The window just gone was Fabio Paratici’s first in North London and I for one think it was a good summer for the club.
From what I have seen many, fans seem to be very unhappy with the transfer window but I think we need to be more realistic as a fan base.
There were some disappointments, namely with the failed attempt at bringing in Adama Traore. According to The Athletic, a late final bid of £30 million was made a few days before deadline day, which was swiftly rejected by the Midlands club.
However, I want to focus on the positives in this article and explain how this window was an optimistic sign for things to come.
The deadwood at the club has long been a problem at Tottenham with many sub-par players being handed long contracts with high wages.
This window we made a massive dent in this pool of players. Players like Sissoko, Alderweireld, Lamela, Rose, Gazzaniga and Hart have all now been moved on, their fees are not what we should focus on but the wages that are off the books now.
According to the Spotrac wages from last season, Tottenham offloaded over £420,000 a week in wages in the window just passed for permanent players. Not to mention the money saved when the loan spells for Gareth Bale, Carlos Vinicius, and Gedson Fernandes came to an end.
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This is not to be understated, the ability to move on high wage and undesirable players is a very difficult task and has been something up until this summer we had not managed to do.
This window for me was about rejuvenating the squad, this involves both bringing in new faces whilst also cleaning out the players that are surplus to requirements.
There are a couple more outgoings I would have liked to have seen go through, for example Winks. For me ideally, he needed to be shifted just to maximise the fee we could receive for him, however after seeing we were demanding £40 million for his sale I can see why he wasn’t snatched up.
In terms of the business we conducted bringing in players to the club I am very happy with what Paratici accomplished. Our biggest and most impressive addition was the signing of Argentina international Cristian Romero.
The defender was colossal for Atalanta last season being voted Serie A defender of the season and was also pivotal in Argentina’s success in Copa America.
The signing of Romero addressed a very big problem at the club, which was the lack of a top quality centre back after the departure of Vertonghen and the slow decline of Alderweireld.
His quality is clear to see if you had the pleasure of watching him play over the course of the 20/21 season. The most impressive thing for me was how Paratici managed to bring him to North London even after reports Messi wanted Romero to join him in Spain at the time.
In addition to that, it was refreshing to see Paratici branch out to France, Spain and Italy for new signings. With some doubting his ability to bring players in from places other than Italy which is where he conducted a large portion of his business at previous clubs.
Sarr and Gil are both excellent signings for the future, however, could also play a role in the first-team squad over the next few seasons.
Their mixture of youth and quality is something I welcome as we have addressed the potential problem of moving towards an ageing squad.
The deadline day signing of Emerson Royal coupled with the departure of Aurier is again a solid bit of business for Tottenham. Whilst not the worst player in the squad the Ivorian international was always somewhat of a liability, although his main issue was his obvious lack of desire to stay at the club.
Bringing in a player of seemingly similar quality with a higher ceiling, a desire to be at the club is all round a positive move for both players and the club itself.
The last arrival to talk about is the addition of Italian goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini. Whilst on the face of it not the most exciting signing, the addition of a quality backup goalkeeper is something we have been calling out for. With Lloris ageing, it was time for the club to look towards the future.
Gollini will be ideal for Conference League games and domestic cup competitions as well, this gives him time to settle into the club in his first year. Then, hopefully, next year we will start to see him push towards that starting XI spot.
Overall I would rate this window an 8/10. Many fans I believe have been very harsh of Paratici in his very first summer. As the saying goes ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day.’
All the signs in this window point towards Paratici being a great addition for the club. It will take time for him to stamp his name on the squad and move everyone on who is below the club’s standards, but I have faith in him to do so in the long run.
The one signing I would unfortunately question is Nuno, who apparently was admired greatly by the Italian. Although that is a conversation for another time further down the road.
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