Spurs target of £50m “box-crasher” who’d solve their Bissouma problem has finally accepted to sign with Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur have been one of the busier clubs in the transfer market this summer, bringing in talented youngsters like Archie Gray, Yang Min-Hyeok and Wilson Odobert, while also going big on former Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke.

However, with just under two weeks left until the window slams shut, Daniel Levy and Co look prepared to dip back into the market to ensure that Ange Postecoglou has the best tools available to achieve his goals this season.

In fact, one of the latest stars touted for a move to N17 is already Premier League-proven and would help solve the club’s Yves Bissouma problem.

Tottenham Hotspur transfer news

According to a recent report from GIVEMESPORT, Tottenham have ‘set their sights’ on signing Wolverhampton Wanderers star Joao Gomes.

The report claims that the Brazilian international has recently ‘worked his way firmly onto the capital club’s radar’, in part due to Rodrigo Bentancur’s injury against Leicester City on Monday night, but also because they see him as an ideal fit for Postecoglou’s high energy system.

However, if the Lilywhites want to get this deal done, it’ll cost them, with previous reports from GIVEMEPSPORT revealing that the Old Gold wouldn’t entertain offers below £50m for the 23-year-old.

It could be an expensive transfer to get over the line, but given Gomes’ quality and the problems around Bissouma at the moment, it is one well worth fighting for.

How Gomes compares to Bissouma

So, before we compare the two midfielders from a statistical perspective, it’s essential to recognise that one of the most significant issues with Bissouma at present is that his actions off the field have led to his suspension from the squad.
Regardless of how talented a player is, their judgment and actions away from football can detrimentally impact the club itself.

With that said, one of the reasons Gomes could be an ideal replacement is that, like the Mali international, he is a relatively versatile player who can play in either central or defensive midfield, meaning that from a positional point of view, there shouldn’t be any issues with Postecoglou’s tactics.

However, in order to get a better understanding of how the Wolves ace actually stacks up to the former Brighton & Hove Albion ace, we need to compare their underlying numbers, as looking at their goal involvements wouldn’t really tell us much about how they operate in the central and defensive midfield.

So, who comes out on top then? Well, rather unsurprisingly, given the discussion around the Tottenham ace’s performances for two-thirds of last season, it’s Wolves’ £50m “box-crasher”, as dubbed by data analyst Ben Mattinson, who comes out on top in this match-up, and unfortunately for the Lilywhites star, it’s not even close.

For example, in most relevant metrics for a six, the Rio de Janeiro-born ace comes out on top, including, but not limited to, tackles won, blocks, clearances, ball recoveries and aerial duels won, all per 90.
He even comes out ahead in several offensive metrics as well, showing that he can do a bit of everything, such as non-penalty expected goals plus assists, actual non-penalty goals plus assists, passes into the penalty area, goal-creating actions and successful take-ons, also all per 90.

Ultimately, considering the trouble that Bissouma has caused Spurs off the pitch this season and the fact his underlying numbers were notably worse than Gomes’ last season, signing the Brazilian to replace him before the window slams shut next week sounds like a brilliant idea.


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