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Dejan Kulusevski was once Tottenham's best player this season (and he probably still is); however, an injury and a poor season overall from Tottenham Hotspur have underwhelmed the impact of a player who even Pep Guardiola paid huge compliments to in the past.

Spurs' Ginger from Sweden had a marvellous start to the 2024/2025 season. While transitioning from a right-winger to a midfield role, Ange Postecoglou managed to unlock the best out of Kulusevski, which is probably one of the best things the Australian did during his tenure. Even after a foot injury that took Kulu out of the pitch for roughly a month, he remains one of the top goal contributors in the current Spurs campaign (20), tied with Brennan Johnson at the very top of the list.

However, with Spurs in 17th place in the league, a Europa League title would be the only thing that could save Tottenham from a disaster of a season, as Postecoglou is on track to be sacked by the end of it. So, with a likely restart of the project and few prospects of European football next season, what does the future hold for Dejan Kulusevski at Tottenham?

Kulu-Sexy or Kulu-Exit?

With no Champions League football, which directly depends on a triumph in Bilbao on May 21st, some players might be inclined to leave the club in the summer. For instance, Cristian Romero is heavily linked to a move following a recent interview in which he expressed his wish to play in La Liga.

Other players could unfortunately follow the same path due to the club's current situation and perspectives, which might also include Kulusevski. With a deal that was extended until June 2028, the Spurs are protected by Kulu's contract. Hence, any suitors who may be interested in signing Kulusevski will need to pay a substantial amount, as his valuation stands at 60 million euros with potential for further increase, or until Daniel Levy needs to keep the books in order.

However, it would also depend on the player's side whether he wants to leave or not, which would be influenced by the project for next season. I don't personally think Kulusevski is the type who would force himself out of the club, as he has previously demonstrated leadership qualities and spoken out on behalf of the club and the team in the past. He also receives considerable support from the fanbase, as Kulu thanked the fans for their love in a song that even featured the Spurs' CEO:

"I do not care about Levy, he do not care about me, all I care about, is Kulusevski…"

Spurs fans

Even so... Dejan is frustrated, and he should be...

At the same time, Kulusevski does not seem satisfied with the club's current situation (as none of us are), which becomes crystal clear in his post-match interview after the defeat to Nottingham Forest. The Swede stormed out after the 2-1 loss to Forest at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which became the 18th Premier League defeat of the season, only to be followed up by a 5-1 embarrassing battering at Anfield this past weekend.

Besides his discontent with the team's lack of rebounding prowess, Kulusevski objectively criticized the performances this season, claiming that "it is not good enough." As Kulu has always been a competitor at Spurs, he is not shy about pointing out when things go wrong, which I believe is an admirable trait of an individual who constantly seeks glory. The self-criticism that is so desperately needed at this club.

"This year we cannot say that we are prepared. We did a lot of things wrong from the beginning of the season and we are paying for it right now."

Dejan Kulusevski

That dissatisfaction runs deeper into the club's hierarchy, and how Tottenham planned out for the season in all areas. In the quote below, it is evident that the former Juventus player understands the workings of serious clubs, which contrasts sharply with Spurs' ambitions and planning for the 2024/2025 campaign.

"The top clubs know exactly what they are doing. They are bringing in a lot of players that are ready to play both competitions."

Dejan Kulusevski

In the end, as unfortunate as I hate to admit, Kulusevski deserves better than this. It is no secret that Tottenham Hotspur's football administration is in disarray, and it frustrates me that the club has a strong set of players, especially the starters, capable of competing at a higher level. However, the team lacks depth, which is directly reflected in the absence of proper investment (or poor allocation of those) that could give the club a top-notch chance of winning trophies.

I believe there is a future for Kulusevski at Spurs, and I also think he will stay for now. I trust that the club will aim to retain him and a particular core of players that will help build a winning team from the ashes of this season. After all, they were already attempting to do that with Ange, and that approach should continue, whether or not he is involved. However, Levy, Lange, and all those involved in football operations need to show more intention. Otherwise, Romero won't be the only one to indirectly ask for a ticket out of the Lane.

