Tottenham transfer tips

Last updated: 24th December 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Tottenham transfer tips

Redknapp: Likely to be a busy man

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Touted as top four contenders by many, including myself, at the start of the season, it is fair to say that things have not gone entirely to plan at White Hart Lane this season. Harry Redknapp does appear to have stabilised Juande Ramos' sinking ship, but a man famed for his ability to unearth hidden gems will need to wheel and deal with the best of them in January if he is to rescue a campaign which promised so much and has delivered very little. Chris Burton gazes into his crystal ball and attempts to figure out how he may go about completing that task.

How the new boys have done

Life is never dull in North London where Tottenham are concerned and this summer proved to be no different. The Spurs circus was in full swing, with the club adopting a revolving door policy in regards to their transfer dealings. Out went Robbie Keane, Steed Malbranque, Younes Kaboul and Paul Robinson, while the disruptive Dimitar Berbatov saga dragged on until transfer deadline day before the surly Bulgarian finally got his wish and packed his bags for Manchester United.

Plenty of money was added to the White Hart Lane coffers as a result of those sales, but how did they go about spending it?

The first arrival of the summer was Croatian playmaker Luka Modric, who caught the eye with a number of promising displays for Slaven Bilic's unfashionable outfit at Euro 2008. He arrived with a glowing reputation as one of Europe's finest playmakers, with his diminutive frame masking tremendous ability on the ball and a battling quality honed in the uncompromising surroundings of the Bosnian top-flight.

A promising pre-season suggested that Modric was worthy of the hysterical hype but, in truth, the 23-year-old has looked lightweight at times and is yet to grasp a game by the scruff of the neck in a manner his international performances had promised. He is by no means the only one to have suffered as a result of Tottenham's dismal start to the season, though, and will undoubtedly get better under the careful guidance of Redknapp.

Another notable summer arrival who will be happy to turn over a new leaf in 2009 is Brazilian keeper Heurelho Gomes. With Robinson and Radek Cerny deemed surplus to requirements, the South American was supposed to provide a commanding presence between the sticks. Unfortunately, he provided anything but, conspiring to produce enough comedy capers to fill a Christmas bloopers DVD all of his own. Again, though, he appears to have responded well to a comforting arm from the wily Redknapp and could yet prove to be a shrewd acquisition.

The 'must-do-better' mantle can also be applied to the enigmatic talents of David Bentley and Giovani dos Santos. The duo were hired to bring a creative influence to a misfiring team, but have failed to live up to their sizeable price-tags thus far. Bentley is capable, if his head is screwed on right, and has enough top-flight experience to know what is required of him, while Dos Santos appears to have got lost in the treatment room and needs to shake off the niggling knocks if he is to fulfil the potential he displayed as Ronaldinho's understudy at Barcelona.

Others worthy of mention at this stage include Roman Pavlyuchenko, Fraizer Campbell and Vedran Corluka. Russian hit-man Pavlyuchenko has displayed glimpses of the fearsome firepower which helped to put pay to England's Euro 2008 qualification dreams, while the on-loan Campbell has looked lively on the rare outings he has been afforded. That just leaves Corluka, another Croatian who has seen his reputation take a battering since heading to the capital. The former Manchester City man is a reassuring presence at the heart of any defence on his day, but has not had too many of those days as yet and will be well aware that a dramatic improvement is required.

What they need

A new shot-stopper appears to be a necessity, despite Gomes beginning to get to grips with the art of goalkeeping in recent weeks. Veteran back-up Cesar Sanchez is precisely that - old - while the likes of Ben Alnwick are only just out of nappies and sit at the opposite end of the age spectrum.

The club appear to be well-stocked at the back and Redknapp could do worse than sift through some of the deadwood and lighten the numbers in his squad. However, with Ledley King and Jonathan Woodgate both struggling to push their creaking limbs through an arduous campaign, a couple of younger, healthier centre-halves may not go amiss.

