Journo reveals Tottenham Hotspur’s intentions to add a new centre-back before the summer transfer window slams shut
Tottenham Hotspur have been looking to build on their Europa League success by bolstering their squad ahead of a Champions League campaign this season, with new head coach Thomas Frank overseeing the signings of Mathys Tel, Kota Takai, Mohammed Kudus and Joao Palhinha so far. Kevin Danso’s loan from RC Lens was turned into a permanent deal at the start of the transfer on June 1, thanks to an obligation clause inserted in his contract.
Now, the Lilywhites’ enter focus has been on recruiting a new creative midfielder after a serious knee injury to James Maddison. The England international has been sidelined for several months with a torn ACL, and Spurs need a quality player to replace him.
In addition, the club are also looking at wide players to fill in the void created by iconic Son Heung-min. The 33-year-old ended his decade-long stay at N17 and moved to MLS club Los Angeles FC earlier this week. While the signing of an attacking midfielder and a wide forward makes total sense, Spurs’ interest in reinforcing another position does not bode well with journalist Rob Guest.
Journalist confused with Tottenham’s search for a new centre-back
Football London journalist Alasdair Gold revealed on Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham podcast about Tottenham eyeing a new centre-back.
This disclosure has left Alasdair Gold’s colleague Rob Guest questioning the club’s transfer strategy. He feels Spurs must only recruit a centre-back on loan as there are a few young talents who are the future of the club and waiting to break into the first team.
“A bit surprised about looking at a new centre-back when you look at the current options. Because if you’re bringing in another permanent centre-back, you’ve got Luka Vuskovic. Does that block his pathway? The same with Kota Takai. There’s Ashley Phillips as well,” Guest said on the podcast.
“But you’ve got Romero, Van de Ven. Ben Davies can play there. Danso, Dragusin once he’s back. There’s a number of centre-backs there. But again, Van de Ven and Romero spent a large chunk of the season, past couple of seasons, out injured.
“But for me, you just look at bringing in the centre-back on loan, especially if you’ve got a couple of young lads there who are the future of the club.”
Tottenham could do with a budget defender
Indeed, the Lilywhites are well-stocked in the centre-back department. But, if delved deep, Romero and Van de Ven spent significant chunks of the last campaign on the sidelines. Their availability was a big problem for former boss Ange Postecoglou, and Frank will be wary of the duo’s patchy injury record.
Their back-up, Danso, also spent over a month on the sidelines last time out with a hamstring injury, while Dragusin remains out for the foreseeable future after rupturing his ACL at the end of January. Summer recruit from Kawasaki Frontale, young Kota Takai is also ruled out for weeks with an ankle injury, and the club are open to loan offers for Vuskovic.
Keeping all the factors in mind, the Hotspur Way chiefs wanting to bring in another body at the back to tackle the gruelling 2025/26 season makes complete sense. But the immediate priority remains signing a central attacking midfielder, and it will be interesting to see who we bring in.