Conor Gallagher isn’t the only signing Tottenham are wrapping up, and two transfer insiders have revealed what else Thomas Frank’s side could have up their sleeves before the window closes.
Stuck in the bottom half of the Premier League table again, Tottenham and their head coach Frank have faced plenty of criticism this season. The current transfer window is more important to them than most sides of a similar stature, giving them a chance to bolster their squad to climb back up the table.
A major reinforcement is on the way in the shape of former Chelsea midfielder Gallagher, who has opted for a London return with Spurs rather than going to Aston Villa from Atletico Madrid.
But midfield isn’t the only position Spurs are short in – and some have even doubted if Gallagher alone will be enough to give them what they need there.
With their work cut out to become competitive again, Tottenham will be turning their attention to what’s next after Gallagher – a subject TEAMtalk’s Dean Jones and Graeme Bailey have shed some light on after exploring how Spurs won that particular battle.
“Aston Villa had definitely started to get ahead on that one,” Jones said, speaking on TEAMtalk’s latest Facebook live broadcast. “When I reported the Gallagher story to Tottenham, I wasn’t convinced they were going to win the race, to be honest with you. But I think they couldn’t really face losing out on another one.
“There is going to be more to come,” he promised.
“I like Conor Gallagher as a player,” Bailey replied. “I think it’s a good signing whoever got him. I’m slightly surprised Manchester United didn’t make a bigger push for him.
“With Thomas Frank and his system, we don’t know what he’s going to play. He doesn’t know what his best XI is. He clearly thinks there’s space for him. It’s clearly not going to be a #6, because he’s got Palhinha in there.
“Is it going to impact on Bergvall and Archie Gray going forward, especially in the short term? Possibly, but he’s a class act, he improves Tottenham’s XI – not massively, but I do think he improves the XI.
“In terms of him rebuilding his England career and getting in the World Cup squad, I think he’d have been better off choosing Villa at this moment in time. I think he would have had a better chance feeding Morgan Rogers for the rest of the season.”
However, financial factors may have helped sway Gallagher towards Tottenham.
“Do you think it’s about money, because Tottenham have had to pay £35m for Conor Gallagher,” Jones offered. “I don’t know exactly what the wage sums are, but I know that the contract at Atletico Madrid was a big one; if he’d have met his bonuses (which to be fair he probably didn’t do) it’d have been worth about £200,000-a-week.
“Spurs are making a big outlay here. I know the financial terms weren’t going to be met by Aston Villa, theirs was more of a sporting project sell.
“Obviously, on top of that, Conor Gallagher is from Surrey, was playing for Chelsea his whole life, his family are all Chelsea fans, so it’ll be interesting to see what they make of his transfer to Tottenham.
“But maybe the finances come into it. Tottenham fans don’t seem to be wholly convinced that Conor Gallagher is necessarily the answer. Conor Gallagher brings a lot of energy, he’ll press high, he’s very technically astute, he’ll follow instructions well and he’s Premier League proven. I think Conor Gallagher is a good signing for Tottenham, but they need to do more.
“I think at the weekend we saw for the first time Palhinha playing how he used to play at Fulham. If you get players playing the roles that they’re actually suited to, Tottenham should have a good team. That’s down to Thomas Frank now to prove that he can do it.
“I was told that he’s being allowed to continue. I’m told that he’s not on the verge of losing his job at Tottenham, but obviously you can’t keep losing games, so it’ll be interesting to see now who comes into that attacking line, because there’s no doubt that they are going to sign someone who’s an attacking threat.”
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Tottenham need Johnson replacement in attack
Spurs’ need for new attackers has only been amplified by their decision to sell Brennan Johnson to Crystal Palace earlier this month, as Bailey addressed.
“Clearly I think they are missing something in that forward line,” he said. “I think Gallagher does improve the team. I’m coming round to the idea that I don’t think Thomas Frank really suits this squad, so I think they are going to back him. They were never really going to get rid of him this month, in my opinion and from what we’re hearing.
“Obviously if they go and lose to West Ham this month, it’s a results-based business. So while we can report that Tottenham aren’t planning it, in the Premier League you’re only a couple of results away from losing your job at times. I don’t think he’s quite there yet, but he does have to come up with something.
“That left side’s still an issue for them. It’s a bit strange for me that they let Brennan Johnson go without a plan in place, because I still think he had a lot to offer and they’ve weakened.
“They want to bolster those attacking options. Kulusevski’s been out for longer than they thought he would be, and he’s been a massive loss for them this season.
“With Solanke back now, they will look for that left winger role. We’ll see what they come up with. You have to presume they’ve got something in mind because allowing Johnson to go and not having a plan would seem a bit short-sighted.”
As for who fills the void, Jones shared some names of interest.
“I think they want somebody that perhaps can play on both sides, maybe even across the three positions,” he explained. “Maghnes Akliouche from Monaco is undoubtedly someone that they like. They’ve been scouting him regularly.
“Christos Tzolis is definitely a target. They’ve looked at a few Man City players; Oscar Bobb is probably the one Man City player that could be up for grabs. I’m not convinced that that’s where they’re turning right now.
“I’ve heard whispers about Karim Adeyemi being offered to them. I think he’s going to be pricey and I don’t know whether he’s exactly the right fit for what they want.”
Bailey replied: “They’ve just been down that route with Kolo Muani and Tel. I’m not saying they’ve been disasters, they haven’t, but it hasn’t quite worked out for them.
“An Akliouche or a Tzolis makes so much sense in the long term.”
Jones confirmed: “That is what they’re trying to do. They’re trying to find that mix now of players with a high ceiling but they do want players who are a little bit proven. With Gallagher, that’s exactly what you’ve got.”
More positions up for strengthening amid defensive dilemma
Away from the attack, Spurs also have some thinking to do about their defence, with Santos left-back Souza also set to sign but a complicated decision needed about their centre-back options as well.
“Obviously they’ve got Souza in, so that’s a left-sided defender ticked off,” Jones explained. “They’re getting Conor Gallagher through the door, which is a central midfielder ticked off. We know that they want a wide attacker, so that would be one. Goalkeeper?”
“Not in January, I don’t think,” Bailey replied. “I think they’ll do it in the summer. As we know, they’re working on players, the likes of Verbruggen, plenty of players on the continent.
“As for Gallagher, he’s probably going to be the highest-paid player at the club now, just ahead of Romero, so that is a consideration as well.
“Obviously the centre-half thing, they still haven’t solved that yet. We expect Dragusin to go. I think they’re in a bit of a quandary with centre-half. Vuskovic, the boy in Germany, is doing so well that they don’t want to block his pathway up. They don’t want to recall him from Hamburg because he’s doing ever so well, but it puts them in a bit of a quandary if they spend big on that, knowing they’ve got a better option in Germany coming back in the summer.
“I think they might try and get by at centre-half, maybe. I think the left winger is the next major one for them.”