As previously mentioned, getting the best out of the technical midfield talents already on board remains a key area for Redknapp to address, but another holding option may appeal to a man that likes to build on solid foundations. Should Kevin-Prince Boateng be offloaded back to Germany, as he desires, then a new arrival will become more of a priority.

With only three senior strikers on their books any money made available in the New Year would be well served bolstering a thread-bare goal threat. Should Spurs harbour any aspirations of making an impact in the latter stages of the Uefa Cup, and successfully defending their Carling Cup crown, then the ability to rotate in key areas of the field will be essential.

What they'll get

Between the sticks, Espanyol's Carlos Kameni has been touted, while Redknapp has made no secret of his admiration for his former Pompey charge David James. However, with the England No.1 the wrong side of 35, a glance towards the future may be a more favourable option. Could Manchester United be persuaded to part with Ben Foster?

Portsmouth full-back Glen Johnson is another to have been linked with a White Hart Lane reunion under his former mentor, and would help to solve the problematic right-back slot, but a move appears unlikely. Paul Stalteri has been released but, with the likes of Gilberto and Ricardo Rocha still occupying valuable places on the payroll, the defensive unit should expect more departures than arrivals.

Andrei Arshavin has been told that he is free to leave Zenit St Petersburg in January, should a suitable offer be forthcoming, and Tottenham were among those chasing the Russian forward's signature during the summer. Whether the Spurs hierarchy will be willing to sanction another big-money move for a man with no Premier League experience remains to be seen, while Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid will provide stiff opposition to any side expressing an interest in the precociously-talented 27-year-old.

On the striking front, the available talent is thin on the ground. The January sales are also renowned for seeing player valuations sky-rocket, so Spurs may need to scratch around for credit crunch-busting bargains. With at least one eye kept on the situation at Fratton Park, Redknapp may be willing to tempt his successor Tony Adams with cheeky approaches for Jermain Defoe and/or Peter Crouch, while Bayern Munich's out-of-favour Lukas Podolski is another option and would relish the opportunity of a fresh start in England.

Fan's view - Chris Squirrell

Spurs need a bigger squad to cope with all the competitions. We need another striker (i.e. Crouch, Owen, Defoe), a good defensive midfielder (i.e. Lassana Diarra) and at least two more decent centre-halves. Michael Turner of Hull would be a good acquisition and I'd quite like to see someone like Micah Richards or Richard Dunne at WHL seeing as Man City look like they're going to buy players like Fabio Cannavaro etc... I don't think we need a new winger in Stewart Downing and definitely not at the price of £15m plus Gareth Bale. Bale is a very good left winger himself, and in fact I rate him as a better winger than left-back. Plus, we have David Bentley, Aaron Lennon and Jamie O'Hara who can play on the wings so I don't think we have a problem there.

Comments (23)

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Andy Tarsey (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I for one believe why spend all that money on downing when Podolski is in the same bracket!! Believe we should keep hold off zokora, def need another 2 strikers which at this time in the season will be very hard to get hold off!! CD i believe we should attempt to go for sammia hypia from liverpool could b a gd signing on loan or even on a 2 yr contract good cover for king, and would also bring the youngsters on!! need someone in the midfield with a bit of bite and who dont mind puttin the hard tackles in modric has started showin form and dos santos will b back soon touch wood and will show wat he really is capable off.

Posted 19:40 28th December 2008

Christian Brienesse (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Spurs don't need to spend big in the January transfr window- not at all. We definitely don't need Bellamy, a man more prominently known for his bookings than his goals. If we must get a striker look into the rest of the world rather than in England. We need another BACK UP keeper. Gomes is fantastic and just needed time to settle into the English game, and isnow proving himself to be brilliant between the posts. We definitely need another centre half to cope with th injuries of King and Woodgate, but otherwise the team is fine. The manager does not need to start bringing in any major players. There is enough quality in Tottenham, he can manage the players we have got. If he has to bring players in, then we should just get a new and better manager instead.

