Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank could not have been pleased with what he saw before him on Saturday afternoon, as his midfield and defense were carved open and burned repeatedly on the counterattack by a very game Andoni Iraola-coached AFC Bournemouth. Meanwhile, the back line struggled to play through the Cherries expert press.
Even though Spurs only conceded one goal in the end, they could have given up at least five to Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson, as goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario threw back to his days of keeping Empoli above the relegation zone by staying on his toes with miracle save after miracle save to spare Spurs further blushes.
Tottenham were already contemplating additional defensive depth prior to the match against Bournemouth despite having a world-class trio of central defenders in Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, and Kevin Danso. If anything, Spurs display against Bournemouth may have convinced Thomas Frank to go harder after a center back this summer.
Although Spurs are currently going after Manchester City veteran Manuel Akanji, they could try to add a current Bundesliga star to their list in Bayer Leverkusen's Edmond Tapsoba. According to a surprising report from the Daily Telegraph's Mike McGrath, the 26-year-old defender has become "a player to watch" this summer transfer window, implying that he is available for the European clubs that are monitoring him.
Tottenham could benefit from an exodus
The news is surprising, because Leverkusen just sold their most valuable young center back, Piero Hincapie, to Arsenal, and they already lost key leader Jonathan Tah to German giants Bayer Leverkusen. So if they lose Tapsoba, too, that's their entire back line, and aside from former Liverpool man Jarell Quansah, they haven't done much to replenish their defense.
It's been an exodus for new manager Erik ten Hag, already a very controversial hire by the 2023/24 Bundesliga champions, and Tottenham could be the ones to benefit. Tapsoba hasn't been as promising as advertised a couple of years ago, but he has still been one of the better center backs and athletes in the Bundesliga.
If Tottenham and Frank want more depth and aren't sold on Radu Dragusin, Tapsoba could be more of a ball-playing and finesse center back to the former Serie A man. Tottenham would probably prefer an experienced Premier League veteran like Akanji, but if the price is right, Tapsoba may be worth taking a punt on. Though Leverkusen have never been known to give steep discounts on the mercato.