Tottenham face Eintracht Frankfurt in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final this evening and we thought we would add to the woes of doom-stricken Spurs fans in the build-up by reassigning the players who will likely be following their miserable manager out of the door in the summer as they seek European football next season.
James Maddison – Manchester City
We admit to stifling a laugh upon hearing a report claiming Manchester City view Maddison as “the natural replacement” for Kevin De Bruyne, though our mirth was tempered somewhat by the startling realisation that the Spurs playmaker has actually managed nine goals and six assists in the Premier League this season. That’s a goal contribution every 118 minutes, which is bettered by just nine players to have played over 25 games.
That record combined with Maddison being picked out by Pep Guardiola for sweet nothings after games and the obvious Australian caveat for his drop in value this season suggests it’s not the most improbable marriage, but still, it’s Kevin De Bruyne.
Mathys Tel – Chelsea
Not actually a Tottenham player and although they do hold a £45m option to buy him, Daniel Levy is unsurprisingly looking to get a discount on Tel having spent years cultivating an environment at the club where it’s impossible for one of the most talented young forwards in Europe to arrive and show he is one of the most talented forwards in Europe. Credit where it’s due, Levy’s played the long game there.
Chelsea were keen in January, because of course they were, and may well reignite that interest because what’s one more mercurial, unproven winger?
Cristian Romero – Atletico Madrid
He’s been so poor since returning from injury that Spurs fans are starting to question whether he’s doing it on purpose to force a move from the club, and we wonder whether a footballer’s head can be turned by interest to such a degree as to disconnect the synapses between their brain and legs.
But as with most of the players on this list, current form will play very little part in their transfer prospects as they play for a club entirely written off as a basket case. Real Madrid are supposedly interested but we can’t see past a move to Atletico Madrid after a meeting with Diego Simeone involving more shouting than talking and one of those head-to-head nuzzles that isn’t quite a headbutt but combines aggression with that hint of romance that El Cholo covets in his warriors.
Micky van de Ven – Liverpool
Richard Hughes may have sorted out the futures of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk but the contract issues keep coming at Liverpool, with Ibrahima Konate next up as Paris Saint-Germain reportedly step up their interest while the Frenchman’s agent wants a £200,000-per-week salary for his client that we can’t see the Reds offering.
We suggested this week it may be a straight choice for Hughes between Konate and Dean Huijsen after a season in which the Bournemouth star has caught the attention of all the big boys. But a report in February claimed Arne Slot is also ‘very keen’ on Van de Ven, who he sees as an ‘elite Champions League level’ centre-back.
Dejan Kulusevski – Napoli
We would love him to stay in the Premier League because we love Dejan Kulusevski, but Antonio Conte supposedly wants to reunite with him at Napoli and the Sweden international is one of those players – and there weren’t many at Spurs – with whom Conte appeared to form an unbreakable bond.
Kulusevski said Conte “changed my world” when he brought him to Tottenham from Juventus and while his teammates lost faith as the Italian routinely dug them out and slammed the wider mentality of the football club, Kulusevski remained loyal, insisting “I will always respect him” and claiming “when he speaks, the words enter your heart by force.”
Destiny Udogie – Manchester City
A revelation when he arrived last season and Manchester City’s interest is clearly based on those displays in his first few months in the Premier League rather than his later performances which have seen him suffer the ignominy of being dropped from this Spurs team.
Djed Spence – Nottingham Forest
There’s less shame on Udogie’s part for being ousted from the starting line-up seeing as Spence has done the ousting. In a season of few success stories at Tottenham, Spence’s emergence as a key player is the feelgood story of the campaign.
He waited two years for his first start after his £20m move from Middlesbrough and having been called “a signing the club wanted” in a parting gift from Conte as he left the club, Postecoglou spouted some absolute hokum in February about “purposefully making it difficult” for Spence by not playing him rather than admitting he had him all wrong.
Ola Aina could be on the move from Forest at the end of his contract in the summer despite his excellent campaign and a return to the City Ground for Spence, who made his name during their promotion campaign in 2021/2022, feels like a good fit.