As Tottenham prepare for a sea of changes in what needs to be a ruthless summer transfer window, they have taken the wise maneuver of first securing a player who has clearly shown that he needs to be a key part of their future.

Young center midfielder Lucas Bergvall has been so good in his first season at Tottenham that it's abundantly clear that he is their highest-impact midfielder already. Bergvall's energy and athleticism are miles above the rest of his teammates, and he has shown that he has the technical ability and tactical understanding to eventually blossom into a top Premier League CM.

As such, Tottenham have rewarded Bergvall accordingly, officially announcing the signing of the Swedish midfielder to an extension through the 2030/31 season, tying him to North London for the foreseeable future from the age of 19 through his years as a young player.

Tottenham should extend Mikey Moore

Next up, Tottenham should make Mikey Moore the next player extended and signify to the 17-year-old homegrown attacking talent that he, too, is seen by Spurs as an important piece of the future puzzle.

Moore's contract currently runs out at the end of the 2025/26 season, and he is literally the only player whose contract with the club ends within the next two years that can be seen as a future pillar of the squad. Son Heung-min is getting up there in age, whereas Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma are prime transfer candidates for the disappointing Premier League giants.

Although Moore isn't a regular for Spurs, he has done enough to impress in the Europa League to show that he is both deserving of more playing time and of some backing by the Tottenham organization. They need more difference-makers in the attack with Son declining and none of the high-priced strikers impressing.

The best teams in the world secure their young talents to long-term deals, which has the dual benefit of warding off potential poachers and serves as a way of motivating the players by giving them security. It's also not unfair to say that everyone appreciates the feeling of being appreciated by an organization, and although Moore hasn't accomplished as much Bergvall has this season, he is two years younger and holds additional importance as an academy player. The way forward out of these dark times for Tottenham is going to be to trust and value talented academy products like Moore.

Tottenham will face Bodo Glimt at home in the first leg of the Europa League semifinals on Thursday night, knowing that winning the entire competition would put them in next season's Champions League.

Here are the three biggest keys to victory for Tottenham this week.

Mathys Tel needs to shine

It doesn't look like Son Heung-min will be available against Bodo Glimt with a nagging foot injury, so the starting left wing job is entirely Mathys Tel's. The right side of the Bodo Glimt back four is a little more vulnerable than the left, which means Tel will have the best matchup for Spurs and the most shooting opportunities.

Tel has a prodigious amount of talent, and Tottenham are seriously contemplating keeping him permanently. The Bayern Munich loanee can make their decision easier and even increase his transfer value by performing at a high level in this game.

While Tel has flashed the ability to create chances for himself and others, the overall end product still hasn't been evident for Tottenham. He is young, but at a 50 million euro price point, Spurs will want to see him force the issue in this one.

Don't let Jens-Petter Hague take over

Bodo Glimt have one internationally known player in young forward Jens-Petter Hauge, who once played for AC Milan and Eintracht Frankfurt. Although you could see glimpses of his potential in the Bundesliga, Hauge's career never took off, and he even struggled to make an impression or get into the starting lineup at Gent in Belgium.

Now with Bodo Glimt, Hauge has been the main attacking force behind the underdog story and their Europa League semifinal appearance. The versatile 25-year-old forward is the one player on Bodo Glimt who can seriously hurt Tottenham, and after Spurs surrendered five to Liverpool at the weekend, they have to be on high alert against a talented forward with 5 goal contributions, 2.4 dribbles per game, and 1.8 key passes per match in the current Europa League campaign.

Tottenham can't make any defensive errors

The big story in Spurs recent Premier League losses has been defensive errors. Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario made two back-breaking ones early in a 4-2 loss to Wolves, and he and Cristian Romero were both highly culpable in a 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest. And then let's not even get started with the overall tactical and off-ball disasterclass of a debacle this past weekend at Anfield.

Romero has one foot out the door, but you had better believe Diego Simeone will be watching and unafraid to pull his interest in the Argentinian center back if he stinks it up in a must-win semifinal. Simeone doesn't want characters like that in his dressing room, and Romero, like he did in the second leg against Eintracht Frankfurt, has to step up to the plate on Thursday night.