Posted 21:25 26th December 2008

Daniel Brown (Darlington fan) says...

I think Gomes has now established himself as a top flight keeper, and money would be wasted on a new keeper unless someone young was brought in, such as Ben Foster, as competiton and for the future. With the constant injuries of Woodgate and King it would be wise to either get a solid centre-back or right-back as Corluka may be forced to a central role without the two english men. Gareth Bale seems capable at left-back but needs to just working more on the defensive side of his game. On the subject of the midfield I don't see any real need for new wingers at the club but there is alot of hype about Stuart Downing coming to the club. The reason being for this is Harry Redknapp wants a left winger who has a natural left foot and Stuart Downing constantly performs week in and week out at the Riverside. Gareth Southgate will be reluctant to sell but with the current fianicial crisis, Steve Gibson (Middlesbrough chairman) who was seen buzzing around the Boro training ground last week looking very pleased as if he'd secured himself a huge sum of money(DealDone?)will have no hesitations if a bid of around 15m comes in. If Downing was to arrive than there would be alot of competition for a the two winger spots in the Spurs team. With the likes of Arron Lennon, Giovanni Dos Santos, and David Bentley Spurs will have a good depth if Downing does arrive. With Tottenham brimming with talent out wide, the central of the midfield could do with boulstering. Although Didier Zokora has been highly rated over recent weeks and being linked with Real Madrid (due to them being under the management of Juande Ramos), he was not so long ago being subject to abuse because of being incaple of playing in the worlds best league. Tom Huddlestone and Jaime O'Hara both have bright futures but it would be great if Redknapp brought in a well-known natural centre-midfielder who can dictate play and who can get back and help the back-four.

Posted 15:26 26th December 2008

Adam Carmody (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Its simple, its what my father has been saying since the sands of my time...We need two men for every single position. A good in match goalie, a penalty stopper for cup matches. Four alternate wingbacks, tight ones for Chelsea away etc and creative ones for home/inferior opposition matches. I agree, keep woodie and king,dawson...get the dross out and bring in 2 young backs, one brave dogfighter and someonen with an even head who will eventually take the armband from king. Lennon, Bently, and then Dos Santos, Bale plus another one (petrov) because quality doesn't overcome being a left sided sick note. Huddlestone and someone more defensively focused, like a Davids would go well. then Jenas and Modric can alternate for games we need to switch work rate with someone who can make a difference in a flash. Up front I cant see how a club like spurs, trying to be top four can dribble from the mouthe at under 50 million quid for the sales of keane, berba and defoe..Berba was a sulk but we should have toughed it out like utd did with real, and Keane is unique, defoe in fairness was happy to go due to being underplayed but tis madness. I feel we need OUT: F.Cambell,Rocha,Zokora,O'Hara and Dawson Loan,Ekotto,Gunter Loan,Boateng,Ghaly if he's still lurching around the lane with that wig. IN: Dm, 2 LB,RB,CB,2 ST

Posted 13:40 26th December 2008

Dan Francis (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Spurs need to have a January boot sale, Rocha, Gilberto, Boateng and Taarabt are all gathering dust and in reallity will probably never play a large part for Spurs. I think combined you could be looking at around £10m for them. Gomes will come good i am sure of that but can we wait that long? Foster would be a great aquisition but UTD will be unlikely to sell with Van der Sar being the wrong side of 35. I would be more favourable for a move towards young Joe Hart. With City flirting with Buffon he looks destined for the City bench and a 1st team slot for Spurs could be too good to refuse. Defensively we are weak in the sense that we hardly ever name the same 2 centre halves for consecutive games leaving a fairly unstable backline. Spurs need reliability. With interest in Portsmouth's Right back, Glen Johnson it seems that Harry prefers Vedran Corluka as a Centre back which solves 2 problematic positons in one signing, with Hutton still out and King/Woodgate injury prone it could be a good solution. The left side of defence also needs bolstering. If Benoit Assou-Ekotto is injured Spurs have only Bale to cover who is in reality a winger. Warnock would be a good option for Spurs. Spurs need More bite in the middle of the park. Bullard or Nolan i believe could do a great job for Spurs. They are not Robinho i admit but they do a great job every season and always give 110%. Up top spurs lack Confidence. They miss the creative arrogance of Berbatov and the brash in your face style of Keane. Bent as we know is too light weight as a target man and Pavlyuchenko will run away from any tough tackles. I was surprised at the Bellamy interest from Spurs but He could be just the thing Spurs need. He is a tough customer, runs all game and will bag a fair few goals over a season. Defoe or Crouch are also worth a look, Crouch is a great target man. Defoe can get you a goal from no where (Why did Spurs sell him?)

