Paratici, Tottenham still have work to do in Spurs engine room
By Aaron Coe
Although the apparent signing of Yves Bissouma and Oliver Skipp‘s return from injury enhances the Tottenham Hotspur midfield, there is still work for Fabio Paratici to get the midfield Antonio Conte wants and Spurs need.
Signings and recovery have Tottenham close to complete in the midfield
Once official, the signing of Bissouma immediately improves Tottenham’s central midfield. The Malian’s ball-recovery skills are on par with Pierre Hojbjerg, and his dribbling is reminiscent of former Spurs midfielder Moussa Dembele.
Bissouma will compete with and complement holdovers Hojbjerg and Rodrigo Bentancur. Likewise, the return of Oliver Skipp, whose season was unfortunately cut short, provides another nearly interchangeable piece to work alongside all three midfielders.
Tottenham still lacks a playmaker besides Kane
Even if nothing else happens at this point, Tottenham should have four players available for the primary two central midfielder positions in Conte’s three/five-person defence. None of the four players represent a more classic playmaker who can help Spurs unlock teams that sit deep and make it difficult to find space.
The lack of a traditional midfield playmaker is one of the reasons the rumoured reunion of Christian Eriksen and Tottenham has legs because Spurs need a player of Eriksen’s ilk.
Over the last two years, Harry Kane has picked up much of the creative playmaking burden. Additionally, Conte’s wing-back system and the addition of Ivan Perisic should improve service into the box from wide. However, the presence of an Eriksen-Esque player could help put Spurs over the top.
Assuming Bissouma comes through as has been reported and Eriksen or someone like the Dane comes to N17, there is still work for Paratici and the team to do in the midfield.
Story continues…