Tottenham had a pretty good summer transfer window in terms of incomings. Sure, they are nowhere near the position in the table they'd like to be, but this is more due to outgoings and injuries. The players they signed have been pretty great.
Nevertheless, there are still gaps to be plugged. Thomas Frank knows this, and so do the Tottenham fans. Actually plugging them, though, is an entirely different story.
As we know, January is not nearly as busy as the summer transfer window. The mid-season window lends itself to pre-contract agreements and the occasional loan deal, rather than any blockbuster deals.
One of those players who will enter the final six months of his contract is Bayern Munich midfielder Leon Goretzka. There were whispers over the last few days that Tottenham were showing an interest in approaching him.
Tottenham is not actually interested in Leon Goretza
As we reported earlier, Tottenham is not interested in signing Leon Goretzka. Furthermore, Goretzka is only focused on Bayern Munich in the final six months of his deal.
Look, this may change. Right now, though, Tottenham has not shown an interest in Leon Goretzka.
Take anything you read with a pinch of salt, but The Athletic, whose staff broke the news, is one of the more reliable and respected places out there. They won't publish something, and neither will their staff, unless it is true, or as close to their definition of truth as possible.
At face value, you'd think this would be a blow for Tottenham, but it isn't. Even on a pre-contract agreement, saving any transfer fee, Leon Goretzka is not worth pursuing.
Gortezka was once a great player. You could even consider him world-class at one point, or at least tiptoeing around world-class. However, those days are in the past now.
The German international is 30 years old, and his career solstice has already occurred. Going forward, it is hard to imagine him improving on his Bayern Munich days. Heck, we've seen that play out at Bayern already.
In the early days, when Bayern won the treble, Gortezka was a key piece of the puzzle. Nowadays, though, he is a passenger. He lacks defensive input, and he would do Spurs more harm than good.
Tottenham just saved themselves from throwing $20M in the trash
Financially speaking, the cut-price or even pre-contract deal would not be as good as it looks. Sure, Spurs might save some money on a transfer fee, but he's bound to demand a huge contract.
Leon Goretzka's yearly Bayern Munich salary (including bonuses) sits at just under $20 million. With many clubs interested in him, he was never likely to accept a paycut easily.
Hypothetically speaking, it would make him the highest-paid player at Tottenham. However, he would be far from the most important player.
Spurs are not in a position to be paying out inflated contracts, even in the post-Levy era. It would make all the work Levy did count for nothing, and it would weaken their negotiation position in future cases.
Just look at Man United. Paying out big money contracts for players like Alexis Sanchez when they were chasing their former glory days really worked out for them, huh?
Spurs are better off investing in a player who is in their prime, not on the decline.