Now that Daniel Levy has all but closed the chapter on selling Harry Kane, Tottenham can shift its mentality and focus on the remaining priorities before the window closes on Sept. 1.
While many of Tottenham’s priorities — goalkeeper, centre-back, No. 8, not selling Kane — have been resolved, the club isn’t nearly through its overarching to-do list.
Still in need of reinforcements and desperate to offload some dead weight, Levy and Scott Munn have a bunch of work to attend to in the coming weeks.
The chairman better cut short his American sojourn; there’s business to attend to. Here are the items left on Tottenham’s transfer window laundry list:
Hopefully staying
Pierre Hojbjerg:
Unless Tottenham receives his market worth (about €40 million), seeing the Dane stay in N17 would benefit all concerned. Sure, he doesn’t fit perfectly into Ange’s plans, but he still has bundles of quality. And he works tirelessly, like a ravenous, on-the-hunt wolf.
Ivan Perisic:
Things didn’t go Ivan Perisic’s way last season, a common theme among Tottenham’s players. But the Croatian has so much to give and can easily exceed last season’s team-best eight assists.
Giovani Lo Celso:
So Giovani Lo Celso should be in a not-going-anywhere category. But I don’t have one of those, so he’s, by default, been placed in this one.
Although just to clarify, he’s not going anywhere. And he’s in prime position to secure one of the two No. 8 starting roles. That is until Rodrigo returns from his long injury layoff.
Gotta go
Hugo Lloris
Not that I don’t want Hugo to stay, but it’s just not on the cards for the legend.
Davinson Sanchez
The Colombian is to be sold if the right offer comes. Or, in Tottenham’s case, any offer. You might recall the club agreeing to a recent Spartak Moscow bid. Yes, Daniel Levy agreed to do business with a team that, by default, is associated with an illegal war. Yikes.
Sufficed it to say, Tottenham wants to sell the out-of-favour, ill-fated centre-back.
Joe Rodon
The Welshman is as good as gone as soon as a fair offer is made. He never materialized as a senior player, falling short of quality and left wanting too often.
Japhet Tanganga
Like Rodon, Japhet Tanganga, while a solid defender, doesn’t have the quality to battle for a senior spot consistently. Time has run its course on his Tottenham career.
Sergio Reguilon
The Spaniard is low on Ange’s pecking order. With Destiny Udogie and Perisic preferred, Reguilon’s on-pitch time will be sporadic and fleeting if he stays. An equitable bid will see Sergio depart for pastures anew.
Tanguy Ndombele
After the dust settled and he had a long enough look, Ange, it appears, has reached the same conclusion most others did. It’s better for the club if Tanguy Ndombele seeks a new opportunity elsewhere. However, there isn’t much interest, and those sniffing around aren’t willing to offer much; the last bid was €11 million from Galatasaray.
Djed Spence
This one’s unfortunate, as Djed Spence was never given a fair shake under Antonio Conte. And he has been officially put on the to-sell list. All the best, Djed.
Hopeful reinforcements
Even with Ashley Phillips and Micky van de Ven’s arrivals, Ange is after one, maybe two more centre-backs. Edmond Tapsoba’s name isn’t being chucked around nearly as often, while Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo prefers a move to Monaco.
There are other options. But after signing van de Ven, the club isn’t nearly as desperate to bring in another central defender.
There’s always Clement Lenglet, who is as desperate to return to N17 as Spurs were for a centre-back before signing van de Ven, which is strange considering Lenglet is a centre-back.
Forwards were top of mind until Levy flipped the bird to Bayern Munich, hopefully for the final time. There are still considerations to reinforce the front line, including the prospect of signing Gent’s Gift Orban.
However, knowing Kane and Richarlison will lead the line with understudy Dane Scarlett and new signing Alejo Véliz waiting in the wings, Tottenham won’t feel overly burdened to get a deal done.
Pulsing murmurs about signing another central midfielder (No. 6 and/or No. 8) hit the airwaves intermittently, but one wouldn’t place a prioritized tag on that area of the pitch.