There have been reports about the Lilywhites recent interest in signing Juventus forward Timothy Weah in the ongoing summer transfer window, with Tottenham Hotspur competing with Everton to attain his signature.
With Heung-Min Son set to leave the North Londoners this offseason, complemented by the fact that Daniel Levy is not voting to take up the option to change Timo Werner’s loan into a permanent deal, it opens up possibilities in the current roster at N17 to bring in a new wide forward.
Now French outlet Foot Mercato insists that the Premier League heavyweights have made an enquiry for his signatures. And this shows that while there has been a shuffle in head coaches at the helm at N17, the North Londoners and Daniel Levy will continue to back young players at Hotspur Way and continue the recently adapted transfer policy of signing them young. And that’s exactly what they get by signing Weah, who is not only young but also possesses a lot of potential, and that is replicated in his numbers given how he netted five goals alongside putting through another three assists for the Turin-based side in the recently concluded Serie A season, while he also scored and assisted in nine Champions League outings.
Noting his athleticism complemented by his work ethic, Tottenham and Frank have been looking at trying to develop him into an elite player at Hotspur Way.
How can Weah tactically fit under Thomas Frank at Tottenham?
The former Brentford head coach likes to deploy forwards who have the capacity to press aggressively whilst having that understanding of playing in triggers (which is quite vital in the midblock structure that he likes to deploy at N17). He is someone that also likes to play with positional intelligent wide forwards, given that he likes to operate in zones, and within those zones, he likes to play with smart interchanges in tight areas. And then you definitely need players who excel in transitional situations under him, given how he relies on bursts and link-ups to make the most out of his attacking sequences.
And in Weah, he can sign someone who has shown a glimpse of those qualities within those attributes. He has that athletic work rate complemented by his capacity for stamina-heavy pressing demanded at N17. And given how he has been used in quite a versatile role at Juve under Motta also shows his capacity to play different roles (he has been deployed on both sides of the wing as well as in that right attacking space by Motta for the Turin-based club), which shows the ability that he possesses to play inside & support the number nine.
He is also comfortable at rotating across the front line, given he can likely fit in the 4-3-3/3-5-2 structure that Thomas Frank is expected to deploy at Tottenham.
Strengths
He has that elite athleticism, which means that he can fit finely in the pressing system that Thomas Frank would be looking to deploy at N17. And then he has that positional fluidity that should help him to flow in the attacking sequences under the Dane head coach that generally rely on positional change as per game state.
He is still very young with a huge upside given the glimpses of his potential at Juventus.
Weakness
He hasn’t shown much consistency yet, which could be a huge risk for Tottenham, and moreover, he is visibly quite raw, which means that Thomas Frank and his staff will have to put in a lot of work over the years to get the best out of him.
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Author Opinion
Weah is still proving himself, especially in terms of being a consistent goal contributor and then the impact that he can have against structured defences. The Lilywhites, though, must be cautious not to repeat the mistake they’ve made previously by investing a budget in potential that never materialises. I think that he will be an interesting bargain roll of the dice who fits Frank’s short-term need for dynamic, system-friendly forwards. But Levy should sign him only if the price matches his actual output and not as a marquee arrival.