What’s behind Tottenham’s slow burn transfer window?

There’s a narrative running through the last month and a half of transfer rumors, and it’s that Tottenham — as yet — aren’t actually doing anything at all.

More often than not, the absence of a narrative isn’t much of a narrative at all, but in Tottenham’s case it tells us a lot about the state of the club and what to expect for the rest of the summer.

Though it’s loomed large over the last two summer transfer windows, Spurs’ new stadium being built atop the old White Hart Lane is now very real. With costs inflated — doubled by some reports — there’s as much pressure as ever to keep the transfer budget in the black.

Which doesn’t necessarily stop Spurs from doing business. Over the last half decade, while the rest of the EPL spent their share of the league’s television deals on increasingly outrageous transfer fees, Spurs have remained — for the most part — solvent.

While this summer should continue that trend, Spurs won’t have the resource they’ve relied on so much before: a bloated roster.

Mauricio Pochettino and Daniel Levy spent the last two summers identifying unneeded players and then selling them for surprising amounts, respectively. From the amounts recouped on the sales of Paulinho, Roberto Soldado, Andros Townsend and Nacer Chadli, Spurs managed to finance the purchases of such regular starters as Toby Alderweireld and Victor Wanyama.

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Such successfully culling means that now Pochettino has much less to work with however. Rumors that Spurs are holding out for £20 million for Kevin Wimmer — a backup player they spent they spent less than half of that amount on just two seasons ago — suggest that the club is trying to wring whatever they can out of the players available. 

The probable sale of Kyle Walker — another deal Spurs are reportedly hard bargaining for — will also help in this regard.

The problem, of course, is that these deals need to be completed before Spurs can justify spending on new players. With Levy notoriously resistant to pressure and willing to take things down to the wire, it would hardly be a surprise if Spurs’ transfer season doesn’t actually get going until the pre-season is already underway.

That comes with its own consequences however. Other clubs aren’t as concerned about balancing the books, preferring instead to spend now and settle later. Everton is the shining example of this so far this summer, but many of Tottenham’s rivals aren’t holding back either.

Already Spurs’ slow start has forced them to miss out on previously linked players like Sandro Ramirez and Matthias Ginter. By the time Levy feels comfortable testing the waters, all that might be left are bargain bin options and players priced too high to move sooner than August.

Next: Spurs looking at another South American defender

Luckily for Spurs, there aren’t any areas of the team that desperately need to be addressed this summer. Depth continues to be an issue, and losing Walker would be a blow, but Pochettino has a great starting XI already with little room for improvement. If Spurs were ever going to tighten the pocketbooks, now would be the time to do it. They can survive a no-action summer, even if it proves intolerably boring for the fans.