A Busy Last Three Weeks Of Transfer Business For Tottenham

Andre Villas-Boas expecting a bust end to the transfer window [Photo: Jav The_DoC_66]In his post match interview following the Espanyol friendly match, Andre Villas-Boas made a comment on the remainder of the transfer window.

"There will be more players to arrive and more players to leave. We still have lots of things to do. The last week in the transfer window can be surprising."

The press have obviously taken AVB at his word with Tottenham being linked to seven different players over the weekend. There were also reports of at least six Spurs players plus Gareth Bale attracting attention from other clubs which would make the next three weeks an extremely busy period for Daniel Levy, Franco Baldini and AVB. With the coming week set aside for internationals many of the players will be away with their countries so any negotiations would be very difficult to complete.

In:

Etienne Capoue

Reports continue to suggest that the signing of Etienne Capoue from Toulouse for £8m is nearing completion with the player having passed a medical and being present at Saturday’s game against Espanyol. Atletico Madrid have expressed an interest so that may have delayed the signing but according to a report in the Metro, Spurs are confident of drawing it to a conclusion.

Toby Alderweireld

Spurs have been linked with the Ajax and Belgian defender through the summer. Everton have also targeted him as a possible signing and it is thought that Ajax have now received an offer of £6m from Spartak Moscow. The player, however, is reported to have turned down the move to the Russian capital. The 25-years-old Alderweireld played with Jan Vertonghen in the Ajax team and they also play together for the Belgian national team. He is a versatile defender who can play in central defence or at right back.

Christian Eriksen

The Mirror has also reported Tottenham’s interest in the Ajax midfield player, Christain Eriksen, who is wanted by Liverpool. Spurs are hoping to conclude a double signing of the Ajax players. Eriksen is 21 years old and a Danish international who plays in midfield. He has been with Ajax since 2008 when he joined their youth Academy and broke into the first team early in 2010 under manager, Martin Jol.

Fabio Coentrao

The transfer stand-off between Spurs and Real Madrid for Gareth Bale are at an unknown stage but it has been reported that a separate deal has been reached for left back Fabio Coentrao to move to Spurs for a fee of £13m. A left back, he would solve a problem that has existed in the Spurs team for some time. Benoit Assou-Ekotto doesn’t appear to be in AVB’s plans and while Danny Rose has been given an opportunity in preseason to claim the place, he does seem to be the answer either. The Mirror reports Tottenham’s interest in Coentrao with AVB keen to sign the Portuguese defender.

Tom Ince

Spurs were linked with Tom Ince last January and the Sun reports of further interest now, if Gareth Bale were to leave the club for Real Madrid. The England Under-21 international would be an exciting addition to the squad.

Alen Halilovic

Tottenham were thought to have agreed a double deal for Alen Halilovic and Tin Jedvaj from Dinamo Zagreb earlier in the summer but that fell through with Jedvaj signing for Roma. The Daily Express says that reports in Croatia suggest that Spurs interest in Halilovic has been renewed and that negotiations to bring the 17-year-old Croatian creative midfield player to London are on-going. Halilovic has been likened to Luka Modric who moved from Dinamo Zagreb to Spurs in 2008.

Luis Suarez

He just won’t go away as reportss suggest that Spurs will attempt to sign Suarez from Liverpool if the Bale transfer goes through. It would be a very controversial signing with the Spurs fans divided on Suarez as the HotspurHQ poll showed. Some supporters (40%) would be enthusiastic about signing the player from Liverpool, ignoring the problems he might bring to the club. Others (25%) would accept him reluctantly if he was the player AVB wanted at Spurs while another sizeable section of fans (35%) wouldn’t want him at White Hart Lane under any circumstances.

Out:

Andre Villas-Boas’ 19-man squad for the match against Espanyol may have given an indication of some of the players who could be leaving Spurs in the next few weeks. Scott Parker, Benoit Assou-Ekotto and Jake Livermore were not involved in the match. With Spurs signing a number of midfield players this summer and more expected, if the transfer rumours are to be believed, then some midfield players are bound to be leaving if deals can be agreed.

The latest news on players departing the Lane, suggests that newly promoted Hull City Tigers are interested in Tom Huddlestone and Jake Livermore. Sunderland have also been linked with Huddlestone.

Harry Redknapp would like to take Scott Parker to Loftus Road as a player capable of leading QPR to promotion at the first attempt. Parker still has England ambitions and if he were to leave Spurs would prefer a Premier League club. QPR have also been quoted a fee of £6m for Jermain Defoe according to the Mail on Sunday but the striker is also aware that not playing in the premier league could harm his chances for England,

An offer is thought to have been received for Benoit Assou-Ekotto who hasn’t played since the friendly with Colchester United.

All of that doesn’t take into consideration any negotiations on the Bale transfer with this morning’s Independent reporting that Manchester United are again showing interest or the suggestions of Monaco’s interest in Hugo Lloris.

If there are significant signings by Spurs in the coming days, then other squad members and younger players are bound to leave, either sold or on loan, as Tottenham would have an over abundance of players in certain positions. Also a number of the younger players, Danny Rose and Andros Townsend, are very anxious to get game time and wouldn’t be prepared to spend a season on the bench or waiting for an occasional game in Europe or in the Cup..

If all of those deals were to be concluded in the next three weeks plus a resolution being found to the Gareth Bale saga, it would be Tottenham’s busiest transfer window ever and require a super-human effort on the part of the Tottenham negotiators. It would also make it a very good window, especially if Bale remains a Tottenham player.