OPINION
Tottenham will have learned a lot from their 1-0 defeat to Ajax on Tuesday night.
They will have learned that you cannot afford to take the Dutch side lightly, they will have learned that Son Heung-min is even more important than any of us ever realised, and perhaps most importantly, they will have learned that they need to add strength in depth.
This was a Spurs side that started the game with Moussa Sissoko as their most attacking substitute.
1-0 down at home against a bunch of young upstarts and the best Mauricio Pochettino could muster in the second half was Ben Davies and Juan Foyth.
That’s not good enough, and if it wasn’t abundantly clear before that something needs doing, it should definitely be clear now.
Who they bring in, however, is a different question entirely.
Funds won’t be particularly vast this summer, and you get the impression that they may have to be quite canny in their approach.
According to one former Ajax man, however, they should turn to the man who caused them so much grief in midweek.
18 cap Netherlands international Hedwiges Maduro, who started his career in Amsterdam, has suggested that Spurs are the kind of side that Donny Van de Beek should be looking to join this summer.
Speaking to Dutch broadcaster NOS, as quoted in Football.London, he said: “Van de Beek is of the same level as [former Everton midfielder Davy] Klaassen. He is also a good player, but his next choice will be important.
“At Manchester City or Barcelona, he could be playing the same style of football as Ajax, but I think it would a level too high for him.
“The category of clubs below that should be a possibility. Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Valencia or Sevilla – those kinds of clubs.”
Van de Beek has the potential to be top class, but he needs game time and a manager who can help nurture his raw talent.
Tottenham offer both of those things.
Van de Beek is not quite as fully formed as teammates Frenkie de Jong, for instance, but he is not a million miles away, and for what Spurs need, he would be ideal.