Why Tottenham must sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the summer
According to Southern Daily Echo (h/t Daily Star), Tottenham faced a setback in their attempts to sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, with Southampton not willing to let their captain leave before the transfer deadline day.
The report also suggests that while Tottenham were weighing up a move for the Dane, Everton were also keeping tabs on the player. However, none of the teams could get this transfer done as the Saints had no intention of selling him in January.
Hojbjerg, 24, who came through the youth ranks at Brondby FC in his homeland was picked by Bayern Munich to play for their reserve side in the summer of 2012. He then enjoyed loan spells at Augsburg and Schalke before joining Southampton in 2016.
He has been a consistent member of the Saints squad for the past three years and has also become the captain of the club, leading them on several occasions.
Meanwhile, Tottenham started on a high note under new manager Jose Mourinho but seem to have lost their plot in the last few games. They have just two wins from their last 5 league outings and are yet to progress to the next round in the FA Cup after a draw against Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side last weekend.
Mourinho has been unlucky since he took charge, with several of the first-team players being absent due to long-term injuries. Harry Kane’s hamstring injury has put the Englishman out of action for some months and the Lilywhites failed to bring in a striker last month.
However, they managed to recruit Gedson Fernandes on loan from Benfica and winger Steven Bergwijn from PSV Eindhoven. The two of them have been in good form of late and they can be helpful to the club if they are able to translate their game into match-winning performances.
But the loss of Christian Eriksen has left them without depth in their squad and the manager must sign a dependable central player to avoid shortcomings. Thus, an interest in Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was logical.
His versatile nature of play could be effective alongside the big names in Mourinho’s side and he is capable of being strong in the box-to-box midfield role.
Verdict
Frenchman Tanguy Ndombele hasn’t lived up to the expectation at Spurs and nothing can be said of Gedson Fernandes’ loan move in the future. And with some experience in English football, Hojbjerg looks ready for a bigger challenge.
Therefore, Tottenham must do everything possible to sign the Denmark international in the summer after missing out on him this month.
