Written by Tom MacGregor for FootballFancast.com: West Ham’s relegation from the Premier League is going to bring about huge changes at Upton Park, wages will need to be slashed and some of the top players will leave the club. One player who is a nailed on certainty to leave West Ham is England International Scott Parker, who has a list of big Premier League clubs among his admirers. Harry Redknapp has made no secret of his intention to bring the Football Writers’ Player of the Year to White Hart Lane this summer, but do Tottenham actually need Parker?
My initial response to this question would be, no they don’t need him. When you look at the central midfielders Tottenham already have at their disposal in, Jermaine Jenas, Sandro, Tom Huddlestone, Luka Modric, Wilson Palacios and Niko Kranjcar, there is plenty of quality there. Then I thought there is a good chance the likes of Jenas and Kranjcar will be sold in the summer which would make the addition of Parker a logical step. Jenas and Kranjcar are players I would imagine Harry Redknapp would be happy to sacrifice, but one man he will fight tooth and nail to keep hold of, is Luka Modric. The Croat is rumoured to be a transfer target for Manchester United and Chelsea and the top two could pull out all the stops in their attempts to sign the playmaker.
Should the unthinkable happen and Spurs lose Modric, any move for Parker would surely become all the more rational, and may even see Parker become a top priority for Redknapp. It would be unlikely Spurs would have it all their own way in their pursuit of Parker though, as Arsenal and Liverpool are also reportedly interested in the player. The sale of Modric is all ifs and buts, so let’s assume he stays at White Hart Lane, would a Parker and Modric central midfield pairing be a good combination for Spurs? Parker has defensive qualities to his game that Modric doesn’t, although I wouldn’t typify Parker as a defensive midfielder as he loves to get forward as well. So would it work having two players of an attacking nature in the middle at the expense of, say Sandro, Palacios or Huddlestone?
It could be argued that, regardless of how any potential formations would work out, bringing Parker to the club would be a good move, solely because, having a player of his drive, determination and commitment in the ranks, adds quality and strength in depth. Having both Parker and Modric in the squad may mean at times resting one or the other in order to get the right balance, but having players of their calibre can only be a positive move to get Spurs back into the top four next season.
So would Scott Parker be a welcome addition at White Hart Lane this summer?
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.
To have a peak at the top SEVEN available FREE TRANSFERS this summer, click here.
no. we also have jamie o’hara who has proved similarly and equally effective at wolves, is younger and has far more potential. focus on the priorities please harry – we need a prolific goal scorer.
Have you not heard? O’Hara doesn’t want to be at Spurs any longer. He WILL be a Wolves player next season – permanently.
sure i’ve heard, wolves are getting a great player in my opinion. i think had he had some form of encouragement to stay (i.e the selling of midfielders like jenas and not the interest in midfielders like parker) he might think there was still some kind of future with spurs? he’s still a spurs player until the transfer goes through. not to mention the lack of rotation that’s happened at spurs. hopefully sandro won’t be next.
If Sandro is pushed out of the team by anyone then we can expect to lose him come January. Sandro is the real deal and should be afforded as much time on the pitch as possible. IF we sign Parker and IF he took Sandro’s place it would be a move based on absolute madness. Seriously, Sandro will be worth a flippin fortune in another year’s time – and I’m not just talking in money terms here – he’ll be just as important as Modric is in his current role. IF we hinder the progress of a real future star to give pitch-time to an aging, injury-prone Parker then we deserve to lose the Brazilian. If he’s coming in to replace Jenas on the other hand…
I hope Spurs do not buy Parker.He wanted to stay at West Ham,they were relegated,that team is just not good enough and he is no youngster.I would love to see Spurs buy Johnson and a forward(maybe Sandro’s ex team mate in Brazil)great player.
Spurs need to keep their top players,they played some great entertaining football,need back up in central defence and another centre forward.
This team have had the past year to blend in some new players,i am expecting big things from them next season.
Parker is an excellent player and would fit into most teams in the prem. The only problem in getting him in a t tottenham is it would stop the progress of Sandro, and thts not something i want happeneing
Spurs DESPERATE need players like Parker.
He is an EXPERIENCED and COMMANDING midfielder with a STRONG PERSONALITY and, above all, a WINNER’S CHARACTER.
He is a box to box midfielder with a better shooting and scoring ability as well a more accurate passing and tackling ability than Sandro and Modric.
But most important he has a LEADER’S CHARACTER that neither Sandro or Modric have and he can have a more efficient impact on the game of Spurs.
He will play in midfield TOGETHER with Sandro, Modric and VDV.
Is there any team in the PL that would have a stronger midfield than that of Sandro, Modric, Parker and VDV?
I’d say Harry will have a hard job fending off teams for Modric but I think we have enough quality atm we don’t need Parker. Sandro and O’Hara have age on their side but they both have the fight that Parker does. Imo if we let Mod’s go put the money into getting a good quality striker and stick VdV behind a front two. Sandro would be excellent as that holding midfielder.
I’m not saying I wouldn’t welcome Parker – he’s a good player, if a little injury prone – but I wouldn’t want him coming in and stunting the growth of younger players with greater potential (or even worse, leading to them being sold).
Perhaps he could be used via rotation (if Harry ever looks that word up). Lets not forget, if it weren’t for injuries we’d still be waiting to see Sandro, and Bale would have been sold for 3 million(?) last January.
This would work, if Harry ROTATES!
CM: Huddlestone/Modric/Parker. CM: Sandro/Parker. LM: Bale/Modric. RM: Bale/Lennon. AM: VDV/Modric. FW: Drogba-like.
^^ That has pace, skill and awareness written all over it. But, if we don’t sign the right type of forwards to play that way and revert to the 4-4-2, we should then sell VDV (as he is wasted out wide and doesn’t want to play there – as his constant drifting inside shows). He is an (extremely) attacking midfielder and should be played as such, otherwise we’re just wasting his mercurial talents and leaving our right-back exposed.