Posted 12:37 26th December 2008

Chris Carter (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I like the sound of Owen, Defoe or Crouch but please not Bellamy! The guy is a thug and not the sort we want at the club. Buying him would be a backwards step, and don't think he has the qualtiy to take us where we want: the top four.

Posted 11:42 26th December 2008

Michael Hughes (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

We are weakest, in my opinion, in midfield. Jenas is lightweight and we have no strong leadership. Downing would be good. We desperately need a top striker too. NO DEFOE OR CROUCH!

Posted 11:08 26th December 2008

Aaron Thatcher (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Due to the inflated prices during the January transfer window it is important that Arry is shrewd when it comes to possible purchases. Therefore it is important that we only really buy what we need. RB isnt an issue, Corluka has put in some outstanding performances of late and have good quality back up in Hutton & Gunter. CB is an issue, as mentioned above we need some young legs in there as Woody & King cannot play a full season anymore. LB is also a concern, Bale isnt living up to his potential and Ekotto is really only a squad player. DM & Striker are our priority and im sure thats what Arry will be looking to bring in during Janurary.

Posted 10:52 26th December 2008

Bob Wear (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

In my opinion, spurs need a keeper with good knowledge of the premier league, Shay Given would be nice, One or two strikers, the usual canadates come to mind, but why not someone with a reutation? As for the midfield i think we have one of the best,and so maybe just hope for the return of the injured. Im sure Santa is listening, and harry and the team have been good boys so please help and support them with renewed verve.

Posted 21:31 25th December 2008

George Bell (Manchester United fan) says...

I think Spurs need to sign another CB to cover for the injuries they keep getting and back up for Ledley King who cant stay fit the ideal signing would be Fernando Merida of Stuttgart he will be on the cheap, has great experience and would be a great defender for spurs They also could do with two new striker Craig Bellamy is ideal as he is powerfull, Quick and has a good finish i also think they should try and sign Lukas Podolski of Bayern Munich he showed what a talent he was in the Euros and would be a great buy for Redknap if he could get him

Posted 20:28 25th December 2008

Mark Davies (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Jamie O'Hara has great talent and always gives his all when playing for spurs. Gareth Bale needs to get back into the team aswell because assou ekotto clearly has his eyes on a return to france. Vedran 'Charlie' Corluka also needs to start producing some performances, the price tag paid for him is starting to look like really bad business. he seems lost at the best of times. Also get of Roman's back!!!!!!!!!!!! he's been playing club/international football for the best part of 13 months now and is starting to look tired. I for one hope we keep hold of him. I'm sure with a summers rest and a good pre-season with the lads he'll come good. He has a nack of scoring important goals (Liverpool and Newcastle Carling Cup)

Posted 16:07 25th December 2008

John Silman (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I disagree with a lot of these predictions. The last thing we need now is a completely new team. The squad we have is just starting to gel and 5 new players in January will just upset the balance. I think two decent players will be plenty; one class centre back, possibly Distin from portsmouth or maybe Alex of Chelsea who has stated he wants to leave and then one link-up striker. We've been missing a player who links the midfield to the front man - the role Berbatov played - and someone like Podolski or dare I say it Bellamy might work. I would love Defoe back but I think we would do better to wait until the summer.

