With Mousa Dembele expected to join Beijing Guoan, Tottenham need a replacement midfielder. The Londoners will be linked with a host of names from around Europe, but one player does keep cropping up – Abdoulaye Doucouré. The Watford midfielder has spent two years at Vicarage Road and is regarded by Jamie Redknapp as one of the most underrated players in the Premier League.
The 26-year-old has made 85 appearances for Watford since joining from Granada in 2016, scoring and creating 20 goals (transfermarkt). Doucoure possesses all the attributes to adequately replace Dembele – 47 tackles & 18 interceptions in 22 league appearances – but whether Tottenham will make a move remains to be seen.
Abdoulaye Doucouré has contributed eight goals in 20 #PL starts for Watford this season.
He averages a tackle or interception every 29 minutes, makes 50+ passes per game (82% completion ratio), has created 23 chances & has a 61% dribble success.
Should #THFC make a move in Jan?
— Crippy Cooke (@CrippyCooke) January 12, 2019
Arsenal and Liverpool are two of many sides who have been linked with Doucoure, but he remains a Watford player with just over two weeks of the January transfer window remaining. Spurs are short on available midfielders, with Dembele and Victor Wanyama on the treatment table. Eric Dier recently returned to training, but he’s likely to be short of match fitness.
Mauricio Pochettino has been heavily reliant on Harry Winks, Moussa Sissoko, Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli to make up a midfield quartet of late, so he’d jump at the chance to sign a player of substance to challenge for place. It’s unknown if Doucoure is on the Tottenham shortlist, however.
Crippy Cooke’s previous article
Opinion: Tottenham should not sign 24-year-old due to his indiscipline in Serie A