After being hotly linked with so many strikers this summer, Spurs are yet to sign one which means that the club has to revise its transfer policy quickly.
We are almost reaching the final few days of this month and the transfer market activity has gathered a lot of pace. Lots of clubs have bought and sold players and many are still looking to make a few changes here and there, wherever it is necessary.
Yet, there are still quite a few clubs that have not really done a lot of business in the transfer market. Among those clubs, are Tottenham Hotspur whose only notable contributions to the transfer market this summer have been the acquisition of Belgian international Nacer Chadli and the persistent rumours surrounding the future of star player, Gareth Bale.
Back in 2008, Spurs sold Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United for 30.75 million pounds. Indeed that was a brilliant bit of business for the London outfit but it was an equally disastrous one for the club in sporting terms.
Rather than properly replacing the Bulgarian, Daniel Levy, the man at the heart of all dealings at White Harte Lane, brought in a young Frazier Campbell on loan before purchasing Russian striker, Roman Pavlyuchenko who despite getting all the love from the fans, seldom delivered.
Since then, Spurs have never really been able to get their hands on a proper striker, one who can score more than 20 goals a season. In short, Berbatov’s transfer has been more or less a defined template for all the dealings for Spurs, especially the search for a top notch striker.
Daniel Levy has a habit of overvaluing his own players and undervaluing those of other clubs. Although this might sound very astute from a business point of view but it also covers the club’s financial failures as well. For instance, Spurs’ inability to bring in a top quality striker has cost them a place in the Champions League on more than one occasion.
During the 2011/2012 campaign, Spurs simply struggled for goals when Jermaine Defoe and Adebayor were injured. Rather than bringing in a long-term replacement, Levy chose to bring in an injury-prone Luis Saha from Everton. Signing a player past his best is never really going to cover the cracks and the following season, it was quite evident.
Spurs lacked a striker who could supply goals and share the scoring burden with Gareth Bale who might not score that freely next season, if he chooses to stay at the club that is.
And with the summer transfer window heating up, Spurs are still unable to bring in one of their long-term targets. For the past 12 months, Brazil international, Damiao had been hotly linked with a move to White Hart Lane. However, it appears that the player might have to wait for a move to the Old Continent after third-party ownership issues forced Spurs to back off without providing fans with a good explanation.
They were even interested in signing David Villa who literally joined Atletico Madrid for peanuts.
Now, the London-based outfit is finding it hard to bring in Roberto Soldado from Valencia. Los Che are willing to let the striker go if his buyout clause is met but so far, Daniel Levy has continued with his policy of undervaluing the player. The haggling has reached a stalemate and it would not be surprising if the Spaniard opts for another club, leaving Spurs back to where they were at the start, without a top quality striker.
In recent days, Arsenal have shown their willingness to go the distance in order to bring in Luis Suarez and though it remains to be seen what becomes of that particular transfer saga, Spurs should take a leaf out of their enemy’s book and realise that the time is ripe for Daniel levy to change his modus operandi if he really wishes to see the club return to Champions League football.
Yet, there are still quite a few clubs that have not really done a lot of business in the transfer market. Among those clubs, are Tottenham Hotspur whose only notable contributions to the transfer market this summer have been the acquisition of Belgian international Nacer Chadli and the persistent rumours surrounding the future of star player, Gareth Bale.
Back in 2008, Spurs sold Dimitar Berbatov to Manchester United for 30.75 million pounds. Indeed that was a brilliant bit of business for the London outfit but it was an equally disastrous one for the club in sporting terms.
Rather than properly replacing the Bulgarian, Daniel Levy, the man at the heart of all dealings at White Harte Lane, brought in a young Frazier Campbell on loan before purchasing Russian striker, Roman Pavlyuchenko who despite getting all the love from the fans, seldom delivered.
Since then, Spurs have never really been able to get their hands on a proper striker, one who can score more than 20 goals a season. In short, Berbatov’s transfer has been more or less a defined template for all the dealings for Spurs, especially the search for a top notch striker.
Daniel Levy has a habit of overvaluing his own players and undervaluing those of other clubs. Although this might sound very astute from a business point of view but it also covers the club’s financial failures as well. For instance, Spurs’ inability to bring in a top quality striker has cost them a place in the Champions League on more than one occasion.
During the 2011/2012 campaign, Spurs simply struggled for goals when Jermaine Defoe and Adebayor were injured. Rather than bringing in a long-term replacement, Levy chose to bring in an injury-prone Luis Saha from Everton. Signing a player past his best is never really going to cover the cracks and the following season, it was quite evident.
Spurs lacked a striker who could supply goals and share the scoring burden with Gareth Bale who might not score that freely next season, if he chooses to stay at the club that is.
And with the summer transfer window heating up, Spurs are still unable to bring in one of their long-term targets. For the past 12 months, Brazil international, Damiao had been hotly linked with a move to White Hart Lane. However, it appears that the player might have to wait for a move to the Old Continent after third-party ownership issues forced Spurs to back off without providing fans with a good explanation.
They were even interested in signing David Villa who literally joined Atletico Madrid for peanuts.
Now, the London-based outfit is finding it hard to bring in Roberto Soldado from Valencia. Los Che are willing to let the striker go if his buyout clause is met but so far, Daniel Levy has continued with his policy of undervaluing the player. The haggling has reached a stalemate and it would not be surprising if the Spaniard opts for another club, leaving Spurs back to where they were at the start, without a top quality striker.
In recent days, Arsenal have shown their willingness to go the distance in order to bring in Luis Suarez and though it remains to be seen what becomes of that particular transfer saga, Spurs should take a leaf out of their enemy’s book and realise that the time is ripe for Daniel levy to change his modus operandi if he really wishes to see the club return to Champions League football.