Posted 13:30 25th December 2008

Jimmy James (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I think we desperately need a centre back or right back as Woodgate and King are prone to injury. Hutton is out and Gunter is too inexperienced. Corluka has done well there and is a better CB in my opinion anyway. A back up Right back or Centreback would solve this hole in the squad. Glen Johnson who i believe will be on the move in January, would be a great choice or Michael Turner of Hull. I think we need a naturally left sided left winger too. We n=have never replaced the great Ginola, and Lennon is more effective on the right than the ineffective Bentley. Downing is over rated and over priced. Adam Johnson would be a better choice or someone like Arda Turan of Galatasaray. A striker is also a priority. Pavlechenko looks more like a chicachento and Fraizer Campbell looks out of his depth in the EPL. I'd like to see Peter Crouch and Michael Owen come to the lane.

Posted 00:37 25th December 2008

Jack Rollins (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I think what Spurs are missing is a consistant striker , someone who is going to get us 20+ goals a season especially as Bent has come out of form. I feel Santa Cruz or maybe Owen under Redknapp could be our solution as i feel Defoe and Crouch would only be available for ridiculous money. We also need a DM i feel with Real Madrid showing intrest in Zokora and the spanish giants also taking Diarra i feel that Senna would maybe be a good choice.

Posted 00:28 25th December 2008

Neale Bowdler (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

Spurs do need another LW, but NOT Downing!! Another in the mould of Lennon, who's able to beat players with pace and guile please. We definately need a CB, Distin or Upson for me, a DM who will fight and mix things up a bit, now Diaras unavailable, I'd take a punt on Appiah. Finally we need someone to score the goals, not in the mould of Benty or Pavs though, the only one for me that may be available at a decent price would have to be Owen. Good luck to the lads for 2009, COYS!!

Posted 21:58 24th December 2008

John Clements (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I would really like to see a top "ball winning" midfielder added to the squad, in the Partick Vieira mould (dare I say it) - that's the most pressing issue, the other areas that do neeed strengthenen are centre back as cover for King and Woodgate as Dawson isn't good enough - left wing and we have no matural balance when Lennon or Bentley are shoved out there, and O'Hara isn't good enough and the final area is an out and out goal scorer - ala Michael Owen - if we can added each of these things, I can see us pushing for Top 6 and making the latter stages of Uefa and FA cup as well as stuffing United in the Carling Cup final - Come on you Spurs !!!!!

Posted 21:48 24th December 2008

Adrian Leung (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

What we need, what we want and what we will get are 3 entirely different things. Despite what Levy says, everyone knows we have cash to spend after making a PROFIT ithis summer. Up front we miss Keane more than Berba but a reunion looks unlikely. As does Defoe's return: Adams has said he'll walk if Defoe goes. Nonetheless, I'd like to see either of them back. Owen will not want to leave the North unless Arsenal or Chelsea offer a huge salary & he's agreed to see out the season anyway. Bellamy looks odds-on given the financial problems at West Ham. My concern is that he's disruptive influence but if anyone can keep him in check, it's Arry. Arshavin will go to a CL club, Podolski could be a great addition: he can play as a left wing, support or lone striker. Downing's an average winger who happens to have a left foot. If he was a right winger he wouldn't come near Lennon or even an off-form Bentley. He's not worth 15m but it looks like Boro will sell at that price and Arry wants the balance of a proper left winger. I agree with Chris Squirrel that Bale is actually very good going forward but not tight enough in defence. Huddlestone & Zokora are both improving under 'Arry & I can't see any better holding midfielders who are available for a realistic price in January. Maybe Noble from West Ham on the cheap but while he has good potential, he's not much better than what we have. At the back we definitely need another centre back or right back. I've not been convinced by Hutton, Gunter needs time and Corluka often has to play centre back when King is out. Johnson would be a good, experienced option, but if there's 1 player we need, want and could get, it's Upson. He & Woodgate would be an awesome pair. I'd like to see us go for Bridge since Assou-Ekoto is only playing cos Bale is off form. In goal, Gomes is improving but I can see us bid for Boruc or even James. As we saw with Robbo though, it's better the devil you know!

