Tottenham have a decision to make over the future of Joao Palhinha.
Spurs signed Palhinha on loan from Bayern Munich over the summer and have witnessed mixed performances from the Portugal international.
The 30-year-old was an unused substitute last time around as Tottenham drew 2-2 away to Newcastle United, as he is seemingly slipping down the pecking order.
Thomas Frank is coming under pressure to be sacked and is making changes to appease supporters at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
There will still be questions over a potential permanent move for Palhinha in the upcoming transfer windows, with the loanee potentially ready to replace another outbound ace.
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Joao Palhinha could replace Yves Bissouma at Tottenham
Yves Bissouma is yet to feature for Tottenham this season after controversy surrounded the midfielder and his off-field antics.
Frank clearly doesn’t trust the Mali international, and with the winter window looming, a North London departure is looking likely.
That would leave an already depleted Spurs squad even lighter, especially as the summer approaches when Palhinha eventually moves on.
The ex-Fulham man has struggled to impress in recent weeks, but would command a fair transfer fee regardless of where he goes, according to Bryan King.
Speaking exclusively to Tottenham News, King said: “I think he’s a good player, but he hasn’t made them a better side.
“He’s not playing in a good team, and I’m sure if Tottenham don’t sign him permanently, then someone else will.
“He’s a £25m player, and I think he’s much better than someone like Bissouma. He should have gone after all the trouble last year.
“When you inherit problems as a manager, it’s never good.
“Someone at Tottenham has to stand up and say, ‘This is who we want gone and this is who we want to replace them with.’“
Thomas Frank must command more respect at Tottenham
It’s clear that Frank has no intention of working with Bissouma and seemingly has had no ambition to do so in N17.
There is no logical reason as to why he was allowed to stick around on Hotspur Way rather than finding any sort of route away.
Frank clearly didn’t set his expectations before coming in, and it feels as if he is yet to have true respect and backing from the Spurs hierarchy.
Palhinha would be the ideal man to plug a Bissouma-shaped hole in the summer, but the whole situation is a mess in truth.