Houssem Aouar (Getty Images)
According to a report by The Sunday Mirror (h/t football.london), Tottenham Hotspur are interested in Olympique Lyonnaise midfielder, Houssem Aouar. The Frenchman is also on the radar of Premier League rivals Arsenal. Aouar has impressed at Lyon in the past few seasons and has now caught the eye of the North London clubs.
Spurs are without a manager as of now but have appointed Fabio Paratici as their director of football. The former Juventus man has given the club stability when it comes to transfer activities, but this surprise interest in Aouar would make little sense to Spurs fans. And here, we find out why.
Who doesn’t like their club making a big signing in the transfer window? Aouar is a popular name in France as well as in Europe despite being only 22 years old. He has been the fulcrum of the Ligue 1 side’s midfield. But considering the situation at Spurs right now, there is little case to be made for a new midfielder.
They already have a host of midfielders on their books. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who is impressing at Euros for Denmark, was only signed last summer and had a stellar season under Jose Mourinho. Similarly, Tanguy Ndombele, Moussa Sissoko, and Harry Winks have also made their case to be regular starters.
On top of that, the club also has Giovani Lo Celso, another player brought into the club just last summer from Real Betis. There is also Dele Alli, who plays as a No.10. That makes it six midfielders in the centre of the park, and that is excluding the returning Oliver Skipp.
The 20-year-old made the PFA Championship Team of the Year when he was on loan at Norwich City, who won promotion to the Premier League this season. Spurs players are also on long-term contracts. Ndombele’s deal expires in 2025, and so do the deals of Hojbjerg and Lo Celso.
Sissoko also has a deal that runs until at least 2023, while Harry Winks is tied to the club until the summer of 2024. Amid this, there is no real urgency to add midfielders to the squad. If anything, the club should keep Skipp and distribute gametime between him and the others. Also, the club could have other priorities.
Moreover, Spurs could be faced with the near-impossible task of replacing Harry Kane. The English striker, as per a report by Sky Sports, was the subject of a bid from the Cityzens last week, and if he leaves, they could have an almighty task at their hand going into the next season. Apart from that, perhaps a central defender and right-winger makes sense for them.
Gareth Bale was influential in the second half of this season. However, the Madrid winger is set to return to the Spanish capital at the end of his loan spell. It is wiser from Tottenham’s perspective to first fill the gaps that exist before going after Aouar. It seems like a signing they can make in the future, but not one that’s needed right now.
