Tottenham’s recent run of form, albeit despite a slip-up against Stoke on the weekend, has lifted them to third in the Premier League and given fans new aspirations of Champions League football next season. One of the major talking points to come out of their performances this season has to be the quality of their midfield and the way they continue to dominate matches, particularly at home. But with the fading presence of Roman Pavlyuchenko and sporadic appearances of Jermain Defoe, is it time to bring in a new face to the front line?
Emmanuel Adebayor has arguably been the main man for Spurs this season in the goalscoring department, often playing up front alongside or just ahead of Rafael van der Vaart. But with his loan spell due to finish at the end of the season, and the unpredictable nature of Manchester City’s transfer policy, Harry Redknapp may well have to start considering other options. Van der Vaart has again proven himself to be a key man in the Spurs line-up, but he has been stifled by injuries and isn’t able to consistently offer that trequartista-like role which seems to work well with Adebayor.
Jermain Defoe has had a pretty tough ride at Spurs in recent times. He often fell out of favour with the manager last season and Redknapp hinted at the fact that he wasn’t happy with his efforts in training and on the pitch. Although he started off this season in pretty good shape, his appearances have been limited due to the form of van der Vaart and Adebayor. He seems to have been reduced to a role of backup striker, which is a shame.
Click HERE to win tickets to two different Liverpool games:
I think that, if they are willing to pay the money, Tottenham should invest in a quality striker and demonstrate their long-term ambitions to challenge the top four in the Premier League. Particularly due to the fact that at this level it is often the quality of your second team that can keep you gaining points consistently, an addition would make sense. In the event of injuries to Defoe, Adebayor or Van der Vaart, they would be stretched, particularly if we are looking at them competing in Europe next season or having a big run of games coming up where squad rotation may be key.
There are several options out there around Europe for Spurs to find a quality striker. One possible option which seems viable is Moussa Sow from Lille, who has an impressive scoring record with 29 in 48 games and finished last season as top scorer in Ligue 1. Another target man which has impressed recently is Valencia’s Roberto Soldado. The rumour mill has been generating reports of potential £20million interest from the likes of Liverpool and Bayern Munich. I think he would be a great purchase for Spurs and a decent price for a striker in his prime at 26, who has a good scoring record in the past couple of seasons in La Liga. Another potential, slightly more low-key option, who has been touted for a move is 23 year old Seydou Doumbia. Currently at CSKA Moscow, he also has a fine goalscoring record, 24 in 30 league games, and has demonstrated his talents in the Champions League already this season.
Whatever tact Harry decides to take in the transfer market, he will be thinking hard about long term solutions to gaining a foothold in European football. Bolstering his squad with quality goalscorers now would seem like a shrewd step to keep them in contention. Making a move in January may be smart, bearing in mind that by the time the summer comes around, the prices of the sought-after stars will probably have gone up, and the demand for a genuine goalscorer is always high.
Follow me on Twitter: @HazbTwit
Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:
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.
Why would we waste money on a striker ,the area we are weak is at the back. The lad i would go for is Shotten at 6ft3 and 13 stone he can play right across the back and in Midfield or go for Samba. Why should we buy a Striker too sit on the bench and watch Van protecting his hamstrings Harry is frightened of dropping him he always has something too say and yet he was rubbish against Stoke. I could not believe Harry subbed Lennon and left Van on Defoe should have started we changed a winning team and got beat through it. When we play 4411 teams use high energised closing down to stop us passing when Hudds was fit he could beat this top up energy but Modric gets closed down along with the rest of the team.Sunderland will be no different energy wise than Stoke and Harry needs 442 or 352and a decent ref.
Yes we need a striker, every top side requires 4 quality strikers and we only have 3 plus Pav. So Pav to go and a quality striker to come in especially as Ade is only on loan and there is no guarantee we will sign him.
Goals win games, we need goals to finish 3rd.
Dream on there is no third place for you guys a team full of clowns i believe even arsenal will finish 4th so come again next year for europa league fixtures LMFAO chelsea till i die