Whilst browsing through the daily Spurs Rumour Mill and seeing the same names linked to our club in January (Leandro Damiao and Javier Hernandez to name just a few) one particular rumour surprised and excited me in equal measure: ‘Tottenham leading chase to sign Juventus playmaker Andrea Pirlo’. This could, in my eyes, be one of the most important signings for the club in years.
Every football fan has heard of Andrea Pirlo: the elegant, mercurial Italian has graced world football for over a decade with his precise passing and his eye for a spectacular goal. The reputation and prestige that comes with a footballer like Pirlo is similar to that of when we signed Van der Vaart a few years ago. Teams and fans across the world see him as an elite footballer, up there with the top deep-lying playmakers like Xavi and Bastian Schweinsteiger. Teams will be scared about coming up against him and will pay close attention to Spurs because of him, just as Ozil has done for A*senal after he joined them.
However, of course it is not just his reputation as a footballer that will benefit the club: he is still one of the best midfielders in the world. He showed his ability in the Confederations Cup this summer where he was nominated for the Golden Ball and his Italian team only went out on penalties to World and European champions Spain. Surely no one could forget the ease in which he tore apart the English defence and midfield just last summer, where he made the best players that our country has look like amateurs before mocking the entire nation by coolly paneckering the stranded Joe Hart in the England net during the penalty shootout. In the season prior to the Euros, at the age of 32, he was named in the Serie A team of the season and was elected as Serie A Footballer of the Year, as he guided Juventus to the league title, before retaining that league title in the 2012-13 season.
These accolades and performances that Pirlo has been given and has delivered in recent seasons show that he could be the difference for Spurs if we can sign him in January. He can be the deep-lying playmaker that we have been crying out for since Luka Modric left, with the added bonuses of even better passing, sensational free kicks and a Messiah-esque beard.
Our midfield has lacked creativity and spark so far this season and Pirlo would bring these two things in abundance. Pirlo, alongside a midfield enforcer like Sandro, Paulinho or Capoue would be deadly. He would provide the added firepower and ammunition for the strikers that would take the load off of Erikson’s shoulders. Soldado’s movement combined with Pirlo’s inch perfect, defence-splitting through balls would be a match for any side. Not many Premier League sides could boast the creativity quality we would have with Pirlo, Erikson and a settled Lamela in the midfield. In addition to these players Dembele further increases our options.
Spurs could also have one of the best playmakers in the world for absolutely nothing! His contract negotiations have supposedly broken down with Juventus meaning he could be a free agent in the summer or he could be purchased for a hugely reduced price in January, like we did with Holtby last season who cost us just £1.5 million.
Tomorrow the Spurs Rumour Mill will churn out another name for us to get excited about but I hope for our season’s sake that this one is true. Pirlo could be the man who moves us from being a good team to being a great team, and he could become a legend in the eyes of Spurs fans across the globe if he makes the move to White Hart Lane.
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