It needs to be a team effort. Nobody can slip up and make unforced errors, because that is exactly how Bodo Glimt will beat them. Tottenham must be disciplined - even under an undisciplined coach - and avoid any rash challenges, sloppy backpasses, mental lapses, or flailing goalkeeping to avoid an easy upset to Bodo Glimt.

With the season almost at an end and Tottenham Hotspur only competing for a trophy in the Europa League, it presents the perfect opportunity to test and rotate some players in the Premier League. With a dead campaign in the league, where Spurs stand in 16th place, the manager has nothing to lose, except his job (but it seems he has already lost that).

Indeed, Ange Postecoglou has been rotating some pieces here and there, but not to the point of exploring a few options that could contribute and develop on the pitch. Most of the rotations this season, in fact, have occurred due to the injury crisis that plagued the club during this football year. There were also some alternative line-ups in the cups, but not as much as you would wish, mainly because Spurs played a lot of tough opponents in all competitions (lucky Spurs as usual, right?).

In light of Ange's likely departure, an overhaul or a change in approach may take place in the scouting department. For that to occur, it is relevant to consider who a probable new manager could count on and who could benefit the club with a loan, or even a sale, in the long run. Here are three players Tottenham must play more at the end of the season:

Archie Gray

Archie Gray has had an all-over-the-place debut season at Spurs. After being signed from Leeds United for 40 million pounds, the Swiss-Army-Knife midfielder played in every single position you can name besides his own. Even though the youngster had a quality season at Leeds as a right-back, his preferred role has always been as a number 6 pivot.

However, due to Spurs' disappointing season and a pile of injuries, Archie played as a center-back for most of his minutes in Lilywhite and even as an inverted left-back at times. In fact, Gray only had a few starts in the midfield, including last weekend's 5-1 defeat to Liverpool. However, despite his initial struggles at Anfield, I would give him some more opportunities to start in midfield to develop and see what Spurs have in him as a midfielder, as Lucas Bergvall also had his fair share of minutes before flourishing in recent weeks.

Wilson Odobert

Wilson Odobert has been having a tough season so far. After arriving at the club later in the summer window, the young Frenchman was expected to be the Spurs' prototypical 1v1 type of winger, a profile the team has missed (and still misses) since the last campaign. However, he suffered a hamstring injury that took him off the pitch until February, which did not give him much time to shine.

Since his return, Odobert has been helpful to Ange Postecoglou, as it is fair to claim that the Spurs wouldn't be in the Europa League semifinals if it weren't for his two goals against AZ Alkmaar. The prodigy also delivered a promising performance against Nottingham Forest, showcasing his dribbling ability and speed. He is indeed a little raw in terms of decision-making and finishing, but there is only one way to see him improve those: to let him play!

Mikey Moore

Mikey Moore has been one of the main stars of Spurs' young ranks for a while now, and we finally had the chance to see him in action for the first team. However, even after some spicy cameos here and there and his first goal for the club, Moore has been underutilized up to recently, being sidelined by names like Timo Werner and Mathys Tel, who may not necessarily stick around for the long term.

Hence, I believe Mikey Moore should be having more reps on the left wing for the kid to acquire more experience and confidence. With Son's physical decline and Tel's future still a mystery, it would be a good plan to allow one of the best academy prospects in years to establish himself at White Hart Lane. Mikey, indeed, is not yet ready to be the face of this club, as some might expect, but the potential is clearly there, and it needs to be explored urgently.

It's been a horrible season for Tottenham, and manager Ange Postecoglou won't be the only big name looking for a new job by the end of it. Spurs are buried in the bottom five of the Premier League table because of a combination of horrible coaching and unbridled incompetence on the pitch, including from some notable players who will need to be replaced this summer.

But those hoping for a big transfer window from Tottenham may be disappointed, because the recent investments that haven't paid off have reportedly left Spurs, per the Telegraph's Matt Law, in a 279 million pound hole of debt that will likely need to be filled before the club can make substantial signings.

