Tottenham Hotspur made the loan signing of Portugal defensive midfielder Palhinha official on Sunday. Palhinha joins the club on a season-long loan from Bayern Munich, who signed him from Fulham just a year ago. Spurs also have a €30m purchase option in place for the 30-year old.
Frank was interviewed by Alasdair Gold in Seoul before Spurs’ match against Newcastle on Sunday about Palhinha, why he was targeted, and what he can bring to the club. The comments were pretty illuminating.
Here’s Frank on Palhinha’s abilities and role as a pure defensive six in Tottenham’s midfield.
“It was always his abilities and if you look at the squad I don’t think we have his ability or package as a clear number six with his profile. I actually think Rodri [Bentancur] can play there as well but I think they could complement each other well in there if, for example, it is those two or also other players.
I think Pape [Sarr] is extremely promising. We have Bissouma and Bergvall as well. But [Palhinha’s] defensive qualities, his ability to be in the centre of the pitch, very disciplined, his distribution, short, diagonals, [passes] in behind and then his ability to break up play. Especially if you are playing away from home or against good counter-attacking teams. It’s very important to have one that, you know, is not running away or gets attracted to something. His set-piece ability in both boxes is a key thing and he has some experience which is good.”
This is illuminating, and also says a lot about how Frank wants to set up his Tottenham midfield. I know that Frank’s tactics are malleable and adaptable to a much greater extent than that of Ange Postecoglou, but I’ll be honest — I really expected Frank to lean in more to a true double pivot, with balanced midfielders who alternate going forward and linking attack. Instead, the signing of Palhinha suggests that Frank is looking for something different, at least against certain opponents.
And, in fact, Frank comes right out and says it — this is what I wanted.
“When I came in and assessed the squad, it was an area where I thought we could need something there. I know the squad and I know the team and I have watched extra [games] before I went in but it’s always different when you then walk in and you feel [the players], you touch them, you work with them and I watch intense video with my eyes and the way I want things to go.
“Then I learned a bit more that he would be a very good addition. He played in the Premier League for two years so I followed him closely and remember the battles we had with him [at Brentford]. He was so annoying to play against so that is a good quality!
“Yeah, I was a bit surprised [Bayern let him go so soon]. Bayern went hard for him for two years and for whatever reason, which I actually don’t care about because we can get him, it was an opportunity for us.
“Sometimes everything goes a little bit in circles. Sometimes it is impossible to get a number nine. Sometimes it is impossible to get a number six. Sometimes it is impossible to get a right-back. At this moment in time, there are not many clear number sixes in the market so we are quite lucky to get him.
“I think he is a top player. He impressed everyone in the Premier League in the two years he was with Fulham. He is a regular for Portugal. Whatever the reason [Bayern let him go maybe] is the coach, the culture, the club, himself. Sometimes it is difficult to say. My concern is that he wanted to come and we wanted him to come.”
Perhaps having a “shitkicker” in the mode of Palhinha also will free up his midfield partners, whether that’s Bentancur, Sarr, Lucas Bergvall, etc. to have additional freedom to be more progressive in their play. We haven’t actually seen that in action from any of them to a great extent, but hey. Perhaps!
Frank also hinted a bit at the idea that Palhinha could be a mentor to some of the younger Tottenham midfielders, like Archie Gray or Lucas Bergvall. Interestingly, considering this was an interview about Palhinha, Frank went out of his way twice to praise the play of Pape Sarr, who has scored three goals for Tottenham so far in preseason and came close to another one against Newcastle.
“Yes that is a very good point. Thank you for asking that, that is what I should have said. You are right. It is two big talents that I am really pleased are in the building but it’s also clear they need to grow. Pape has shown that. It’s not about age. They are 19, he is 22. It’s not that. Some are ready when they are 19, some at 20, some at 22 or 23, but you can clearly see Pape is just a tiny bit ahead and is a big talent. We have been very pleased with him.”
I know I’ve been skeptical of Palhinha’s signing, but Frank’s comments do suggest that he has a clear plan for how he intends to use him. Knowing Frank, that use case is likely to be contextual based on opposition tactics; Palhinha is a tool that may not be suitable for all use cases. If that’s true, then it makes me feel a little better about this loan.
