Belgian hotshot Youri Tielemans is reportedly set to move out from Anderlecht in the summer with Tottenham Hotspur being the frontrunners to clinch his signature.
Tielemans made his debut for the Belgian national team last campaign and he is having a purple patch this season too, netting 13 goals and dishing out 8 assists in all competitions so far. It’s certainly a respectable return, considering his role as a central midfielder. Apart from the impressive stats, his quick movement and ability to pick out good passes set the tone in the final third too.
It wasn’t going to be long before a number of European big boys come knocking the doors, and it was Real Madrid and Spurs who wasted no time. In fact, Spurs did send scouts over to watch him perform in a Europa League tie against Shakhtar.
Anderlecht sporting director Herman van Holsbeeck revealed this week that the highly-rated midfielder could leave in the next transfer window. He also told Het Nieuwsblaad that the 19-year-old will not be making his decision based on money. With Madrid being another club monitoring his situation, it does put the north London club on a front foot.
It’s pretty rare that young players turn down offers from the Spanish giants. However, considering the good work that Spurs are continually doing to develop young players over recent years, one can presumptuously say that White Hart Lane would be a perfect ladder for Tielemans. Dele Alli and Harry Kane, respectively 20 and 23, are storming the league like seasoned veterans and several academy products are already pushing their way into the bench.
Plenty of bright prospects have somewhat derailed their career path as playing minutes seem to be a far cry at Real Madrid. Case in point is Norwegian starlet Martin Odegaard, who hogged the headlines when he joined Los Blancos from Stromsgodset yet could not break into the senior squad and subsequently sealed a loan move to Dutch club SC Heerenveen till the end of the season.
Besides that, the bunch of Belgian connections in the names of Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld, and Mousa Dembele would make his arrival in London feel like home at once.
The only bite at the moment is Anderlecht’s valuation on their prized possession for €22 million. The truthful hurt is young players with potential are certainly costly but Mauricio Pochettino would be tempted to throw the net on more established individuals for such amount. Even Borussia Dortmund only splashed €9.5 million to pry Alexander Isak away from AIK Solna.
Could the Spurs faithful see another Alli in the making? Do Tottenham need the Anderlecht wonder-kid?
