Speaking recently on a video posted on his YouTube channel, Alasdair Gold discussed the January interest in Tottenham Hotspur defender, Japhet Tanganga.
Since making his Tottenham debut back in 2019, Tanganga has so far gone on to make 18 first-team appearances for the north London side.
However, so far this season, the £7.2 million-rated 21-year-old is yet to make a Premier League appearance under Jose Mourinho, with his seven fixtures this term coming across the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup and the Europa League.
Despite this lack of game time, it was reported that there were a number of clubs interested in taking the former England U20 international on loan in January, however, Mourinho is thought to have blocked any move for the centre-back.
The interest in Tanganga was one subject of conversation on a recent video Gold posted on YouTube, in which the journalist stated his belief that the defender is exactly the profile of player that Spurs should not be letting leave.
He said: “Japhet Tanganga – there were teams interested, I think Southampton and possibly Celtic were sniffing around, but Spurs can’t afford to let Tanganga go for a couple of reasons. First off, he’s very versatile, he can play across the backline. Mourinho can use him at left-back, right-back or in the centre – I think he’s even played in the defensive midfield role once this season – and he’s homegrown, he’s British, he’s an academy product, so again, you can’t let that kind of player go.”
Was keeping Tanganga the right decision?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts on Alasdair Gold’s comments regarding Japhet Tanganga…
Considering the fact that Mourinho has chopped and changed his defensive line often this season – with Eric Dier featuring in 18 Premier League fixtures, Ben Davies in 15, Sergio Reguilon in 13, Toby Alderweireld in 12, Serge Aurier in 11, Matt Doherty in nine, Davinson Sanchez in eight and Joe Rodon in seven – it would appear clear that the 58-year-old is rather uncertain as to what his first-choice defensive lineup is.
As such, as Gold suggests, having a player of Tanganga’s versatility within the squad is indeed a plus for Mourinho, as if one defender happens to be out of favour for whatever reason in the eyes of the manager, he would be able to utilise the 21-year-old in most positions across the defence.