Hull City Monitoring Tottenham’s Ryan Mason
Tottenham haven’t officially sold anyone this summer, but it appears that Ryan Mason continues to be linked with a possible exit.
According to the Hull Daily Mail, Tigers’ manager Steve Bruce, has mentioned that Tottenham midfielder Ryan Mason is one of his targets this summer after reports surfaced of a £10 million deal potentially in the works.
The 25-year-old used to be Mauricio Pochettino’s first-choice central midfielder during the 2014-15 campaign and his future looked to be very bright. But two big injuries in his second season and a dip in form caused him to drop in the team’s depth chart behind Mousa Dembélé.
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Hull City is the latest team to be interested in Mason after Bournemouth was linked two months ago in a supposed £6 million move. With the Tigers back in the Premier League, they need to bolster their club ahead of the new year.
"“I have to say that we’re not [that close] at the moment,” said Bruce after former loan player, Nick Powell, signed for Championship side Wolves.“We’ve got a couple of big irons in the fire that I hope we can progress. We need it.”“We need that injection to show the supporters and the players that we mean business. I know the season is four weeks away but we’ve got some time after that.”“We haven’t been given the biggest of transfer kitties, especially when you see what other clubs are spending, but we’ll do our best.”"
How this relates to Mason is that he wouldn’t necessarily cost Hull City that much money based on his projections for this upcoming season and what he has accomplished these past two years.
A £10 million deal for a 25-year-old who only had one year as a full-time starter and is coming off of two injuries seems unrealistic. At most, Ryan Mason could be had for half of that price, unless Daniel Levy can work his magic once again during negotiations.
These highlights from the video above during the 2014-15 season shows that when Mason was given a chance, he did quite well. It’s why he has been open about wanting to do his best this year and convince Pochettino that he belongs on the 25-man squad.
Unfortunately, the arrival of Victor Wanyama from Southampton makes it difficult.
While the Kenyan international is mainly Eric Dier’s backup, there is the possibility that he starts in place of Dembélé who will still serve the remaining four games of his six-match ban to start the season.
If this is the case, then Ryan Mason’s spot on the team is in jeopardy if it wasn’t already when Mousa Dembélé returns from suspension.
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Although he doesn’t possess any elite qualities that other teams would be seeking for, what Mason brings to the team is his team-first mentality.
Despite suffering a knee and ankle injury that kept him mostly sidelined last season, and reverting him into a rotational player after being a starter two years ago, he never once complained about the decision.
He expressed disappointment during a post-match interview here and there when he was healthy and playing again, but understood that it was out of his control.
This alone isn’t enough for teams to sign someone, but a high character means a lot to Mauricio Pochettino in evaluating players.
Right now, at best, Ryan Mason is surplus to requirements when you include the fact that Victor Wanyama could double down as a central midfielder. And with Harry Winks waiting in the wings to get an opportunity for more playing time, the odds are stacked against the 25-year-old.
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As has been stated numerous times on Hotspur HQ, whether Ryan Mason is sold or not, shouldn’t hinder Tottenham’s season this year.
Should Mason stay, he’ll be second in line behind Mousa Dembélé with Tom Carroll right next to him and Harry Winks at the bottom of the pecking order. Of course this also hinges on a central midfielder being signed or not.
If Spurs skip out on signing a backup for Dembélé, then the decision to keep Mason is easy. Because of the Belgian’s recent history this past year of picking up knocks, Mauricio Pochettino can’t afford to lose two central midfielders this summer (Mason and Carroll).
At most one could be sold, who it is, is a matter of preference at this point.