Ange Postecoglou has admitted that planning is already underway for Tottenham’s third transfer window of his tenure so what will this summer hold for the club?
The Spurs boss revealed this month that the club is looking at bringing in new faces in all departments across the squad during the summer transfer window. A number of his current players are also coming to a crossroads in their time at the north London outfit with their contracts reaching their final year.
“I think we’ll look to strengthen all areas of the park come the end of the season,” said Postecoglou. “That’s planning that’s already underway, and other people are in charge of it at the moment.”
He added: “We’ve got a lot of work to do still on the squad and I don’t think we’re anywhere near where we want to be. It probably will take a little bit more than three windows to get there, for sure.
“Just in terms of the robustness, adaptability and compatibility of the squad, I think there’s still a fair bit of change we need to do.”
So let’s look across Postecoglou’s squad and what needs to happen this summer across all the different departments as technical director Johan Lange and chief scout Rob Mackenzie get to work.
READ MORE: Rodrigo Bentancur confirms he has been playing for Tottenham with painful new injury this month
READ MORE: ‘Furious’ Yves Bissouma claim made after Tottenham midfielder is left out of Mali squad
Goalkeepers
Postecoglou has his main goalkeeper set now with Guglielmo Vicario, who was rewarded for a fantastic season so far with his first appearance for Italy on Sunday. The 27-year-old suits the Australian’s system perfectly with his bravery, speed off his line and ability with his feet, not to mention his shot-stopping skills.
Fraser Forster might have just turned 36 and currently have a fractured foot, but the former England international was handed a new deal in December until the summer of 2025 so Postecoglou seems happy enough with him as a back-up.
You would think that one of Tottenham’s 25-year-old third choice goalkeepers – Brandon Austin or Alfie Whiteman – is likely to leave this summer, whether permanently or on loan.
Austin’s contract currently ends this summer while Whiteman’s comes to an end in 2025, however it is Austin who has been the man on the bench to back-up Vicario with Forster out injured, which might help him get a new deal.
Spurs could have real issues if they get into European competition next season with a lack of club-trained first team players due to the departure of Harry Kane, Harry Winks and likely Japhet Tanganga. That means at least one of those two academy product goalkeepers will need to stay to be registered.
All of the above makes it unlikely that another goalkeeper would arrive unless a player comes on to the market who is too good to pass up.
There is also some strong young talent coming through in the goalkeeper department with Republic of Ireland Under-21s international Josh Keeley on loan at Barnet and Luca Gunter impressing many within the club among others.
Full-backs
Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie have been a big success in stepping into the very different inverted full-back system that Postecoglou employs. However, Tottenham are lacking in natural back-ups to step into the roles when either are out.
Emerson Royal and Ben Davies are solid, dependable full-backs and showed their versatility this season by stepping into centre-back roles with plenty of success, especially in the Welshman’s case. They are not natural fits as Postecoglou full-backs, though, and one of them – or both – could be allowed to leave for regular football if a good offer comes in.
There has been Saudi interest in Emerson in the past year which Spurs have previously rejected and the 25-year-old would bring in a bigger fee with two years left on his deal than Davies, who is approaching his final year. A decision will have to be made by and on the Welshman as he approaches a decade at the club.
The 30-year-old, who is currently completing his UEFA A licence coaching qualifications while studying for the equivalent of a master’s degree in business, provides useful back-up in a couple of positions and is a homegrown player in the Premier League squad. But despite his love of the club and living in London, he also may want regular football at this stage in his career.
Sergio Reguilon, currently on loan at Brentford after a spell at Manchester United, will be allowed to leave the club as he will have only a year left on his deal and is not part of Postecoglou’s plans. The same goes for Djed Spence, at Genoa on loan, who has three years remaining on his contract.
A tough decision will also have to be made on Ryan Sessegnon, who should be fit and ready for the start of next season but football.london understands the 23-year-old only has a year left on his contract if the club take up the final 12-month option within his deal. Otherwise he could be allowed to leave this summer for nothing, which would mean Spurs writing off a homegrown player who cost them more than £30million in 2019.
In terms of incomings, Tottenham will have a number of potential full-backs on their radar. football.london understands that Spurs were strongly interested in signing Festy Ebosele a couple of years ago when he was a Derby player but instead the young Irish right-back went to Udinese and now the Italian media have linked Tottenham, along with a number of Premier League clubs, with another raid on the club from which they signed Udogie.
The 21-year-old versatile wide man has enjoyed a fine season in Serie A, playing 28 times for the Italian club this season as a regular starter and got his third cap for the Republic of Ireland on Saturday, coming off the bench late on in their 0-0 draw with Belgium.
The other option for Tottenham would be to sign a centre-back who can also play as a full-back in order to be able to offer him more potential for game time.
Centre-backs
The signing of Radu Dragusin in the January window finally gave Postecoglou some depth to his natural centre-back options, to complement Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven. The Spurs boss made it clear this month though that he wants another signing in that position.
“If you’re saying ‘is it an area we can strengthen?’ Yes it’s an area we will probably look at,” he said. “With all these things it’s about trying to strengthen the group as much as anything else. If you think about when I first arrived, we had maybe six or seven centre-backs at the club. So it’s not just numbers. It’s more about the ability of those players to play the football we want and to fit in to what we’re trying to build here. I think it is an area of the park we will look to strengthen.”
If Tottenham are to qualify for European football next season then they will have plenty of game time to keep four centre-backs busy. A new arrival would block the path for young defenders Ashley Phillips and Alfie Dorrington and mean less need for either Ben Davies or Emerson Royal to fill in if either were to stay. In the summer of 2025, Spurs have teenage Croatian talent Luka Vuskovic arriving from Hajduk Split.
football.london has long reported Tottenham’s interest in Ukrainian centre-back Ilya Zabarnyi before his arrival in the Premier League and that remains after the 21-year-old’s impressive season at Bournemouth under Andoni Iraola.