Posted 20:54 24th December 2008

Lee Saunders (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

The likes of Rocha, Gilberto (worst player i've witnessed in a spurs shirt), Ghaly, Boateng and Campbell must go as quite frankly they're not good enough. I'd like to see a loan signing of a good keeper someone like Cudicini or Foster would be great to keep Gomes on his toes. I'd also like a loan signing for a CB, perhaps Alex of Chelsea or even someone like Zat Knight from Villa. Then when summer comes along, thats when I feel 'Arry will need to make a decision on whether a new permanent CB is needed. I'd like to see a new right winger come in, YES a right winger, Lennon has been fantastic whatever side hes played on this season where as, hopefully, if David "I'm worth £15m because I scored against Ar5ena1" Bentley was to join Senor Ramos at Real for around £12m-£15m, then we could use the money for Wigan's Antonio Valencia who i rate extremely high and the thought of Lennon and Valencia on the counter against opposition defenders is potentially the "best wing pair" in the Premiership. Finally a striker is definitely needed, Campbell is not Premiership material, Pavlyuchenko already has a full Russian season under his belt and therefore could suffer with fatigue in the second half of the season, leaving Bent as the main man to look for goals (and he's done very well I must say), I'd love to see Defoe return if the FA would grant special permission to sign, otherwise Crouch, Owen or possibly a cheeky bid for Carlos Tevez wouldn't do any harm, but we certainly need a proven Prem striker and not an outsider which is too big a risk for our situation. Well thats all from me!!! Merry Xmas everyone!!!

Posted 19:44 24th December 2008

Dilawar Kaskar (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I agree that we need new players in every position on the field. First and foremost, it has to be a new goalkeeper. If we have any hope of doing better, GOMES HAS TO BE REPLACED!!!!!!!!! Even if David James is 35 years, he is stll world class and that's that. Then, we need at least 2 world class strikers, Podolski would be perfect, as he is strong on the ball and has a pretty lethal boot. Arshavin should've come, and the 2nd choice Pavlyuchenko just is not good enough, if we have intentions of at least competing with the big boys next season. We should also even put in a bid for Thierry Henry. Crouch would be a good buy either. at least another central defender is necessary. Corluka is doing great in the right back position. Boateng must be released as well, as there s no place for him. The powers that be should not be stingy, and they should be prepared to spend big, afterall, they made 50 million with just 2 players! -they were too 'tight' refusingt o pay another 2 million for Arshavin, when clearly they had so much to play with, and instead bought a less talented player. Thank god for harry. Let's see what happens

Posted 17:27 24th December 2008

Craig Smith (Tottenham Hotspur fan) says...

I think we need a centre back with King not able to play more than once a week and Woodgates back injury recuuring at the moment so i think we should try and get Distan from Portsmouth he shouldn't cost to much and is a good player we could also put in a cheeky bid for Lescott or Micah Richards. We could also do with a midfielder and i think Bullard would be a great buy as when Jenas is out we seem to lack some drive in the midfield and i feel Bullard would give us that. A DM isnt a must at the moment with huddlestone playing well since Harry's arrival and Zokora looking alright. We need a striker and i think someone like Ashton or Bellamy would be good as wecould get them cheaper but i would love to see either Defoe or Keane return. Defoe would be up for the move but if Keane did leave Anfield it would't be until the summer. We could also do with getting a full-back on loan with Hutton out for a while Glen Johnson or Steve Finnan would be good enough for that. If we make these signings i'm sure we will have a strong second half of the season and show top 4 form and potentially finish in the european spots.

Posted 17:24 24th December 2008
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