Mauricio Pochettino may have joked that there is no Tottenham without Mousa Dembele at the start of the season, but Spurs need to consider life without him.
In September, Pochettino told ESPN that it was important that his club managed the midfielder through his injury problems as Tottenham “do not exist” without him.
The Spurs boss went on to call Dembele a genius and reiterate his importance to the team, but now in January the situation has changed.
While the midfielder has featured 20 times across all competitions this season and seems to be winning the battle against chronic injury problems, he’s no longer as important to the squad.
In the six league games Dembele has missed this season, four of them through injury, Tottenham have only dropped two points.
One of these six games even saw them destroy top four rivals Liverpool 4-1, in a game where they looked comfortable.
Ahead of this season, many would have rightfully questioned Spurs’ ability to cope without the midfielder as he was clearly the heartbeat of the team.
However, despite not signing many players in the summer window, Tottenham have moved on.
Dembele is still a fan favourite and liked by Pochettino due to the midfielder’s quality to hold on to the ball and win the midfield battle for his side, but there’s several factors that should cause Spurs to think about letting him go.
Firstly, the midfielder only has 18 months left on his contract, meaning in a year’s time he could start negotiating a deal in order to leave for free.
While the club could offer him an extension, is it worth it?
Dembele turns 31-years-old in July and is known to have underlining injury issues that can flare up at anytime.
Spurs cannot guarantee that he will feature in the team in a year’s time even with them not having a replacement currently in the squad due to that issue.
There’s also the fact that while Pochettino is clearly a fan, he does prefer to utilise younger talent as he attempts to build a legacy at the club.
Aside from injuries, contracts and everything in between, Daniel Levy has done the best possible job of ensuring Tottenham get a payday when it’s time for their stars to leave.
Now it’s unknown what kind of offer AC Milan and Inter Milan would make for the midfielder, but in the current window they’re both keen to seal a deal for Dembele according to Sky Sports.
One thing is certain, they’re more likely to submit a suitable offer this season, then they are next.
So while fans may be dismayed over the thought of losing Dembele, due to his performances since joining from Fulham in 2012, it might be a healthy decision at least from a financial perspective to let him go now.