Tottenham players confident of success — even without new signings

If one wanted to identify one persistent theme of Tottenham’s tour of the United States so far, it would be this: there are few, if any, areas left to improve on at the club.

Yes, the tour itself is about preparing for the new season while also spreading the Tottenham name to a lucrative market, but it is impossible to ignore the elephant in the room — or lack thereof.

Harry Kane and Mousa Dembélé both spoke out in recent days about their confidence in Spurs despite a quiet transfer window. Such sobering words from two leaders in the squad should calm nerves of those who jealously read the latest headlines about blockbuster moves.

Thus far in this summer’s transfer window Tottenham have declined to sign a single new player. They have offloaded a few, most notably Kyle Walker for £50 million, but to date appear disinclined to move in the opposite direction.

In years past such slow rolling might not even be worth remarking on, but in the Premier League in the year 2017 not making a move is as much a statement as buying a full-back for £50 million.

Lucrative television deals signed in recent years continue to flood the coffers of Premier League clubs — some of which were already owned by uber-wealthy oligarchs and sheikhs — thereby inflating the value of players from around the world beyond reason.

In this new world, it is somehow possible for a club like Manchester City to spend nearly £140 million on full-backs alone. Those purchases pushed Pep Guardiola’s club total transfer spend thus far this summer to over £200 million.

It should go without saying that such numbers dwarf Tottenham’s spending over the course of several years, much less a single summer. Spurs might be wealthy in their own right, but with few exceptions they decline to be reckless with their money — especially with a new stadium to finance.

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Reckless, at least from Spurs’ point of view, would apply to an ever-increasing amount of deals made by Premier League clubs.

In what world, for instance, would Daniel Levy ever think to pay £58 million for Álvaro Morata — a player who has never made more than 16 league starts in his career? Or even £20 million for a mediocre, aging Marko Arnautović? Even the £17 million Leicester paid for Harry Maguire seems too rich for Spurs’ blood.

So Spurs have two options in this environment. They can accept that they, along with every other team in the Premier League, currently reside in the middle of a market bubble, and then proceed to giddily empty their wallets for The Next Big Thing.

Or they can wait it out, endure a befuddled press and fanbase, then act when that bubble inevitably bursts.

Savvy dealings in recent window makes the second option the obvious choice. Spurs are in the enviable position of wanting for nothing. They have slowly but surely assembled a world class squad, one that will enter the new season as title favorites even without one new player putting pen to paper.

Which is how it was meant to be. Since Pochettino’s arrival in 2014, Spurs have concentrated more on culling the herd than fattening it up. Sustainability, he is determined to prove, isn’t just about money. It’s about building a team from the inside out, one that needs to be nurtured and developed over time rather than being made to adjust to half a dozen new signings every summer.

What’s left is a team that can shrug off the tumbleweeds that cross their path in this desolate transfer window. Some players will inevitably come in before the window closes, but it’s unlikely you’ll be able to use the word “blockbuster” to describe them. They will be practical but meaningful, the kind of deals only a club confident they are one of the best teams in the country can pull off.

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For the most part though, the likes of Kane and Dembélé will continue to lead on the pitch. Academy youngsters like Harry Winks and Kyle Walker-Peters will rise up through the ranks. Fringe players like Vincent Janssen, Georges-Kévin Nkoudou and maybe even Sissoko will find their feet after poor debut seasons.

All of which represent more sustainable and practical options than going bankrupt for want of right-backs.