Tottenham could struggle to battle Premier League rivals for the signing of a highly-rated young midfielder.
A loss to Newcastle United on Tuesday proved to be the final straw for Thomas Frank at Tottenham. He has left the club with just 13 wins from his 38 games in charge.
Several managerial names have been linked to the vacant job at White Hart Lane. FC Porto’s Francesco Farioli has been internally discussed at Spurs, while Roberto De Zerbi is ready to immediately take up the job after mutually terminating his contract at Marseille. There are also admirers within the club for former boss Mauricio Pochettino, but he is unlikely to leave the USMNT role before this summer’s World Cup.
There’s no doubt a lot of work needs to be done on the squad for whoever inherits in the long run. While Thomas Frank has departed, there are many transfer targets the club would like to pursue in the summer.
Tottenham face battle from Premier League rivals for Club Brugge talent
Recent reports suggest Tottenham are interested in signing Club Brugge midfielder Aleksandar Stankovic. They have scouted the 20-year-old in recent weeks, but Spurs aren’t the only English club keeping tabs on him.
According to a report from TEAMtalk, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United are also keeping close tabs on Aleksandar Stankovic, who is the son of Inter Milan legend Dejan Stankovic.
Stankovic has been making waves in Belgium after deciding to leave his boyhood club Inter Milan last summer. Since joining Club Brugge, the Serbian has established himself as one of the standout young midfielders in the Jupiler Pro League, chipping in with an impressive four goals and an assist in 21 appearances. Overall, he has seven goals and four assists in 37 appearances.
“Arsenal, Chelsea, Spurs and United have been regular visitors to see Stankovic,” a senior recruitment figure having tracked Stankovic’s development exclusively told TEAMtalk.
“He is a real class act. Not dissimilar to a young Declan Rice – that’s the comparison for me. You can see he’s inherited his class from his father. This kid is a major talent.”
The report adds that the youngster is ‘open-minded’ about his long-term future, though Inter Milan still have a big influence over what happens next. The Nerazzurri have an option to bring him back to the club in the summer and next year as well. Stankovic would relish the opportunity to return to Inter, but he is wary about the developing interest in him from England and other top European leagues.
Tottenham would struggle to sign Stankovic
Signing Stankovic from Club Brugge in the summer would be no mean task. He is now among the highly-rated young midfielders across Europe, with several clubs vying for his services.
With no manager at the moment, a lack of stability and vision, and the north Londoners seemingly in a relegation battle, it is extremely difficult to see a player of Stankovic’s talent and potential choosing Spurs over other clubs as his next destination. Plus, failure to qualify for Europe next season would once and for all end their pursuit of the rising Serbian star.
For Tottenham to have a glimmer of hope of landing Stankovic, they will at least need a strong successor to Frank and a project they can trust to blossom.