OPINION
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino refused to be drawn on the future of striker Fernando Llorente after the Spaniard hit a brace in Spurs’s 4-1 friendly win over Roma.
According to the Telegraph, the towering striker’s future at the club is understood to be uncertain after an underwhelming debut season following his move from Swansea last summer.
Llorente’s display against Roma was a timely reminder of his quality for Pochettino, however. Tottenham have done no business this summer, and with rumours of reinforcements scarce, the former Juventus man must be kept at the club.
Unless Pochettino has a forward target in sight it makes no sense for Llorente to be allowed to leave. Behind talisman Harry Kane, the Spaniard is the only out-and-out striker at White Hart Lane.
Yes, he had a disappointing season last year, but how much can you really expect from a player who was playing second fiddle for the entirety of the campaign? Even when Kane went down with injury Pochettino didn’t throw him into the mix.
Perhaps that’s because of something he saw in training, or whether he simply saw Son Heung-min as the better option for the team at the time, but Llorente was never given a fair shot at backing up Kane effectively.
When you look at Llorente, though, he is perfectly suited to the role of back up striker. Kane is the main man, without a doubt, but if things aren’t working with him on the pitch then Llorente can be brought on to play alongside him and support the England captain.
The 33-year-old senior player’s frame makes him ideal as a secondary option, while his goalscoring prowess over the course of his career is there for all to see. If given a little more football, perhaps in the Champions League or the odd league game, then Llorente would surely flourish.
Given his age it’s unlikely that Spurs would receive much for him this summer, and while they risk losing him on a free next year, he’s more valuable to them backing up Kane for another season than the amount they’d get selling him now.
A few more pre-season displays like the one against Roma and Pochettino’s stance on the player may start to soften. The ball is in the striker’s court.