As a general rule, if you have one of the very best central defensive partnerships in world football, the last thing you want to do is sell one of them.
Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweirled have been playing with each other since their time in the Ajax youth ranks, continuing to forge a partnership at both Tottenham and for Belgium.
However, Alderweireld has been linked with a rather strange exit this week, with Sky Sports reporting that Roma are in talks with Spurs over a potential deal.
The chances of a player plus cash swap deal involving Alderweireld and £36m for Roma’s Nicolo Zaniolo have also been thrown around recently (Calcio Mercato).
Alderweireld has just one year left on his current deal in North London and his contract includes a £25m buyout clause for the next ten days or so (Guardian).
However, with Roma not even having Champions League football next season, ex-Spurs man Pascal Chimbonda does not feel that Toby will make a step-down.
He said (SportingBet): “Alderweireld will only leave Tottenham for one of Europe’s elite clubs. There seems to be a wage issue between him and the club, but as a player, you also want to be playing at the highest level and I can’t see him taking a step backwards to earn more.
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“Some players are happy to take a step back for a higher wage package but Alderweireld doesn’t seem to be a player with that mentality.
“I’m confident that he will be playing in a Tottenham shirt next season and he will feel confident that Tottenham can deliver a trophy.
“If Tottenham can keep hold of Alderweireld, then they won’t have to sign any defenders this summer transfer window.”
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