Tottenham transfer news: Toby Alderweireld’s move to Spurs – all you need to know
Running the rule over Toby Alderweireld, WhoScored.com assesses his suitability for Spurs. For more Tottenham stats, check out WhoScored.com…
It’s a transfer that performed many U-turns over the weekend, but it finally appears to be nearing a conclusion.
No, this news isn’t regarding David De Gea and his anticipated move to Real Madrid, nor does it relate to Morgan Schneiderlin, who is tipped to leave Southampton this summer, though it does concern the latter’s team-mate last season.
Toby Alderweireld is currently locked in the middle of a transfer tug of war between Tottenham and Southampton. An administrative error by Atletico Madrid means Saints, where the player was on loan for the 2014/15 campaign, feel they are entitled to the permanent signing of the Belgium international for a cut-price £6.8m fee and their continued pursuit of the defender comes as little shock to those associated with the club.
Unsurprisingly, the club are desperate to secure his services, so much so that should the player move to another team this summer, they are prepared to take legal action against Atletico after the Spanish club failed to cancel Alderweireld’s buy-out clause in time.
Southampton believe they have a contract with Atletico that makes Alderweireld's season-long loan permanent for £6.8m unless they are paid around £1.5m to cancel that agreement.
They may be forced to take this route, with Spurs seemingly heading the queue in the race to secure the defender’s services.
In his first Premier League campaign, Alderweireld gained a respectable WhoScored.com rating of 7.07 and formed part of a defence that was among the tightest in England’s top tier last term.
Only Chelsea, with 32, shipped fewer goals in the Premier League last season than Saints’ 33, in what was also an impressive debut campaign at St Mary’s for manager Ronald Koeman.
The Dutchman secured the services of Alderweireld initially on loan last summer and he was impressive alongside Jose Fonte at the heart of the back line. Indeed, Southampton’s goal difference was a respectable +21 in the 26 league games the centre-back started and that figure dropped to zero in the 12 games he did not.
Understandably impressed with Alderweireld in his debut season in England, Mauricio Pochettino has identified the Belgian as the ideal player to solidify his back line.
Spurs shipped a whopping 53 league goals last season, one of the worst returns in England’s top division. As expected, Pochettino has moved to strengthen accordingly this summer, securing the services of Kevin Wimmer and Kieran Trippier from Cologne and Burnley respectively.
The Argentine is now hopeful a deal to take Alderweireld to White Hart Lane can be completed sooner rather than later as pre-season preparations get underway.
The Belgian suits the demands of Pochettino, with his pass success rate standing at 80.2 per cent, a respectable return given his average number of passes per game (42.6).
Clearly capable of playing the ball out of defence, he matches Spurs’ possession football and short passing style of play, a strength of theirs statistically calculated on WhoScored.com.
No Saints player averaged more clearances per league game than Alderweireld’s 5.5 last season, highlighting his ability to be in the right place at the right time to clear any danger.
With Spurs hoping to secure a top four finish next season, a player of Alderweireld’s calibre is exactly what they need in their quest to guarantee a place in the 2016/17 Champions League.
Defence was understandably the first port of call for Pochettino to strengthen this summer, as highlighted by Spurs’ acquisitions so far, and Alderweireld could be considered to be the final piece of the puzzle needed to complete the north London side’s back line.