Tottenham Hotspur didn’t complete the most frenetic of finishes to the summer transfer window, but this is a product of the smooth dealing under Ange Postecoglou.
Gone are the days of scattergun spending. Spending for spending’s sake. Spending vast sums of money on footballers who quickly fall by the wayside.
Giovani Lo Celso’s £3m deadline-day sale to Real Betis personifies this, for the Argentinian midfielder joined for a fee totalling £43m in 2020, having initially arrived on loan.
One out, one in? Not quite, but Tottenham have taken a rather unusual route toward signing Johnny Cardoso from Betis, enabled by yesterday’s transaction.
What’s going on with Johnny Cardoso
Rivals might titter over Tottenham’s interminable trophy drought, but such a din is drowned out down at N17 by the exciting project that Postecoglou is crafting, brick by brick.
Daniel Levy ensured that a clause was inserted in Lo Celso’s transfer, that Spurs would have priority when the United States native leaves the La Liga outfit next year or later still.
It’s a prudent move. The north Londoners can observe Cardoso’s continuing rise and move down the line if his development aligns with the rise of Postecoglou’s Tottenham. A tough-tackling midfielder, analyst Ben Mattinson has noted that “he’s great at winning aerial duels and progressing play from deep.”
| Johnny Cardoso: Defensive Metrics (La Liga 23/24) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stats | Per 90 | Percentile |
| Tackles | 3.25 | Top 6% |
| Interceptions | 2.17 | Top 1% |
| Blocks | 1.36 | Top 23% |
| Clearances | 2.10 | Top 9% |
| Aerial duels | 2.58 | Top 7% |
| Stats via FBref | ||
The fixed fee is €30m (£25m), which is no small sum, and provides Postecoglou with ample time to assess his options, namely Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur in the nub of midfield, and move if it all makes sense.
However, Cardoso would arrive at an area of midfield stocked with plenty of talented youth. Any deal must not affect the growth of Archie Gray, who has the skills to conquer the Premier League with Tottenham.
Why Archie Gray is Spurs’ biggest talent
Tottenham moved with all the speed of a blustering gale to sign Gray for £30m this summer, fighting tooth and nail to hijack Brentford’s deal with Leeds United.
Gray is a teenage midfielder with the world at his feet, and his instant role in Postecoglou’s plans makes a telling comment on the view in which he is held by the Australian, who knows a top talent when he sees one.
Leeds quickly established that they had a homegrown starlet of significant potential last season. The Whites’ relegation from the Premier League proved to be a good thing for Gray’s progress, who ended up with 40 starts in the Championship and claimed the Young Player of the Year award.
Interchangeable, he darted from deep-lying midfield to right-back with impressive measures of success, finishing the campaign with 2.1 tackles and 4.5 ball recoveries per game, as per Sofascore, completing 89% of his passes and winning 57% of his ground duels.
His pre-season form has carried into the early days of the 2024/25 campaign, featuring off the bench in both of Tottenham’s opening matches, all composure and aptness on the Premier League pitch.
Still only 18. What a talent. Gray will only continue to grow into his skin and has even been said to be “a future £100m” midfielder by earlier-mentioned analyst Mattinson.
His technique and confidence have seen him operate dynamically through the maiden days of his career, and with a tenacious bite and breezy passing with both feet, he might just be the real deal.
Cardoso is more of a steely no. 6, crunchier with his challenges, but few would argue against Gray having the higher ceiling. Tottenham’s decision to view Cardoso’s development through the lens of a non-obligatory future deal errs on the side of caution, gives them time to reach a decision.
Gone are the frustrating days of old. Hello Tottenham 2.0; it’s a brand new world.
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