During the latest video for his YouTube channel, Football.london reporter Alasdair Gold has been discussing the latest goings-on at Tottenham Hotspur, reflecting on the 2-1 friendly defeat against Watford and shedding some light on some of the transfer business that the Lilywhites could do before the end of the window.
One topic of discussion on his recent video was Brentford striker Ollie Watkins. Following Brentford’s Championship play-off final defeat against Fulham, the 24-year-old has been linked with a move to the Premier League, with Aston Villa and Spurs reportedly amongst those interested. The former Exeter City man notched 26 goals in the second tier last season; averaging a superb 7.26 rating for his performances across the season (per WhoScored).
Here’s what Gold had to say about Spurs’ potential interest in Watkins during the video:
“Ollie Watkins from Brentford, he’s a player that Spurs do like. They do like him a lot – 24-year-old from Brentford, scored a lot of goals as they got through to the play-off final. However, with him – people get so frustrated at the finance thing – I can only go on what I’m told by people inside and outside the club, and that is that Spurs do not get into bidding wars.
“With Watkins, that auction is going to happen. I think Brentford, again, are looking for above [£20 million], I saw some reports saying potentially £25 million for him, and Spurs won’t do that. They do like the player, and obviously he’s homegrown, but they’re not going to get into any auctions for any players this summer.”
TIF Thoughts…
Although Watkins enjoyed a superb season with Brentford, he is currently valued at £10.8 million by Transfermarkt, so you can perhaps understand why the Lilywhites wouldn’t want to be drawn into a bidding war for the striker, which would potentially result in them having to pay £20 million or more for his services.
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Although he is young and homegrown, he currently has no experience in the Premier League, so Spurs may be better off looking elsewhere for a cheaper, more experienced option as they search for a backup to Harry Kane this summer.