Following the arrival of Mathys Tel on loan from Bayern Munich last season, Tottenham Hotspur have now completed a temporary move to bring Joao Palhinha to the club.
Joao Palhinha made his name in the Premier League whilst playing for Fulham — he quickly earned a reputation for being one of the toughest defensive midfielders in England.
Of course, Thomas Frank has been bereft of that kind of player during his short stint at Tottenham so far.
At Brentford, Frank had Christian Norgaard playing as his physically imposing number six, a midfield leader who often dropped into the backline.
And whilst Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur might both feel as if they can operate in a holding role, they don’t offer the same qualities as Palhinha.
Gary Lineker and Micah Richards excited by Tottenham signing Joao Palhinha
That being said, both Gary Lineker and Micah Richards have delivered their honest thoughts on Tottenham signing Palhinha on ‘The Rest Is Football’ podcast.
Palhinha is excited to get going at Tottenham, and both pundits were similarly enthused to see the Portugal international back in the Premier League.
Palhinha was linked with several big moves before leaving Fulham for Bayern.
And although it hasn’t worked out for the 30-year-old in the Bundesliga, he could still have a lot to offer in N17.
Lineker began: “Interesting start to the season in terms of who they’ve bought and even in their pre-season friendlies, Spurs.
“Just hearing that Palhinha’s loan move has been confirmed.”
Richards interjected: “What a signing.”
Lineker: “Really solid Premier League player, really good. So an impressive start, I think, for Thomas Frank.
“Beat Arsenal, of course, I know these pre-season friendlies mean absolutely nothing, but it’s still good for your confidence.
“Kudus has come, Kevin Danso, Mathys Tel as well — he was on loan last season, of course, they’ve taken that option to buy. So, you know, good business for Thomas Frank.”
Marco Silva has already outlined why Joao Palhinha can be crucial for Spurs
Although the job was ultimately given to Frank, Tottenham were interested in Fulham boss Marco Silva to replace Ange Postecoglou this summer.
Daniel Levy has now explained his decision to sack Postecoglou in order to appoint Frank, a move which many Spurs fans now seem to have accepted.
But when it comes to what Palhinha can add in north London, Silva’s words should still be pertinent to Tottenham fans.
Speaking back in 2023, Silva claimed that Palhinha’s qualities were ‘hard to find in football’.
Silva said: “He leads through his attitude, he’s not the most vocal guy and he’s improving his English as well. I want him to be more vocal and in that position it’s important.
“His attitude, his commitment, the way he leads the others around are things that are hard to find in football.
“In moments [when] we lose the ball, his reaction is impressive and we want to take the best from him and in other moments we want him to keep improving.”