OPINION
Tottenham should act swiftly in their reported pursuit of Monaco playmaker Youri Tielemans as clearly his remarks show he’d be open to a move.
The Daily Star previously reported that Spurs, Arsenal and Manchester United were in the battle for the 22-years-old’s signature following his impressive loan spell at Leicester City in his 2018/19 campaign.
Since then The Sun reported that Manchester City had also joined the race and established contact with Tielemans’ people over signing him, with him being rated as worth £40million.
The playmaker seemed to confirm on Friday that there were indeed a lot of teams keen on acquiring his services.
“We’ll see what club it will be, only thing I can say is that things are moving and a lot of clubs have shown an interest and we’ll see in the next few weeks which club will be,” Tielemans told Sky Sports (as seen on the broadcaster’s Live Transfer Blog, 11:01).
Tielemans was then directly asked whether he was flattered to be linked to the likes of Tottenham and Manchester United, and admitted he was.
“Yes of course, they’re big teams in England and Europe so it’s flattering to hear those names and which is good and gives me confidence,” added the playmaker.
“And I just try to play my game on the pitch and give my best.”
Given that competition for Tielemans is fierce, Spurs should act swiftly in their attempt to get him as clearly their rivals won’t hesitate to act.
The playmaker’s remarks imply that he is hoping to have his future sorted in the next few weeks and that shows that he wants to know who he is playing for sooner rather than later.
Tielemans, who has 21 caps for Belgian, appeared flattered at the thought of playing for Tottenham so surely the ball is in their court.
The playmaker scored eight goals and registered six assists in the 48 outings he made across all competitions last season, and proved he was capable of being a creative force in the Premier League as he was involved in 38% of Leicester’s goals (Source: Transfermarkt) in the division.
Tielemans is clearly worth spending the money on from a Spurs perspective as not only is he young, which means he will get better, he’ll be able to hit the ground running having played in the Premier League recently while on loan with the Foxes.
So with that in mind, the fierce competition and the fact the player seems open to the idea of playing for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, what are Spurs waiting for?