Tottenham are Keeping Tabs on FK Partizan Youngster, Andrija Živković
Tottenham Hotspur are monitoring FK Partizan’s Andrija Živković. The 19-year-old has been dubbed the “Serbian Messi” due to his creativity and width as a versatile winger.
On the basis of securing as many young talented players that is conceivably possible for one club, it should come as no surprise that Tottenham are keeping tabs on Andrija Živković, a right winger playing for FK Partizan in the Serbian Superliga.
According to an article written by Arunava Ray of IBTimes, the 19-year-old is being regarded as one of Europe’s brightest talents. Because of Živković’s technical abilities many have already dubbed him the “Serbian Messi”. While it’s very premature to compare 19-year-old footballers to current great players, there’s nothing wrong with highlighting their strengths when looking at them as possible transfer targets.
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That being said, one of Andrija Živković’s strengths is his creativity and width that he provides on the pitch. His other strength is his versatility to play on both flanks. As a natural right winger, being able to create space by yourself will be very useful and serve Živković well in the Premier League should he complete a transfer.
Now because of his 5’7″ frame, Živković’s height might seem like a red flag. But this is where technical abilities is a must when Premier League teams are content to sit back on defense and make it hard to breakdown at times.
But despite a lack of height, that didn’t stop Aaron Lennon (5’5″), carve out a very successful 10-year career with Tottenham. The former Spurs player made 364 appearances, scored 30 goals and registered 77 assists in all competitions while also winning the 2008 Carling Cup (League Cup) from 2005 through 2015.
Therefore size isn’t a major problem especially when Andrija Živković has very impressive numbers in two-and-a-half seasons with FK Partizan. Since becoming a starter during the 2013-14 Serbian Superliga season, the Serbian international has compiled 86 appearances, 21 goals and 12 assists.
Here are Andrija Živković numbers split up and stacked on top of one another:
2013-14 Serbian Superliga seasson:
25 appearances | 5 goals | 1 assist | 1,638 minutes played
2014-15 Serbian Superliga seasson:
40 appearances | 7 goals | 4 assist | 2,537 minutes played
2015-16 Serbian Superliga seasson (still ongoing):
20 appearances | 9 goals | 7 assist | 1,615 minutes played
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From a numbers perspective, it makes sense to target the 19-year-old Serbian winger in January. But the main question is do Spurs need Andrija Živković?
While having more creative attacking players would increase Mauricio Pochettino’s options for matchday selections as well as offering more goalscoring threats during games. Where will Živković fit into Pochettino’s plans?
Érik Lamela isn’t going anywhere and Clinton N’Jie was bought this past summer. If Tottenham decides to sell Andros Townsend, does a possible Andrija Živković signing bump N’Jie into a backup striker role? This is very important to know before looking to sign players. Because Kevin Wimmer is struggling to earn starts at center-back during the Europa League.
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Right now Tottenham has questions about their squad and how to solve them. Who gets sold? Who changes positions to make room for incoming players? Once Spurs figure out what to do, they’ll be involved in a bidding war with Valencia, Chelsea and Arsenal for Andrija Živković. Another youth player isn’t bad, but his involvement with the starting eleven will be interesting if consistency is preventing other players from getting some starts under their belts this season.