Tottenham Hotspur didn’t remember the summer as Ange Postecoglou unlocked the Europa League after beating Manchester United at the end of last season.
The Lily Whites only brought two new senior players to strengthen their team, on the signatures of Kevin Danso and Mattis Tell, as Joanne Parghina and Mohamed Kudus were snapped from Bayern Munich and West Ham United respectively.
So, Thomas Frank hasn’t had many reinforcements pass through the doors to bolster his team that finished first in one place in the Premier League relegation zone in the 2024/25 campaign.
In addition to the lack of recruits, the new head coach lost James Madison for the majority of next season after suffering an ACL injury.
Dejan Kulusevski is due to miss the first month of the new season after undergoing patella surgery.
Why is Krusevsky’s injury a spurt blow?
Swedish International will not be anywhere as long as Madison is, but the absence of a left-footed star in the next four weeks or so will still be a blow to Frank.
The former Juventus winger is a high quality operator with wings and ten positions of numbers. That means Spurs lost its versatility and quality options in the short term.
Kulusevski made 43 appearances in the Premier League and Europa League last season, showing off his ability with the ball in both competitions.
The 25-year-old magician has the quality of carving open opposition defenses to create high quality opportunities for teammates on a regular basis, especially in the Premier League.
Dejan Kulusevski (24/25) | Premier League | Europa League |
|---|---|---|
exterior | 32 | 11 |
xg | 4.23 | 0.87 |
the goal | 7 | 1 |
A big opportunity has been created | 9 | 2 |
Key Passes for each game | 2.1 | 1.1 |
assist | 4 | 3 |
Statistics via Sofascore | ||
As you can see in the table above, Kulusevski created two or more chances per game on average for the top flight, but only four assists paid off.
Meanwhile, the other Spurs players who created more than 1.7 chances per game in the Premier League last season, don’t talk about how important the Swedish star is as a creative force at the top end of the pitch.
So, causing him to get hurt is Frank to hit the season-opening month and is also why the club needs to be in the market for more offensive players.
Spurs put League 1 star on radar
Tottenham Hotspur fans are happy to read that this summer they are reportedly looking to bring in players that could become Crucevsky’s clones.
According to journalist Sebastien Vidal, Spurs has placed Monaco Winger Magnes Akliouche on the radar to strengthen their team before the end of the transfer window.
The reporter argues that the Europa League champions want to add more creativity to the group in the coming weeks due to Madison’s injury.
Vidal adds that Akliouche is considered a multipurpose and quality offensive option, and that while the club is monitoring his situation, he has not yet submitted an official offer for his services.
It has previously been reported that Arsenal is also interested in the 23-year-old talent, valued at around £60 million by Monaco.
Why Spurs sign akliouche
The Lily Whites need to formalize their interest in the official Frenchwiz bid, as the Lily Whites can ease the blow of injuring him and enter as a clone of Crucevsky to compete with the former Juventus man when he is healthy.
Like the Swedish maestro, akliouche is a versatile offensive player, drifting on his left foot, which can play in the center on the right no. 10 or wide range.
As partially proven by his incredible overhead kick in the clip above, the £60 million rating star brings excellent technical quality to the top of the pitch, as does Kulusevski.
Akliouche was welcomed with technical skills as “majestic” by U23 scout Antonio Mango, scoring five goals in 27 starts in League 1 of Monaco 1 last season, earning 15 big chances.
24/25 League 1 | Maghnes Akliouche | Percentile Rank vs Winger |
|---|---|---|
the goal | 5 | Top 30% |
Possibility of being created | 49 | Top 10% |
Shah | 7.85 | Top 5% |
Accuracy | 84.9% | Top 20% |
The dribbling was successful | 50 | Top 9% |
assist | 10 | Top 5% |
Statistics via FOTMOB | ||
As you can see from the table above, the Spurs’ target was one of the most creative players on France’s top flight last season.
These statistics suggest that Tottenham will sign players who can regularly unleash opposing defenses to create high quality opportunities for Dominique Solanke, Kudus, Richardson, phones and more.
Akliouche appears to be able to fill the creative gap left behind by Maddison and Kuluveski’s injuries, but is the latter clone for Frank to call all season.
When both fit, Akliouche and Kulusevski can fight for the same position, push each other to improve their training, creating a real competition of places within the team to make sure XI is not complacent.
Now it is now Spurs to act on their interests in a hurry with the offer to sign French talent before the summer transfer period ends.
