Tottenham Hotspur’s summer has gotten off to a flying start on the pitch, but not so much in the transfer window.
Ange Postecoglou can have little complaints about what he has seen his Tottenham side produce in their opening four pre-season friendlies.
Spurs are still boasting a 100% win record this summer with their latest victory coming on Wednesday against the K League All Stars.
The Lilywhites have not exactly been so efficient in the transfer window when it comes to bringing in new faces.
Of course, Spurs have now technically signed three players but one of them was Timo Werner and another was Yang Min-hyeok who will not join until next year.
Tottenham forward target is desperate to make Premier League move
Spurs have had no issues finding the back of the net in their opening four pre-season games with 14 goals having been scored so far.
Dejan Kulusevski has recently taken up the role as the number nine with Heung-min Son returning to his natural position on the left.
But Spurs still require more this summer with the attack running dry towards the end of last season.
Tottenham are believed to be interested in Pedro Neto but the clock is now beginning to tick down with the Premier League season just weeks away.
According to Calciomercato, Juventus winger Federico Chiesa would leap at the chance to join a big Premier League side this summer.
The Italy international’s future in Turin remains uncertain following the appointment of their new manager Thiago Motta.
Chiesa has received interest from inside Serie A with the likes of Roma and Napoli both said to be keen.
However, Tottenham are also said to be interested in Chiesa this summer as Postecoglou continues to search for more attacking reinforcements.
Tottenham could land real bargain with Federico Chiesa
This summer, Juventus would be willing to sell Chiesa for around £20m which would mark a real bargain for a player of his calibre.
The Italian has racked up vast experience from his time in Turin and Chiesa is a player who Arsenal are also believed to be eyeing.
There are, of course, some concerns over the ‘superstar’s‘ fitness with the forward not exactly holding the best injury record.
But the same could be said for Tottenham’s other target in Neto with the Wolves winger holding just as bad of an injury record but also costing significantly more.
Chiesa may not have dipped his toe in the Premier League yet, but it seems he is desperate for the opportunity.
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Tottenham were given a scolding by manager Ange Postecoglou during their 4-3 win over a K-League XI on Wednesday.
With the game goalless after 25 minutes the Australian boss wasn’t happy with what he had seen from his players and let them know in a drinks break.
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Postecoglou had named a strong side which featured captain Son Heung-min, Dejan Kulusevski and Ben Johnson as the front three.
“I’ve got one f***ing thing to say,” Postecoglou was caught on camera shouting at his players. “We go and have a crack, man for man.”
Postecoglou was asked about his rant after the game and claimed his priority was improving his players’ fitness.
“It was more just about making sure we kept pressing on, because with the conditions the way they are and the training load’s been pretty high, I didn’t want us to back off in that moment and really [wanted to] push to half-time just more for our fitness than anything else.
We thought it was a good opportunity for us to push on and try to be even more aggressive than we had been up to that point. ”
Yang Min-hyeok – who will join Tottenham in January having agreed a £3.5m move – was playing for the K-League XI, and Postecoglou was asked for his take on the 18-year-old’s display.
Postecoglou said: “Yeah, look, you know, there’s a game of football tonight. I was focused on our players, so I wasn’t really following the opposition players. When he comes in, in January, we’ll have plenty of time to look at him.
“I think what’s important now is that we’ve made the announcement and he concentrates on his club football here in Korea, finishes his season strong. He’s had an outstanding season so far and then when he gets to us, he’ll have plenty of time and plenty of opportunity to show us what he can do and we’ll help him with that process.”
New signings Lucas Bergval and Archie Gray joined Pape Matar Sarr in midfield and Postecoglou believes the three young stars will be “very good footballers” for Spurs.
“Yeah, I thought it worked ok. Obviously they are three very young players in that midfield set up and as you said, the first time they had played together. But yeah, for the most part I thought they handled it pretty well. I think Lucas found it tough physically. It’s a very demanding role in there and it’s going to take us a while to get him up to speed from a physical perspective, but you can see the quality he has when he’s on the ball.
“And Archie, he’s what he’s shown the whole time. He’s been very composed, he seems to understand the game really well and for the most part, I thought he was taking up the right positions. But again, physically I think we’re gonna have to build him up. I thought Pape’s running is just unbelievable. He’s a benchmark for us in that midfield area.
So, yeah, I think the three of them – considering they’re so young and that’s the exciting bit – if we keep pushing them and improving them, they’re going to be very good footballers for us.”
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