Archie Gray is a star in the making for Tottenham Hotspur, but it looks like Spurs are already interested in signing another young phenom at the defensive midfield position in Ajax's Sean Steur.
Since Spurs will likely be priced out of AZ Alkmaar's Kees Smit, who is a dream transfer target for Juni Calafat and Real Madrid, Steur is a more hidden gem in the Dutch Eredivisie making a name for himself as a top defensive midfield prospect as a defender and deep lying playmaker.
According to a report from Graeme Bailey of TEAM Talk, Tottenham are one of several big Premier League clubs eyeing Steur as a possible signing. Manchester United, Arsenal, and Liverpool are the others, and the report even states that there are those who believe Steur is an even better prospect than Smit.
Tottenham are interested in Sean Steur
Steur does play for a bigger club in Ajax and is only 18. He is also two-footed and having a solid season for the biggest club in the Netherlands. He is averaging 1.1 key passes per game with a pass completion percentage above 85, close to 90. Steur is also averaging 1.3 tackles per game, more than twice the number of dribbles completed he is allowing per match.
Tottenham should not give up on Archie Gray, because he is also a special young player who has shown flashes this season. Signing Steur for a big fee in order to beat out the rest of the Premier League Big Six would be a bold move, but, well, Spurs also invested heavily in Gray even though he was playing for a smaller club in Leeds; Steur already has Champions League starting experience.
Steur may be a better option already than veterans Rodrigo Bentancur and Joao Palhinha, and for what Palhinha would cost and for what Bentancur would go for on the open market, Steur may not be a bad investment.
Many of Spurs best signings have been young stars of the future like Micky van de Ven, Pedro Porro, Destiny Udogie, Cristian Romero, Mohammed Kudus, and, especially, Lucas Bergvall. These are the players with upside who can be more than what they are valued at during the time of signing, whereas players like Richarlison and Dominic Solanke can only go down in value.
Steur isn't a household name, but his numbers look as good as Smit's and he's a little bit younger. He is worth a look, and, if Spurs are smart, he will help Gray and not be competition for the future England international.