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Tottenham circling Schalke midfielder?

By Ryan Wrenn

KRAKOW, POLAND - JUNE 30: Max Meyer of Germany in action during the UEFA European Under-21 Championship Final between Germany and Spain at Krakow Stadium on June 30, 2017 in Krakow, Poland. (Photo by Nils Petter Nilsson/Ombrello/Getty Images)
KRAKOW, POLAND - JUNE 30: Max Meyer of Germany in action during the UEFA European Under-21 Championship Final between Germany and Spain at Krakow Stadium on June 30, 2017 in Krakow, Poland. (Photo by Nils Petter Nilsson/Ombrello/Getty Images) /
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Tottenham’s just-you-wait transfer window might be inching forward this week, with the latest gossip surrounding Schalke midfielder Max Meyer.

Stories like these carry extra weight after Mauricio Pochettino’s comments last week about the need for Tottenham to keep pace with their rivals’ transfer business.

That commitment was never going to apply to actually big-money signings. Spurs starting XI is already the most stable of any of the teams competing for the Premier League title next season, so there is little reason for dramatic moves.

Depth, however, is required — which is why murmurs about Meyer actually make a good deal of sense.

This isn’t the first time Tottenham pondered a move for the 21-year-old German international. Indeed, Meyer was among the many candidates rumored to arrive at the club at the end of last summer’s transfer window.

Instead, Spurs inexplicably broke their own transfer records to sign Moussa Sissoko. The Frenchman made eight Premier League starts and never came close to looking like a player Pochettino trusted.

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With that mistake in the process of being resolved via a possible loan move to the Turkish Superliga — and with Josh Onomah sent on loan to Aston Villa on Friday — there is suddenly a Meyer-sized hole in the first team.

But would it actually be an upgrade?

It’s honestly hard to say. Meyer suffered through a middling season last time out, running roughly in parallel with a Schalke side that finished 10th in the Bundesliga. He started 18 matches last term, the least since he got promoted to Schalke’s senior squad in 2013.

In those prior seasons, though, Meyer showed real promise. He proved a capacity to play anywhere along the attacking midfield line, functioning in a role closer to Mousa Dembélé’s than Christian Eriksen thanks to his talents with the ball at his feet.

A reliable dribbler is very much in need at Spurs, particularly if they want to have a counter to the high press that baffles them so often. Being raised up in a league like that Bundesliga that heavily emphasizes such tactics, Meyer would in theory be far less intimidated by being closed down than most other Spurs squad members.

Which is to say that, while Meyer won’t steal starts from any of Spurs’ current players, he could represent a Plan B when required.

Perhaps most importantly: his ostensible regression last season, combined with the fact that he just entered into the final year of his contract with Schalke, would make him a relatively inexpensive get for Spurs.

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Which coalesces into the picture of player that falls right in with what Pochettino requires. A young, versatile and cheap midfielder steeped in playing in — and against — a pressing system.

Now it’s just a matter of Spurs putting theory into action and going out to get their man. Don’t hold your breath.