Tottenham will have to fill that hole with sales, and Law says more players could end up being on the chopping block because of this reality. He specifically names striker Richarlison, center back Cristian Romero, and center midfielder Yves Bissouma as three high-profile players who could be sacrificed on the transfer market this summer.

Yves Bissouma and Cristian Romero are as good as gone

Of the three, Bissouma is the most obvious choice to let go from a pure footballing standpoint. He offers no creativity and hasn't taken off since joining Tottenham. His minutes have already been phased to a rotational role in the 2024/25 campaign.

Cristian Romero is one of the best players on the team, but he is openly not interested in staying at the club and has significant interest from Atletico Madrid in his dream league of LaLiga. He's even reportedly agreed to join Atleti already, so Romero could be the most substantiative sale for Spurs this summer.

Richarlison is where it gets tricky. The Brazilian international, on the one hand, is an injury-prone 27-year-old who has only started three games in the Premier League season with four goals to his name. But on the other hand, those four goals are all within his last few appearances and he is very much Spurs most talented striker. You can argue that he's the only true talent that Spurs have at the position, given Dominic Solanke is more of an all-around type and not a prime scoring threat.

Tottenham center back Cristian Romero may be a vice captain at the club and one of the team's most touted players, but he's also made it clear to the fans than when his team needs him most, his mind is currently occupied elsewhere with his own future.

After stating that he dreams of a move to LaLiga in an interview, third-place Spanish side and regular Champions League knockout club Atletico Madrid, and, now, to make matters worse for Tottenham, there are already rumors that he has given his green light to Atleti for a summer transfer.

In a recent report, GiveMeSport's Ben Jacobs confirms that Romero is "keen" on joining Diego Simeone's side and that the Argentinian manager himself is the driving force behind this transfer pursuit. Romero has reportedly been one of Atleti's top transfer targets for the upcoming summer since March, so Romero's public interview of joining Atletico was likely a big wink to the Rojiblancos to start ramping up the pursuit - and that makes Romero look even worse here.

Atletico Madrid only want to pay 40 million euros for Cristian Romero

While it would seem to be a good thing that Atleti are so interested in signing Romero, Tottenham's goal transfer fee of 60 million euros may not come to fruition. Now that's no surprise since Romero isn't really worth that kind of money due to his inconsistent and aggressive playing style, but, per Jacobs, Atleti are far off from Spurs with a valuation of 40 million euros that they don't want to go past.

There's always room for negotiation, but a gulf of 20 million euros in value is substantial. Tottenham would probably settle for 50 million euros, but they'd like to see other clubs get involved to put pressure on Atletico to raise their bid. Right now, Romero hasn't done Spurs any favors either by publicly saying he dreams of LaLiga and winking so much at Atleti through rumors, and that can only frustrate Tottenham fans even more.

It has been a nightmare of a 2024/25 season for Tottenham, who came into the campaign with high hopes after a fifth-placed rebound 2023/24 campaign under first-year Spurs coach Ange Postecoglou, who left the club with significantly more positives than negatives.

Now, though, it has all soured for Postecoglou, and even if Tottenham salvage something out of the season by winning the Europa League, the former Celtic coach is expected to see himself out the door of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at the end of the season.

Postecoglou isn't the only one to blame, nor will he be the only one to suffer the consequence with a Spurs exit. There are a number of players on thin ice as Spurs sit 16th in the Premier League table with a mere handful of matches left in the campaign, and the most prominent of those names is center back Cristian Romero after he pretty much said he's out in an interview on the club's grounds.

Cristian Romero has told Atletico Madrid he wants to join

To make matters worse, it looks like Romero is accelerating his own departure from Tottenham for his dream move to LaLiga and specifically to Atletico Madrid, coached by compatriot Diego Simeone. Relevo's Matteo Moretto reports that Cristian Romero has given his "yes" to Atletico Madrid for a summer 2025 transfer to the Spanish capital.

It remains to be seen if a transfer will actually come to fruition, but, as they say, where there is smoke, there is fire. And there is a whole lot of smoke coming out of Atleti in the transfer rumor mill right now, and it is coming quite quickly.

