The last few weeks have been rather up and down for Spurs fans. The contrast of a massive victory over Manchester United (who, admittedly, aren’t quite the side they used to be), with a crushing defeat at the hands of their North London rivals, Arsenal, is pretty stark.
The defeat at the Emirates was the first sign of weakness that Tim Sherwood has shown since he was handed the reigns at Spurs. Whilst the two teams are fairly equal on paper (Arsenal probably just shade it, thanks to the presence of players like Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla), I think it’s fair to say that Arsene Wenger tactically outwitted Sherwood. The decision to play two men upfront is one that certainly deserves consideration.
Nowadays playing a 4-4-2 is damn near revolutionary. That’s just not the way the modern game works any more. The Gunners were able to overload the midfield and prevent Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado from getting any meaningful service. Theo Walcott, on the other hand, was having a field day up at the other end of the park.
Playing two men upfront may work on occasion, but I hope it’s not Tim’s long-term solution. I’d say it’s about time that Spurs went after midfielders who can unlock the full potential of their strikers. With better service and more time, both Roberto Soldado and Emmanuel Adebayor can come good.
In other words, Tottenham need more players in the vein of Christian Eriksen and less in the vein of Erik Lamela.
Spurs spent £30m on the Argentine during the summer, but he’s yet to make any real impression at White Hart Lane. There’s even rumours (courtest of The Mirror) that he could be on his way back to Serie A some time soon, with Inter Milan strongly linked.
According to the same source, Lamela’s former Roma team-mate, Miralem Pjanic, looks set to leave his current club. Check out this quote from the club’s Sporting Director, Walter Sabatini: “We have had many offers for Miralem. And not necessarily from PSG. For the moment he’s for sale.”
This has led to some rumblings that Spurs could be in the running for his signature. I can’t help but feel that this would be a step in the right direction for Tim Sherwood.
He’s got a remarkable amount of technical ability, isn’t afraid to take players on and moves the ball about neatly. He’s the kind of player who could make a real name for himself in the Premier League and should help to improve the link between Tottenham’s midfield and their attack.
There’s no word as to how much he might cost, but it might be worth making a speculative bid to test the waters. Either way, I hope Tim Sherwood does something to improve this Spurs side during the January transfer window.
What’s your take? Should Tottenham move in for this Serie A talent?
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He doesn’t wanna leave and rejected PSG already, why would he leave for Tottenham? Not gonna happen.