Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has confirmed the club plans to be active in the upcoming January transfer window as they look to arrest their recent slide in Premier League form. After a thrilling 4-3 Carabao Cup quarter-final victory over Manchester United last Thursday, Spurs were brought crashing back down to earth with a humbling 6-3 home defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
That result leaves Tottenham languishing in 11th place in the Premier League table heading into the busy festive period. Injuries to key players like Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have stretched the squad thin, with Postecoglou admitting they are “still a bit short in a couple of areas” and need reinforcements.
“We’ve been planning,” the Australian tactician revealed ahead of Spurs’ Boxing Day trip to face Nottingham Forest. “A lot of it was going to be around where we’re at around this time. Fair to say we’re still a little bit short in a couple of areas and we need to reinforce.”
Tricky January Market
However, Postecoglou acknowledged the challenges of doing business in the January window. “January’s trickier in terms of what sort of players you can bring in. For us, ideal – for any club, I guess – you want to bring in people who are going to make you stronger.”
With Tottenham still competing on multiple fronts, including the Carabao Cup semi-finals, FA Cup and European football in the new year, squad depth will be crucial. “I think the fact that, obviously, we’re still in the Carabao Cup semi-final, still got Europe, FA Cup, we’re in all the competitions, it’s not like our schedule’s going to ease up at any stage,” Postecoglou noted. “So, I think it makes sense. We will try and reinforce.”
Methodical Approach
Despite the urgent need, the Spurs boss insisted they would not panic buy and instead stick to their prudent recruitment strategy. “Where and what number we’ll have to wait and see. You don’t just want to panic and bring in anybody that you don’t think will help our cause in the back half of the year, but I think we’ve already shown we are pretty methodical and prudent about our work. We’ll make sure we’ll bring somebody in who is going to help us.”
Postecoglou also praised the effort and commitment shown by his current group of players amidst the adversity. “I can’t be critical of this group of players at the moment in any sense. I think it would be unfair for anyone to because what they’re doing is they’re giving absolute maximum effort.”
“The players are doing their part. They’re doing it to the maximum of their ability and it’s a credit to them. I still think in the long term that’s going to hold us in good stead.”
– Ange Postecoglou on his Tottenham squad’s effort
Bentancur Boost
In a piece of positive news, Spurs will welcome back midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur for the trip to the City Ground after he completed a seven-match domestic suspension for racist remarks. His return should provide a timely boost in the center of the park.
As for the gaffer, Postecoglou revealed he will spend Christmas Day away from his family who are back in his native Australia. “It’s a family tradition mate that I’m on my own. The family is in a warmer climate in Australia with family. We have a couple of young boys, so it’s important they are around family at this time. I will give them a call in the morning and then get on about my day.”
With the January window fast approaching, Spurs fans will be hoping Postecoglou and the club’s recruitment team can unearth some gems to reinvigorate their stuttering campaign. The coming weeks could prove pivotal in shaping the direction of Tottenham’s season.
