In a recent report from Football.London, it was mentioned that Tottenham Hotspur have identified Manchester United starlet James Garner as a cheap solution to their midfield search. It is understood that Spurs were in pursuit of Nicolo Zaniolo of AS Roma but the Italian outfit seemed to play hardball with the sale of their midfield star and that has forced the Lilywhites to look for a replacement.
Garner’s Impressive Loan Spell At Nottingham Forest Last season
Garner spent last season on loan with the Championship side helping them get promoted to the Premier League as he displayed some impressive performances in the midfield areas. He managed to score four goals and create eight assists over 44 appearances in his last campaign.
The English talent has had a solid campaign at the County Ground as he averaged 1.9 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 2.0 key passes and 1.1 shots per game in the English Championship. He was also tidy with his ball distribution after completing 80.7% of his attempted passes in the second division of English football (stats via whoscored).
Should Conte Bring Him To Tottenham Hotspur?
Garner is a defensive midfielder who plays in the holding positions to provide defensive cover to the backline and help transition the attack in the final third. He is a solid tackler of the ball and has a solid presence in the central areas. The youngster can time his tackles and remains aware of his surrounding to make some clever interceptions to win back possession for his side.
Furthermore, at 21, he has garnered attention from various clubs after putting in some impressive displays for Steve Cooper’s side. He could be the perfect understudy to Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and can act as a long-term replacement for him.
Antonio Conte has done well to revamp the squad as Spurs are off to a bright start in the Premier League, but the Italian tactician hasn’t finished his business in the transfer market as he intends to stock up players for every position. James Garner is the recent development and could feature in the Tottenham outfit if Conte looks to bring him to North London before the transfer window comes to a close.
