Despite the high-profile acquisition of Yves Bissouma from Brighton in the summer and the impressive goalscoring feats of Rodrigo Bentancur and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg so far this season, the midfield area arguably remains a problematic one for Tottenham Hotspur ahead of the advent of the new year.
The obvious issue remains a numerical one – in the absence of either Bentancur or Hojbjerg, the midfield pivot seems to struggle, as Oliver Skipp and Bissouma have generally struggled when deputising for either of the first-choice duo, as seen in displays against Newcastle, West Ham, and Brentford this season, to take a few examples.
On Thursday, several Spanish outlets have revealed this week that Spurs have launched a bid for long-time target Franck Kessie of Barcelona worth approximately £13 million.
Spanish transfer site Fichajes have reported that Spurs, as well as being the first side to make a bid for the 24-year-old Ivorian ahead of the winter window’s opening tomorrow, are deep in negotiations with Barcelona over the Serie A winner’s situation.
As it stands, whether or not the offer has been accepted or rejected remains unclear, but given the fact that it is so low and is our opening offer, I’d imagine that is has been politely declined and has served as an opener for negotiations rather than a closer if these reports are to be believed.
The report from Fichajes further states that the Barcelona hierarchy would be willing to part with the Ivorian in order to raise funds for other signings and alleviate their financial problems (yes, the very financial problems that allow them to sign Robert Lewandowski!).
Football.London have reinforced this notion by stating that the Ivorian nor Barcelona manager want to let him go just yet, but the temptation to ease the Catalans’ financial woes by cashing in on a player who has hardly featured for the Blaugrana may just see Kessie depart sooner rather than later.
However, as is the case with any player, another report from Football.London states that competition for Kessie’s signature may well arrive from Arsenal and Inter Milan, so we’ll see how this one develops.