Tottenham Hotspur came agonisingly close to signing Andre Gomes from Barcelona in the summer transfer window. And, if latest reports published by The Sun are to be believed, Spurs could go back in the January window to sign the Portuguese European Champion.
It is being reported that Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino has sanctioned a £20m bid for the Barcelona midfielder and the club management is confident that they can land their man this time.
There was speculation all through the summer that Gomes would leave in the summer and on deadline day, it looked like he would join the North Londoners. However, the Catalans pulled out of the deal in the last minute as they could not get a replacement.
Gomes still doesn’t feature prominently in the first-team plans of Ernesto Valverde and looks set to leave the club in January. The 24-year-old arrived at the Camp Nou and was touted as a long-term replacement for Andres Iniesta. However, he could neither upstage the veteran playmaker nor display his credentials to increase competition.
With this news that Spurs could land Gomes will potentially end the speculations of a January move for Ross Barkley. The Everton playmaker has been a long-term target for Pochettino and didn’t join the club because of astronomically high valuation by the Toffees.
The fact that the England international is currently sidelined due to an injury has put further question marks on the transfer. There is no indication that Everton could climb down on their asking price although Barkley would leave on a free transfer next summer. All these facts make a move for Gomes, not just financially viable but also prudent for footballing reasons.
So, will Gomes be able to add dynamism to Tottenham’s midfield? There is no doubt that the former Valencia midfielder is an excellent pick. Agreed that he has struggled to settle at Barcelona but there are many cases of top players struggling at Barcelona in their initial season.
If you ask me, the failure at the Camp Nou is not a barometer of success for players. The jury is still out on Gomes but he could love life at Tottenham under Pochettino.
