OPINION
Sky Sports pundit Danny Mills has said that Tottenham don’t need to worry about Toby Alderweireld leaving in the summer, with Davinson Sanchez on their books – and he’s bang on the money.
This summer is about rebuilding at Tottenham but Pochettino isn’t going to have an endless war chest – Daniel Levy isn’t known for his magic money tree – and he needs to choose his battles wisely.
Talking to Football Insider, Mills said “Davinson Sanchez is starting to come into it and could be a really good player. He has two seasons of Premier League experience under his belt and is a quality centre-back who is young and will get better. He’s a little rash and makes errors, but those will be ironed out as he gets more experience.
“The possibility of key players going – Alderweireld and Eriksen particularly – may be a big problem for Tottenham this summer. But I think replacing Alderweireld is less of an issue, a perfect replacement is there. Eriksen is almost irreplaceable.”
Sanchez has come in for criticism from Spurs fans this season – notably against Dortmund in the Champions League – but he showed signs of finding his stride last season, making 22 starts in the Premier League.
He’s also been a vital part of the Champions League run that’s seen Tottenham on the brink of lifting the biggest club trophy this June. He made seven starts and played 90 minutes in both of the wins against Dortmund.
The other thing to remember is that Sanchez is only 22-years-old and has the best years of his career ahead of him.
He was bought for £36million when he was just 21 and this put a big weight of expectation on his shoulders, when other 21-year-olds are seen as players for the future.
Yes, he has got a mistake inside him and he needs to get rid of them if he wants to command the centre of the Tottenham defence for the next five years. But Pochettino can do that. And there are other areas of the Spurs side that he should focus on – getting a solid replacement for Kieran Trippier and sorting out the midfield have to be priorities.
Then there’s the question mark over Christian Eriksen – and replacing him will be a real problem if he leaves.
Sanchez can replace Alderweireld if he choose to exit this summer and it will save the club millions.