OPINION
As if Daniel Levy didn’t have enough headaches as he prepares for a fresh round of contract negotiations with Tottenham first teamers, one is likely to be of the migraine variety.
The Spurs chairman must navigate the tricky path of offering an acceptable package to Wales international Ben Davies.
On the face of it, Davies shouldn’t be the biggest problem for Levy as he is not one of the team’s main stars even if he is highly regarded enough to be one of the 11 players afforded an image slot on the club’s 2019 calendar.
But the left-back is out of contract in the summer of 2021 and the club’s chief contract and transfer negotiator must soon sit down to discuss terms of an extension.
Intriguingly, Davies shares agents with Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw, who, as the Telegraph report, is fresh from penning a new contract worth £190,000-a-week.
Only one player in Tottenham’s history has ever signed a deal worth comfortably more than £100,000-a-week, with Harry Kane doing so in June when he put pen to paper on an agreement said to be worth £200,000-a-week.
Davies will know he is nowhere near as valuable as Kane. But, then, neither is Shaw, who is only just establishing himself at United in his fifth season at the club.
Why would the Welshman accept, say, £50,000-a-week or even double that figure if he knows Shaw is earning such an eye-watering sum?
Davies has certainly been the more consistent performer in recent seasons and, aged 25, he is only two years the senior of the England international.
Over to you, Daniel. And, good luck.