Opinion: What Spurs need to do before pre-season and why it is so important
A new era is approaching at Spurs, and a big pre-season lies in wait. Ange must get it right from the start, to set up the club for a successful season. But it will not be easy: decisions on players who were out on loan last season, players who performed poorly, as well as the […]
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A new era is approaching at Spurs, and a big pre-season lies in wait. Ange must get it right from the start, to set up the club for a successful season.
But it will not be easy: decisions on players who were out on loan last season, players who performed poorly, as well as the good bunch within the squad all need to be made early on.
Postecoglou must decide what he likes and what he doesn’t, to give the club enough time to offload the deadwood and fix problem positions that are identified.
Overall, I am feeling a real sense of positivity heading into this pre-season, although I do have a few things on my ‘wish list’. Let’s hope Ange can deliver….
Young stars:
Destiny Udogie in action during UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group D: France U21 vs Italy U21, disputed on Cluj Arena, 22 June 2023 (Photo by Flaviu Buboi/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
One of the areas of our squad that I am really positive about as we head into next season is our young talent.
In defence we have players such as Udogie and Spence, who I am hoping will be given a proper chance in the first team.
Sarr and Devine in midfield also deserve a real shot and upfront we have Gil coming back from a successful loan and Kulu finally signed up on a permanent deal.
In addition to this, I am hopeful that we can seal a deal for Alex Scott, and then our midfield really does have a great balance of youth and experience.
Ange is known for working with youth and creating a pathway to the first team and this is something we have been missing since Poch left.
With Bentancur out until November (TalkSport), I would love to see a midfield trio of Sarr, Bissouma and a new addition e.g. Maddison/Scott, with Devine, Skipp and Holjberg as rotation options.
This is how it should look in pre-season and would give us a good base going into the new campaign. During our pre-season players such as Udogie and Gil need to build up their confidence and tactical understanding so they can earn the trust of the new boss.
Young players’ careers can be shattered if not given a reasonable chance, and that has been shown over the last few years in cases such as Japhet Tanganga. I trust Ange to let these young stars show their ability in pre-season and beyond.
Last season’s loanees:
Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images
One player that I continue to hold out hope for is Tanguy Ndombele. He has always been one of my favourite players because of his elegance on the ball and just the outrageous talent he possesses.
He played 30 times for Napoli last season, but these were largely as a substitute, as he became a champion of Italy (TransferMarket). I feel as though he deserves one last chance at Spurs. Give him this pre-season to prove to Ange that he deserves to stay at the club, and then go from there.
That’s the best we Ndombele fanboys can reasonably hope for at this point. As I’ve said, Spence and Gil should be kept and given a fair shot in preseason too, alongside Sergio Reguilon.
I would also have given Lo Celso another shot but he doesn’t really seem interested in playing for the club next season and reports suggest he is looking for a move elsewhere (DailyMail).
On the other hand, I would understand if Ange decided against keeping any of our returning loanees, and we could recoup some decent fees, especially for Lo Celso and Reguilon, if we find the right buyer.
This will be determined by the manager, who must judge the mood and ambition of these returning players.
New signings:
VALLETTA, MALTA – JUNE 16: James Maddison of England arrives at the stadium prior to the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying round group C match between Malta and England at Ta’ Qali Stadium on June 16, 2023 in Valletta, Malta. (Photo by Valerio Pennicino – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
The worst thing about Daniel Levy is that he tends to do his important business late in the window to get the best price.
Whilst, from a financial standpoint, this is a good thing, and that’s part of running a successful club, it would be much more beneficial for the squad if the bulk of the business was taken care of early in the window, to give new signings a chance to settle in and get game time under their belt before the season kicks off.
Potential new signings should be wanted by Ange and already have a place in his system before they are signed, to enable them to slot straight in. A player like Maddison, who we are strongly linked to (Express)should be fit and ready to play if he were to be brought in.
My pet peeve is when managers say an experienced player needs time to settle in: if they are good enough, they should play!
You could say they need to understand the tactical ideas of the manager before they play and yes, I agree, but there is no better way to learn a role than by playing it. Bring the players in early in pre-season to give them the best chance come August.
Get him gone:
(Photo by Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images)
Players such as Davinson Sanchez who are transfer listed by Spurs (MailOnline) should not be given any game time in pre-season.
We are at a stage now where we just need to shift the deadwood by any means necessary. Sell them for one pound for all I care.
But what can’t happen is players who either have no interest in playing for us next season or players no longer deemed good enough hanging around for pre-season and taking away valuable game time from others.
For example, I would hope we are looking to sell a player such as Harry Winks this summer. I do not want to see Harry Winks given a minute of game time over a player such as Sarr or Devine this preseason. It is utterly pointless.
It is like having to watch Cameron Carter Vickers play every game of pre-season before inevitably being shipped off on a random loan. It just makes you wonder sometimes.
Take a look at Man City for example, if they are parting ways with a player it is completely ruthless and they are gone, one way or another. We need to adopt this approach and be ruthless with the squad this summer.
Show me something Ange:
(Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images)
On a more positive note, I am really looking forward to learning all about Ange this pre-season, especially his tactical approaches, preferred patterns of play and the type of player he favours.
He is a great speaker and seems to be fair-minded with a good approach to dealing with players. Once he gets in a few more players to plug the obvious gaps then we should really start to see ‘Ange-Ball’ in full flow.
The players should be warned that if they pass backwards, they are in trouble. I also think it will be interesting to see how he manages players like Porro, Kulusevski, and Bissouma, who all struggled last season but possess serious talent.
I think Conte mis-profiled a few key players last year due to his demands and his tactical rigidity, and we should see them flourish now under this new, more flexible and exciting approach.
Overall I am feeling positive heading into pre-season and am very excited to see the direction Ange takes the club in.
The only thing that slightly worries me is that transfer targets will be drawn out, leading to a gruelling process that overtakes the summer and kills any optimism surrounding pre-season.
Levy plays an important role and the sooner he can get deals over the line the better for everyone.
This summer needs to be a smooth-sailing one, as the positivity bubble currently surrounding the club is as fragile as Giovanni Lo Celso.
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