At 26 years old, Romero is entering his prime and has a good track record of success in both Serie A and the Premier League. Atletico Madrid, moreso than Tottenham and other clubs, can afford the negatives with how aggressively Romero plays, and Simeone actually values that traits a lot, looking at the center backs he has recruited to the club over the years like Diego Godin and Stefan Savic.

Tottenham took an early lead but Liverpool came back strongly to win the Premier League in style. There was not much fight from Tottenham in response, as Spurs fell 5-1 at Anfield. Here are the player ratings:

GK Guglielmo Vicario

Struggled with corners and with distribution, which has been a feature this season. Lack of movement in front of him did not help with distribution but several times this put us in trouble. Difficult to single Vicario out for the goals but did not look in command of his area at all. Certainly he will finish the season as number 1, but questions do need to be asked for next season following recent form. Rating: 4

RB Djed Spence

Unusually static game for Djed Spence. He got caught out early on with a few diagonal balls and that set the tone. Stood still for the 5th goal, although there were several others doing exactly the same. Summed up a performance lacking energy with a tame effort which seemed to take an age to roll wide at 5-1 down. Rating: 3

LB Destiny Udogie

Like Spence, he got caught early on with a few diagonal balls. Looked positive going forward at times, but struggled defensively. Too easily beaten by Salah cutting inside for the 4th goal, and misplaced a pass for the 5th goal. Passing out from the back was inaccurate throughout. Rating: 4

CB Kevin Danso

Defenders are not helped by our tactics at all. Kevin Danso was not particularly poor today but looked nowhere near the quality needed to repel Liverpool's attack. Has been promising for Spurs this season at times, so difficult to say whether it was the quality of the opposition, the Europa game ahead, or just a poor game. Rating: 4

CB Ben Davies

Ben Davies was lucky to get away with some poor clearances even before we started shipping goals. Similar to Danso, offered only passive resistance to Liverpool attacks. Rating: 4

CM: James Maddison

Did seem industrious and busy. Put in two great deliveries for Solanke, one of which resulted in a goal and the other a save. From then on, he was largely ineffective. Maddison has great ability and does always look to create. Today though, he was part of a midfield that was simply overwhelmed. Rating: 5

CM: Lucas Bergvall

Not his best game and completely overrun by the opposition. At least, still showed his usual composure on the ball and the ability to glide away from opponents at times. Very weak header from a corner to give away a goal though. Bergvall was under a bit of pressure but seemed to turn away from the ball, and could barely have headed it into a worse area. Rating: 5

CM: Archie Gray

Has been asked to do a lot this season. Looked assured in the midfield early on but faded very quickly after Liverpool took control. Off the ball, he struggled. Caught out with the through ball for Liverpool’s first goal, and weak with the challenge for the second goal, albeit after a terrible pass from Tel. Rating: 4

RW: Brennan Johnson

Has struggled for form for a while. Took a long time to get into the game. Far too often when he does have the ball on the wing, Johnson just rolls it into the box regardless of the situation. Just before half time, he spun away from Robertson and put in a good cross which nearly resulted in a goal for Tel or Solanke. With 10 mins to go, he did the same despite no one being in a position to receive it. Much more situational awareness is needed. Rating: 4

CF: Dominic Solanke

Perfect header for the goal. We don’t score many from corners. Was under pressure but showed strength to score against his former club. Had another chance from the Johnson cross that took an unlucky deflection away from him. Aside from that, lots of the usual effort but not much threat. Rating: 6

LW: Mathys Tel

Tel was bright early on, showing some of that quickness of thought. Drove at defenders when he had the ball. Didn’t produce but, like Maddison, still at least gives the feeling he is capable of something. However, Tel played a terrible pass for Liverpool's second goal. It was very high-risk and a ball inside in that situation was always likely to get punished. That type of pass is a feature of our style under Ange and it has cost us all season. It did again here. It will be one reason Tottenham are likely to look elsewhere for a manager next season. Rating: 5

Substitutions: Richarlison, Oddobert, Kulusevski, Sarr.

