Tottenham are expected to sell Tom Carroll in the next few days with the midfielder reportedly undergoing a medical at Swansea City, according to the reports from Sky Sports. After being heavily linked with an £8 million move to the Welsh club, it looks likely that the midfielder will be joining Paul Clement team for around £4.5 million. Swansea have been able to get the player on a cheap largely because he has not been utilised in the season by manager Mauricio Pochettino. After making one substitute appearance in the Premier League early on in the campaign, Carroll has not been close to making the squad for a number of weeks now.
The 24-year-old was once regarded as the next big thing in the Tottenham first-team, as he came through with a lot of promise. He was impressive during his loan spells at the likes of Swansea. Ironically, this loan spell at the Liberty stadium appears to have been the reason behind the Welsh club close to making Carroll as their first signing of this January transfer window. Even though he will be swapping a club involved in the title race for a club fighting against relegation, it may be a good move for him on a personal level.
Since he has played very little football at first this season, it is highly likely that he may never come under the favour of manager Mauricio Pochettino. Moving to a club where he is likely to be a big fish in a small pond could be the impetus for the player to translate the remarkable potential, which he showed in his loan spells, into actual performance. Swansea manager Paul Clement has confirmed that the club are in discussions with Spurs for the transfer of Carroll. The transfer will come too soon for the player to be available for the game against Arsenal, but he may be eligible for next week’s big match against Liverpool. Clement said:
“The two clubs are talking about that possibility (of signing Olsson). The stage it‘s at is we are looking to agree the terms.
“There’s an interest there [in Carroll]. It’s similar situation to Olsson – the clubs are in talks.”
After having not had much success with their summer signings, Spurs are expected to be active in January. Since the club will be involved in three different competitions in the second half of the campaign, Mauricio Pochettino may want to strengthen the team in order to handle the huge number of games. The loss of Carroll will mean one less player to call upon. Even though the transfer fee is not significant, it is likely to help the club make at least one or two signings in the remaining two weeks of the window.
More than concentration on the other competitions, Spurs are likely to be focused on the title challenge and strengthening in one or two areas would significantly help them in this regard.
