With Bayern Munich confirming the young forward's desire to leave the club in search of more game-time, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur were all said to be interested in a mid-season deal.
Tel was arguably world football's most in-demand player going into January Deadline Day 2025. And yet, almost an entire calendar year in north London has yielded very little rewards for a player revered by players, pundits, supporters and suitors alike.
So where has it all gone wrong for Tel at Tottenham, and why are we still waiting for the 'next Nicolas Anelka' to thrive in a Spurs shirt?
Levy and Postecoglou's Protracted Transfer Hunt
It is not like Daniel Levy, Spurs' former chairman, to make himself look desperate in the transfer market. But he saw no embarrassment in personally travelling to Germany to try and convince Tel to sign on the dotted line, having already agreed a £50m deal with Bayern Munich for his services.
Incredibly, the Frenchman rebuffed Spurs' advances and was seemingly holding out for a move to Manchester United. It took the Red Devils pulling out of the race, plus a direct conversation with Ange Postecoglou about his role in the team, to convince Tel to make a dramatic u-turn on deadline day and agree a loan deal until the end of the season.
Tel was subsequently signed permanently in the summer for £30m having shown promise by finding the back of the net twice in the Premier League during the second half of last season. And yet, we're still waiting for Tel to make any kind of mark under Thomas Frank.
Frank Needs to Give Tel a Chance
Tel is supposed to be one of the more promising players of his generation, but he can hardly get a game in a Spurs team that struggles to score goals. They've netted 28 times from 20 games in the Premier League; the average for teams in the division's top six at this point in the season is 36.
Tel has been given just four starts in the Premier League by Frank, although interestingly one of those was in Spurs' most recent game with Sunderland. After the match and looking ahead to Wednesday's clash with Bournemouth, Frank said regarding the left-wing position in his starting XI:
"There’s no one who’s really grabbed that shirt on the left-hand side, so I think that’s definitely up for grabs. I think it was a positive performance from Mathys. I think he did some positive things and got into good situations.
"Let’s see what will happen against Bournemouth, but it’s also that fine balance of giving some players the trust for a run of games, so they can maybe hopefully find a bit of rhythm and also increase their performance level.
"Then the tactical approach of the opponents, which players fit to that and get the right mix and balance in the team, but Matty in general was positive."
It wasn't exactly a commitment to giving Tel another start against Bournemouth, but by Frank's own admission, some players will need a run in the side to truly get the best out of them. It feels as though that's exactly what Tel needs - a consistent spell in the team where he can develop confidence and contribute a few goals - but right now his capacity to thrive at Spurs is being stifled by a lack of opportunities.