The summer 2025 transfer window promises to be another busy one for Tottenham, and while it is difficult to say exactly who will stay and who will go before the future of manager Ange Postecoglou is sorted out, it isn't entirely impossible to start speculating on which key players could be out the door.

Even though Tottenham could still qualify for the Champions League by winning the Europa League title this season, the 2024/25 campaign has to be seen as an outright disaster by a Spurs team sitting in the bottom five and only safe from relegation due to the sheer futility of the three recently promoted sides (whose fates have already been sealed).

Even though he is one of the best players in the current squad, vice captain Cristian Romero could be headed for the exit door after giving an interview on the Spurs grounds in which he admitted that he is eyeing a dream move to LaLiga. Normally, this wouldn't cause a meltdown, but fans are rightfully upset that a leader made those comments on team facilities at a time when the club is in crisis and still has a lot to play for.

Atletico Madrid want Rodrigo Bentancur and Cristian Romero

The Romero transfer rumors have now begun in full swing, and Tom Allnutt of The Times is the latest journalist to report of interest abroad. Per Allnutt, LaLiga giants Atletico Madrid are indeed interested in signing Romero this summer. Not only that, but he reports that Diego Simeone's side is also interested in center midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur.

Although Bentancur isn't as touted as Romero, he is more consistent and has been a more steady part of the squad in recent weeks, as Romero had costly defensive lapses in losses to Wolves and Nottingham Forest.

Both players are seen as starters, and while Romero is more touted than Bentancur, the latter seems to be in better graces with Tottenham fans. He would have a role as a future rotational piece, even if he's not quite at the caliber of a weekly starter for a club that wants to make the Champions League in England, as fans have not soured on him the way they have with Romero in light of those comments and blown defensive errors in the Premier League.

Bentancur and Romero are both solid players who are important to Spurs, but neither can be considered world-class or untouchable. Romero may not want to even be here, while Bentancur is part of a midfield that needs an upgrade and is already revved up for a future change after the injections of prospects Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray this past summer.

Tottenham have a strong group of four center backs right now with starters Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, as well as winter 2024 signing Radu Dragusin and highly promising winter 2025 addition Kevin Danso.

However, Dragusin's future seems to be outside of North London while Romero has made it clear that despite being vice captain of Tottenham at a true crisis point for the club, his mind is elsewhere. Besides Van de Ven and Danso, the others are not safe, and Spurs could be looking for a more stable center back who makes fewer mistakes than Romero if they decide to grant the Argentinian international's dream and sell him.

Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi has been one of the most coveted names in the Premier League over the past few windows, though the Eagles have been able to rebuff all interest in the accomplished England international to this point.

Tottenham are 'keen' on Marc Guehi

Guehi's name has been floated around before as a possible Tottenham transfer target, and now Fabrizio Romano is also stating that Spurs are still "keen" on signing the talented 24-year-old, as are fellow Premier League clubs Chelsea and Newcastle.

Fab states that if Crystal Palace can't agree on a transfer fee this summer window, Guehi could leave the club for free in 2026. He would be eligible to sign in the winter on a pre-contract deal if he does not sign an extension with Palace or otherwise agree to a transfer prior to the January window.

Tottenham should be all over this. They could either get Guehi, who is rated as a 45 million euro player by Transfermarkt, at a cut price, or they could outright get him for free if Crystal Palace try to play hardball. Chelsea have been trying to sign Guehi back for years and Newcastle were close to getting him last summer, so Tottenham will have to be in a bidding war.

Spurs can't miss out on another ideal signing

But after losing out on a sure thing last summer in current PSG star Desire Doue, Tottenham fans will be gunning for Spurs to go after Guehi if there is any chance of nabbing him. Guehi is a proven commodity against the best Premier League strikers and is having another above-average season for Crystal Palace.

The dream would obviously be to sign Guehi for free, and there's no doubt that this avenue would be Daniel Levy's preference. But if it's the difference between Guehi and no Guehi, then Tottenham should sign the best possible Romero upgrade this summer at that, likely, discounted rate.