Tottenham Hotspur surprised everyone by not buying anyone in the transfer market, but by no means, we could say that they had a poor transfer window. They managed to keep hold of players who seemed almost certain to leave. The two Belgians, Mousa Dembele and Toby Alderweireld have not committed their long-term future at the club, and both were expected to move.
Spurs might have thwarted away Manchester United’s interest for Toby Alderweireld, but latest reports from the Mirror suggest that Bayern Munich are looking at the Belgian as a replacement for Jerome Boateng. The German is likely to move to Paris Saint Germain as he has reportedly agreed on personal terms with the Ligue 1 giants.
Injuries in the last two seasons have plagued Alderweireld’s time at the North London club, and as a result, Mauricio Pochettino brought Colombian centre back Davinson Sanchez. Even when the Belgian has been available, the Argentine manager has used the pairing of Sanchez and Jan Vertonghen, and it seemed that Alderweireld would be sold in the transfer window. With no new signings made, Spurs would need to keep hold of all their players in the remainder of the transfer period even if they run the risk of losing someone like Alderweireld in a cut-price deal next summer.
The Belgian is already in the final year of his contract and Spurs do have an option to extend the deal by another year even if the defender doesn’t sign a new contract. However, that, in turn, would trigger a release clause which is set at £25m and given today’s market condition, that will undoubtedly be peanuts for a defender of Alderweireld’s calibre.
However, if we are to judge, we would run the risk of losing him for that amount next year as long as he puts in a committed performance this year. Now we don’t know what’s going on inside the head of the defender and whether he wants to put on that Spurs shirt again. If he doesn’t, then selling him would be a better idea as you wouldn’t want a player who would be a disruptor in the dressing room.
Spurs are at a critical juncture, and they are slowly building up steam to achieve something special. However, as of now, they have come short and are yet to break their trophy drought. They have lost crucial encounters from winning positions (Example- FA Cup semi-final with Manchester United and Champions League vs Juventus) and to overcome that; they need to have a player like Alderwiereld in the squad. It might happen that he won’t be the first choice anymore but with so many games and competitions to compete in, the 29-year-old would play a decent part in their campaign.
Apart from him, Pochettino has Juan Foyth and Cameron Carter Vickers as other backup options at the back. Both of them are just 20 and are relatively inexperienced. So a long-term injury layout for Sanchez or Vertonghen could spell disaster for Spurs if Alderweireld is sold in the ongoing transfer window.
Finally, the English transfer window has already ended, and so Pochettino won’t be able to get a replacement for Alderweireld until the January transfer window. Therefore it makes no sense for the manager to sell him as it would jeopardise their ongoing season where the fans have high hopes from the side. Selling him would be nothing short of suicide (provided the Belgian does not force a move as Courtois did) and Tottenham would surely know better.
