The January transfer window may just be a week old, but Tottenham Hotspur and Ange Postecoglou clearly aren’t hanging about, having already snapped up the signing of Slavia Prague starlet, Antonin Kinsky, in recent days.
The £12.5m capture of the 19-year-old goalkeeper represents yet another youthful addition for Spurs in recent times, with the Lilywhites forking out to sign the teenage trio of Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert over the summer.
With first-choice stopper Guglielmo Vicario sidelined with injury, Kinsky – who has had “a fantastic season”, according to talent scout Jacek Kulig – could come straight into the side for this evening’s Carabao Cup clash with Liverpool, offering an instant opportunity to impress.
A signing then for both the present and future, the teenager’s capture marks an interesting start to the window for the north London side, with further moves potentially set to lie in store.
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As reported by GIVEMESPORT, Daniel Levy and co could be set to ‘fast-track’ a move for Lille and England playmaker, Angel Gomes, this month, with the 24-year-old seemingly up for grabs with just six months left to run on his existing deal in France.
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According to the report, Spurs are keen to sign the Manchester United academy graduate immediately this month, rather than secure a pre-contract agreement ahead of a summer move.
The suggestion is that Postecoglou’s side are ‘eager to discover’ whether it would be possible to sign the diminutive midfielder over the coming weeks, rather than being forced to wait, with a potential enquiry seemingly in the works.
As per the piece, Gomes – who made just ten first-team appearances during his time at Old Trafford – ‘fits the bill’ as a potential ‘cut-price deal’, with the Premier League side potentially able to secure a bargain by signing the in-demand star.
What Angel Gomes could bring to Spurs
As The Athletic’s Jack Pitt-Brooke noted over the summer, there was a feeling at the end of last season that Spurs were in need of a new number six: ‘What Tottenham needed, the argument went, was a Rodri’.
That could be where Gomes comes into the picture, with former United youth coach Paul McGuiness having tipped the 5 foot 6 ace to be that Rodri-esque figure on the international stage:
Capable of operating as a deep-lying playmaker or in a more advanced attacking midfield berth, Gomes – who has chalked up four appearances for the Three Lions thus far – would be a worthwhile capture on the cheap, having been described as someone “who can play deeper but play like a ten” by ex-interim boss, Lee Carsley.
Also dubbed a “special” talent by former Lille boss Jocelyn Gourvennec, that ability to create from deep ensures he could represent the next Luka Modric at Spurs.
The 5 foot 8 Croatian – who made 160 appearances for the club before departing for Real Madrid in 2012 – is also a silky technician of slight stature, much like Gomes.
Indeed, Modric is noted as the third-most similar player to the Englishman among midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues, as per FBref, thus emphasising the notable similarities between the pair.
Stat (per 90)
Modric
Gomes
Goals
0.11
0.15
Assists
0.32
0.15
Progressive passes
8.60
5.15
Progressive carries
2.69
1.91
Shot-creating actions
5.70
3.53
Pass accuracy
87.3
80.1
Successful take-ons
66.7%
71.4%
While unsurprisingly not quite at the level of the Ballon d’Or winning genius just yet, Gomes does boast similar traits – as indicated above – with regard to his creative prowess, as shown with regard to his progressive passes record, as well as his shot-creating actions average.
There could be an argument that Spurs – who have already shipped 30 league goals this season – are in need of a more defensive-minded midfield asset, although what Gomes would bring is a greater sense of control, in the mould of Modric, with data analyst Ben Mattinson previously suggesting that he would be the solution to England “lacking control” in the centre of the park.
The only question now is whether the Lilywhites can get the deal over the line this month, or be forced to wait until the summer window.
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