327 games in all competitions for the club. He established himself as one of the most consistent goal scorers in Europe and earned himself a move to Turin with Juventus, back in 2013.
He was the first choice striker in his two years at the club, collecting 27 goals and 10 assists in 92 games for the Turin-based outfit. He won the Serie A title in both those campaigns, before being shipped back to Spain with Sevilla in 2015. Llorente made a decent impact at Sanchez Pizjuan as well, registering seven goals and five assists in 36 games in all competitions.
A natural finisher, who can act as a target man, Llorente made a surprise move to England with Swansea City in 2016, as a 31-year-old. He was not expected to put the league on fire, but the Spaniard registered 15 goals and an assist in his time at the Liberty Stadium, also helping them avoid relegation that season.
His consistency saw Mauricio Pochettino sign Llorente as a backup to Harry Kane in the first team, allowing Vincent Janssen to continue his progress elsewhere. However, the 33-year old failed to make an impact in London, and scored just a single league goal, making 16 league appearances.
He did score three goals in five FA Cup starts and made just one league start all season but Llorente is now 33 and does not fit into Pochettino’s recruitment system. He may still be able to add numbers to the attack, as he showed with his brace against AS Roma in a recent friendly.
He has been linked with an exit this summer but the manager was tight-lipped when asked about his future. Pochettino needs to find a striker, capable of complementing Kane next season and if he fails to do so, then losing Llorente could be a huge blow for the club.
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The Spanish centre-forward is experienced and can make an impact off the bench. Keeping him at the club for another season will allow Pochettino to scout for potential strikers, who can join the club next summer. So unless Pochettino has a readymade replacement, who promises more goals than Llorente, there is no reason for Spurs to let him leave this summer.
