There had been a lot of nervous jitters for the Lilywhites supporters going into the winter transfer deadline day given how Daniel Levy still hadn’t delivered a forward all window amid links with a lot of players that amounted to nothing, but the club chairman had other plans; he was working to bring in one of the most talented young forwards in world football as they signed Mathys Tel from Bayern Munich.

A surprise transfer for Tel, but there is a reason…

It was one of those highlight transfers of the window, but one that surprised many given the talent that the Frenchman possesses, complemented by how Bayern always wanted him to succeed in the German top tier. But now this loan transfer will prove to be a massive step in the 19-year-old’s career, and given the signs from everywhere, it looks like the North Londoners will be taking Tel on a permanent deal at the end of the ongoing summer transfer window.

Bayern Munich’s sporting director, Max Eberl, insists that the decision to let Tel go for a loan (and possibly a free transfer) was because of an understanding of how his development has stopped since he moved to Germany.

Eberl (via transfer guru Fabrizio Romano) said:

“The situation with us developed differently than expected. Sometimes you have to make such tough decisions because development has stagnated and it’s not a good fit for either side.”

He is not wrong, but Tel does have far to go

In a sense it is true that Tel’s development had kind of stopped since he moved to Bayern; you could only see glimpses of his potential but never the full gear of his abilities.

And since moving to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the winter window, his adaptation to the pace and power of English football has been slow, given that he has only netted once donning the Lilywhites colours and given that such problems are not uncommon in such young players who are experiencing such a physical side of the game for the first time.

However, while we haven’t still seen everything that he is capable of, his potential and fit into Ange Postecoglou’s system mean there is a high possibility that Spurs end up activating their £45 million option to buy him permanently.

For now it is about Tel having to find his confidence back and start moving like his older self once again.

More Tottenham Hotspur News:

• TTLB Opinion: Is Postecoglou the reason behind Maddison’s underwhelming season at Tottenham?
• TTLB Opinion: Tottenham target Branthwaite and Guehi – but who makes more sense?
• TTLB Opinion: USNMT ace leaving Tottenham talks to his father, but where does he fit at N17 under Ange Postecoglou?

How many goals do you think Tel will score this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.