Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino is looking to add some height to his full back positions amid the club’s hunt for Marseille and Japan defender Hiroki Sakai, according to Sky Sports journalist Lyall Thomas.
The broadcaster’s assistant news editor claims on his personal Twitter account that it appears Pochettino is looking to improve on the physical attributes of his defenders, having used Juan Foyth on the right side of defence during the 2018/19 season and that Japanese international Sakai, who Sky report is on Tottenham’s radar, fits the bill.
Under the impression they want someone physically bigger, who can defend in the air as well as on the ground. (Spurs have been frail at set-pieces at times).
Sakai and Foyth both 6ft.
Trippier is 5’10, Aarons 5’9… https://t.co/ZbCWmoqmb2
— Lyall Thomas (@SkySportsLyall) June 11, 2019
Pochettino had Kieran Trippier and Serge Aurier to call upon last season but neither made a great impact, the England international admitting he was disappointed with his performances.
Opinion
If this is the case then the likes of Trippier and Aurier should consider themselves very much in the firing line in north London. Neither defender did an awful lot to keep their place in the starting XI and it was only a lack of other options, Foyth an experiment which did not really seem to work as Pochettino wanted, which kept them playing on a regular basis. There are some things that cannot be trained as a footballer and height is perhaps the most notable attribute which comes naturally. Finding someone of the right physical stature, while offering the same attacking qualities and defensive resolution, is no easy task and you can be sure Pochettino and his scouting team will have been scouring the footballing world to try and find the right candidate. It seems as though Sakai is ticking a fair few boxes for the Lilywhites but it remains to be seen whether he is brought into north London this summer.