We’ve had a couple of days for the dust to settle on Tottenham Hotspur’s summer transfer window, so now is a good opportunity to take an objective look at Spurs’ business and how it may impact the first half of its season. Tottenham are coming off of a particularly weird season under Ange Postecoglou where they struggled with massive injuries and consistency, finished 17th in the table, and still managed to win the Europa League. Strange doesn’t begin to describe that level of emotional whiplash.
Spurs entered this summer with a new manager in Thomas Frank and some very, very obvious holes in the side. The summer 2024 window ended up being mostly about identifying and signing younger players that could develop into superstars, but that approach backfires when half the team is out hurt. So this season the emphasis was clearly on bringing in players with experience
That’s exactly what they did. Spurs made the loans of Mathys Tel and Kevin Danso permanent, took a flyer on a J-League defender in Kota Taka, purchased experienced players Palhinha, Mohammed Kudus, and ended the window on a flourish by gazumping Xavi Simons from under Chelsea’s nose and loaning in Randal Kolo Muani.
That said, there were notable embarrassing miscues, including failed bids for Morgan Gibbs-White, and Eberechi Eze, as well as a long flirtation with Manchester City starlet Savinho, none of which ended up panning out.
So how do we grade the window? First, perhaps its helpful to hear from the head honcho himself — Tottenham Hotspur Technical Director Johan Lange. Here’s a 20 minute video of Lange talking about Spurs’ business.
Actually, on second thought — don’t watch that. I did, it was kinda boring, and so then I ran it through an AI to get a summary. It’s about what you’d expect.
The interview focuses on the club’s recent summer transfer window strategy and key player signings. Lange explains that the goal was to strengthen the squad for both immediate impact and future potential.
Key discussion points from the interview include:
Yep. “The window had challenges but in the end we’re happy with the way things turned out” is pretty much exactly what I would’ve expected to hear from the man in charge of an entire recruitment and transfer strategy of a top tier English football club.
Naturally, Matty and I disagree. Here are our takes on the window — the good, the bad, and sometimes the ugly from this summer’s dealings.
Dustin George-Miller
Look, I’m just going to come out and say it — this window was underwhelming at a time when Spurs really needed to hit the ball out of the park.
It’s not that Tottenham didn’t end up with some good and promising players. I was skeptical of the Mohammed Kudus transfer, but he’s already showing to be the dynamic, dribbly wide player we always said we wanted. Kevin Danso was an obligation, but he’s a nice defensive cover in the squad. Kota Takai is a lottery ticket (which is fine) and while I’m not thrilled with a one-season loan of Palhinha the early returns are he does exactly what it says on the tin — tackle dudes, defend well, and not pass. Xavi Simons is the saving grace of this window - a genuinely excellent player with superstar potential, and it feels really good to land him.
But I still don’t understand what Spurs are thinking in terms of squad construction here. We knew at the beginning of the window that Spurs needed midfield passing. We’re at the end of the window and that is still a major issue. We entered the window knowing we needed another defender. We never got one. We sold our club captain, talisman, and best scorer in and didn’t really sign a player that can fill the Son-shaped void in the squad. Including loanee Randal Kolo Muani, we now we have a bunch of decent to good players that can play wide, but I don’t see the bigger picture in how we’re supposed to get them the ball and apart from Simons I don’t see many future stars. And don’t get me started on the failed approaches for Gibbs-White and Eze, one of which wanted to and eventually signed with Arsenal. Horrifying.
I’d have felt better with Savinho, but we know what happened there.
In the end, I’m… okay? with the incoming signings. I’m furious with the process. I don’t understand what Spurs are trying to do, there doesn’t appear to be a cohesive long term plan, and with Simons the exception Tottenham and Lange more or less proved that they aren’t very good at closing deals. I’m pretty convinced now that the club needs to separate from Johan Lange and find someone new with some rizz (and who wasn’t convicted of crimes in Italy).
Maybe I’m wrong about all of this and I’ll have to eat crow in a few months, and I’ll be super happy to do that. But right now I do not think this Tottenham squad is substantially better than they were last year. And in this case I pretty strongly believe the ends are not enough to justify the means.
Acquisitions: C • Process: D-
Matty Flatt
There’s a few things you need to take into account when looking at this window. There’s the actual players signed; there’s outgoings; there’s the strategic fit; and then there’s the timeline by which this happened and the process behind it all.
The latter was a resounding, unequivocal failure.
Spurs were undone on multiple occasions by clubs (or players) rejecting Spurs’ approach after sometimes weeks of legwork. This isn’t unusual. Transfers are hard! That’s why well-run front offices have backups, and backups for backups; however, instead of pivoting directly to alternatives, Spurs took weeks to identify new targets.
The players Spurs ended up with are all fine to good (well, great in one case) on paper. Joao Palhinha is a very good ball winner in midfield. Kota Takai is a promising young defender. Mohamed Kudus has the ability to beat any fullback. Randal Kolo Muani offers good depth and versatility up front. Xavi Simons is an extremely skilled creative player. I could go on; in a vacuum, there’s not really a stinker there amongst the lot.
But when you bring all those players together, combined with how Spurs went about their business in the window, and it all feels haphazard. We’ve known Spurs badly need passing in their midfield for about two years now; instead, they signed a guy who has no passing ability. Spurs strongly needed some elite talent at left wing to replace Son; instead, they signed Kolo Muani, a guy who has a level of quality but is more comfortable up top and covers similar ground to Mathys Tel. So why then did Spurs sign Mathys Tel at the start of the window? It just all smacks of panic and a lack of a cohesive plan.
The outgoings were a mess as well. Spurs failed to find a permanent destination for Manor Solomon or Yves Bissouma (who, like Rodrigo Bentancur, only has a year remaining on his contract, by the way), a loan for Dane Scarlett, and sold a promising young goalkeeper in Josh Keeley without a buyback clause.
Xavi Simons is a shining light in what was a rough window.
Grade: C+