Spurs attempted to sign another Cherries defender last summer for Postecoglou in Lloyd Kelly but had a bid rejected for the now 25-year-old. The centre-back has had an injury hit-season and has missed recent games with a hip problem, but is coming to the end of his contract this summer with no new deal currently agreed with the south coast club.
Kelly can also play as a left-back and has done so a number of times this season, so would offer versatility to Postecoglou and he has captained Bournemouth on occasions and would be another leader for the group.
Another potential summer free agent Tottenham have shown interest in over the past 18 months is Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo, who has impressed this season after recovering from groin surgery. The Cottagers are expected to offer the 26-year-old a lucrative new deal to stay but Spurs will continue to monitor his situation.
At the other end of the price scale, the north London club have long appreciated Crystal Palace’s 23-year-old England international Marc Guehi. With two years left on his contract though and most of the Premier League’s top clubs also liking the centre-back, who is currently out following knee surgery, his price tag is going to be a big one.
Leaving the club will be Joe Rodon and the Welshman should bring in some good money for Spurs. The 26-year-old has starred in central defence for Championship table-toppers Leeds United and played almost every minute for a team with the best defensive record in the league. Leeds could regret not negotiating an option to buy the Wales international as part of his loan move because Tottenham could have a bit of an auction on their hands for the in-form defender this summer.
Japhet Tanganga, also in the final year of his contract, will likely move on this summer after reigniting his career with a successful spell at Millwall in this second half of the season.
Central midfield
The midfield is an area that could see plenty of change with various players reaching a crossroads in their career at the club. Tottenham will try once again to move Tanguy Ndombele out of the door in his final 12 months of contract, while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is reaching the final year of his deal after a season in which he has started just six Premier League games.
The Dane is likely to be in demand, though, as he has still made a decent contribution across 30 appearances this campaign with previous interest in Italy, Spain and Germany for the midfielder expected to remain strong.
Oliver Skipp is in a tough spot with the 23-year-old needing game time desperately next season in order to stop his career stagnating, but those club-trained homegrown issues could force Spurs’ hand against allowing a loan move to happen for a midfielder previously touted as a future captain of the club by Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte.
Giovani Lo Celso will also want far more game time than he has had this season, albeit with injury playing its part occasionally in that, and the Argentina international could look to make a move.
Pape Matar Sarr and James Maddison look well set for the future at the club, while Rodrigo Bentancur will be hoping to prove himself again after an injury-ravaged year. Yves Bissouma’s inconsistent form in recent months and discipline issues this season though will have made him far from indispensable for the next campaign after making such a strong start under Postecoglou and he has also been dropped by Mali from their recent squad.
Spurs will continue to look at central options this summer with Conor Gallagher’s contract and long-term future still not sorted at Chelsea, while Tottenham are one of a number of Premier League clubs keeping an eye on Atalanta’s 24-year-old Brazilian midfielder Ederson. Italian media have also linked the north London club with his team-mate Teun Koopmeiners, while Spurs and other top Premier League clubs have been mooted with an interest in Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes.
In terms of young players, Tottenham have talented 18-year-old Swede Lucas Bergvall arriving this summer from Djurgarden and Postecoglou will have to make decisions over Alfie Devine and Jamie Donley, with both teenagers needing more game time but there remains that club-trained homegrown issue to keep in mind.
Attackers
Tottenham have a strong trio of wingers to use as a foundation to add to next season with captain Son Heung-min, Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski. Manor Solomon will also be an option once he is fully recovered from his latest minor knee surgery which is hoped will finally end the problems that have kept him out since September.
A decision will have to be made over whether Timo Werner’s loan is made permanent for around £15million, which Postecoglou said will not be decided upon until nearer the time. Spanish winger Bryan Gil will move on this summer for the 23-year-old is simply not going to get the football he needs at Spurs.
Tottenham will continue to look for versatile wingers who can play across the front line or in deeper roles. The club have long held an interest in Wolves star Neto, although a high price tag for the 24-year-old plus a string of injuries in recent seasons could cast doubt over any major outlay for the talented attacker, who has three goals and 11 assists this season.
football.london understands that Tottenham have shown considerable interest in Genoa’s Icelandic international Albert Gudmundsson, along with Inter and Juventus, and the player is expected to be available for a fee between £21.5million and £26million this summer.
Morgan Gibbs-White continues to be linked with Spurs after a promising season at Nottingham Forest, while the north London club have been tracking Juventus’ 20-year-old Islington-born midfielder Samuel Iling-Junior for a couple of years. Both he and Gibbs-White can also play in the centre of the park. Turkish press have claimed Spurs have an interest in Fenerbahce midfielder Sebastian Szymanski.
In the striker role, Richarlison has had a far more effective season after surgery to end a pubic bone issue but Saudi interest is expected to be reignited this summer for the Brazilian and a big money approach might tempt the north London club.
Tottenham are a number of clubs linked with both Brentford striker Ivan Toney, as his contract reaches its final year, as well as Feyenoord forward Santiago Giminez, who has 24 goals in 35 matches this season, including strikes in the Champions League.
Spurs will have to decide on the next steps for young strikers Alejo Veliz, Dane Scarlett and free-scoring Under-21s striker Will Lankshear, with again that homegrown issue needing to be taken into account.
Want breaking and top Tottenham stories sent straight to you? Join our Spurs WhatsApp community by clicking this link.
Catch up with this week’s Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here.
