While most of Tottenham Hotspur will focus on arrivals in the January transfer window, Ange Postecoglou’s side could still do with sanctioning some departures to clear some space for new arrivals.
The Lilywhites’ headlines in the summer transfer window were dominated by the departure of Harry Kane, so they will no doubt be keen to avoid another high-profile departure. Instead, they could show the exit door to those who are on the fringes of Postecoglou’s squad and unlikely to find enough playing time in north London.
Given this, reports suggest that Spurs could now lose one particular central midfielder who is in talks with a European club ahead of a possible winter move.
Tottenham transfer news:
Spurs have spent the money they gained from the sale of Harry Kane to Bayern Munich on the contracts of James Maddison and Micky van de Ven, improving all their games. The North Londoners are now in fifth place, just a point behind Arsenal in fourth place in the Premier League.
If Spurs qualify for the Champions League in Postecoglou’s first season in charge, it will be considered a major success. But to do that they may need reinforcements, which may not be possible without the January departures.
According to the Gazzetta via Football Italia, Napoli have opened talks with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg about a January transfer. The Italian giants have already been busy this month, with Pasquale Mazzocchi due to undergo a medical and a verbal agreement reportedly reached to sign Udinese midfielder Lazar Samardzic.
Not stopping there, the Serie A champions have apparently turned their attention to England and are considering the transfer of Hojbjerg or Leicester City loanee Boubakary Soumaré. With the Spurs player currently out of favour, a transfer could suit all parties and the Italian team have apparently already started talks with his camp.
The “excellent” Hojbjerg should move to Napoli:
If Hojbjerg wants to start competing ahead of Euro 2024, he should move to Napoli later this month as a new era begins at Spurs. The Danish international has struggled to break into Postecoglou’s team this season and should not turn down the opportunity to play for the Italian champions if it comes his way.
Hojbjerg’s playing time simply tells the story – the 28-year-old has started just four Premier League games all season and a total of five in all competitions in a frustrating period.
Despite this, Postecoglou was full of praise for the out-of-favour central midfielder, saying after Spurs’ 3-3 draw against Manchester City earlier this season: “I think he helped. I thought Pierre was excellent in the second half. I think as a group we were a lot more confident about our football, just passing it to each other and not second-guessing and hesitating our passes like we did in the first half.”
Given that, and given Spurs’ lack of squad depth, it is not yet clear whether Hojbjerg will leave north London this month, as Napoli are said to be interested in him.