Ledley King Gives His Verdict on Tottenham’s New Signings
Tottenham’s two signings this summer will be a big boost according to Ledley King, the former Spurs player and legend, and now ambassador for the Club.
It has been said that since Victor Wanyama and Vincent Janssen were signed, these two players have given Mauricio Pochettino’s squad some much needed depth on the bench and at two critical positions: defensive midfield and striker.
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Ledley King recently spoke about the additions of Wanyama and Janssen and what it will mean for Tottenham heading into the 2016-17 season and their second trip to the Champions League in club history.
"“I’m pleased with those two signings,” King told Press Association Sport (via London Evening Standard). “Another attacking option was very important and Janssen has a great scoring record from playing in Holland.”“Wanyama I’ve seen many times and I’ve been very impressed by him. He’s a bit like Eric Dier, you don’t see all the good work he does.”“I saw him for Southampton at White Hart Lane last season and he was one of the best players on the pitch.”“The manager knows him well so it’s no surprise he’s gone for him. I think both players will be a big boost to the squad.”"
Because Tottenham will compete on four fronts again this upcoming season, with the Champions League starting this September, Pochettino needed to address his team’s lack of depth during mid-week fixtures last season once the New Year arrived.
This played a major role in why there was hardly any rotation in the starting XI which meant Harry Kane, Eric Dier and Toby Alderweireld played in almost all of Spurs’ 53 games last season.
As a result, Tottenham would collapse in the final months and lose out on a league title.
However, now that Wanyama and Janssen have been added, this should give the Argentine manager more incentive to mix things up in order to conserve his players’ energy for the new campaign.
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Against lesser opponents, obviously it’s smart to rest some key players.
The important fixtures will no doubt feature Spurs’ strongest lineup, but when Tottenham takes on Burnley, Hull City and Middlesbrough (the three promoted Championship teams), Kane, Dier and Alderweireld shouldn’t be needed to win.
If they do then that’s a bad sign, because Pochettino has been too over-reliant on all three of them.
With the transfer window only in its second week, there’s still plenty of time to sign a couple of more players to further bolster this squad.
Adding in an attacking midfielder or winger would give Mauricio Pochettino more goal scoring threats to bring on when Tottenham needs to win. A central midfielder could compete with Mousa Dembélé and would be more preferred over Ryan Mason and Tom Carroll.
As for Federico Fazio, he will no longer return to the team after a dreadful one-game appearance last year in the League Cup. Which makes center-back another position that needs to looked at.
The injury to Jan Vertonghen means Kevin Wimmer will start alongside Toby Alderweireld again. But who will the backup for both players? Cameron Carter-Vickers and Dominic Ball are options but having two youth players back up Alderweireld or Wimmer should they suffer their own injuries is risky.
Especially when Spurs are challenging for another league title this year.
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Mauricio Pochettino and Daniel Levy have made two quick signings within a week of one another before and after the transfer window opened.
And while it would be nice to secure some more players at the same pace they just recently showed, they now have to be more calculating on who will be the right fit for this squad.
As mentioned above, Tottenham need depth. Signing someone who is okay with being a backup is difficult, so it shouldn’t be surprising if Spurs take their time to add a third or fourth player this summer.