Three realistic midfielders Tottenham must sign for De Zerbi, including Manu Kone

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With two experienced defenders through the doors so early on in the transfer window, the attention turns to other positions on the pitch, where Tottenham need reinforcements just as urgently.

To the surprise of some, the Spurs board seems to be taking the task of rebuilding the Tottenham squad seriously.

Tottenham Hotspur’s midfield was in dire straits all throughout last season. Ravaged by injuries and exacerbated by poor coaching decisions and a transfer window that failed to adequately address the lack of technical quality in the squad, left the midfield as one of the weakest parts of the Spurs squad.

Roberto De Zerbi admitted that Spurs’ early phases of build-up is the one aspect of play that needs the most work, which means that if Tottenham want to access the attacking third, they’ll need to sign some midfielders.

James Maddison’s return showed how important technical ability is to play the way Roberto De Zerbi wants. In games against Chelsea and Leeds, Maddison’s ability to pick up the ball deeper on the pitch and find creative solutions to progress the ball to Tottenham’s attacking players shifted the balance of play massively in Spurs’ favour.

But Maddison is best utilised when he is the one receiving the ball in the final third, meaning that Spurs need a deeper lying passer in the centre of midfield to allow Maddison to take up those positions as Spurs’ most advanced midfielder.

Here are three realistic transfer targets for Spurs that target the centre-midfield role.

Aleix Garcia – £17.5m (Transfermarkt)

Tottenham were linked to the Bayer Leverkusen player earlier last year, and for good reason. Garcia has been an absolute outlier in not just the Bundesliga but all of the top 5 European leagues in the metrics for forward and progressive passing, as well as the percentages for pass completion.

This makes him an incredibly enticing candidate to begin alleviating Tottenham’s inability to progress the ball. Aleix Garcia’s ability to control the tempo of play is almost metronomic and is equally great at finding a creative solution to a block with a pass through the middle of the pitch.

The one concern that comes with Aleix Garcia is his out-of-possession work rate and defensive awareness. He’s not exactly an outlier for his duelling and actually has some of the poorer metrics in terms of his ability to win back possession and break up play.

This would mean he would likely need to slot in alongside a player like Rodrigo Bentancur, whose biggest upside is his OOP game, as confident duelling alongside being entirely competent in terms of technical ability. A pairing of Bentancur and Garcia complements each other’s weaknesses while solving a crucial squad issue.

Tottenham fan Alex Scott – £34.5m (Transfermarkt)

Alex Scott’s name has been on the lips of many a Spurs fan. The Bournemouth midfielder has not only had an outstanding season with the Cherries but also admitted on multiple occasions that he’s a Tottenham fan, earning him instant adoration from the remainder of the fanbase.

But being a Spurs supporter isn’t the quality which makes Scott a serious transfer targets for many of Europe’s top clubs.

Scott is an incredibly athletic running and pressing machine while also boasting solid passing statistics and looking completely confident on the ball.

His playtime for Andoni Iraola’s high-pressing and chaotic Bournemouth is also likely skewing his statistics towards more of a pressing box-to-box number 8 with top metrics in duelling, regaining possession, and progressive passes, but Alex Scott also seems entirely competent with the ball at his feet and could play a role in a Roberto De Zerbi midfield.

His four goal contributions this season mean that with his signing, Spurs would be adding a crucial goal threat to their midfield. Scott is seemingly likely to leave Bournemouth this season, as reports emerged that the midfielder is unwilling to sign a contract extension with the Cherries.

Manu Kone – £43.5m (Transfermarkt)

Kone is actually one of the players with the more recent links to Tottenham.  Back in the day, Kone was one of the most exciting prospects in European football during his time at Borussia Monchengladbach. But injury struggles as well as problems at the club precipitated a sharp decline in Kone’s value and expectations of his potential.

But the French midfielder has been hard at work rebuilding his career at Roma, and after a really impressive two-year spell with the Italian club, Kone is back amongst the elite of European midfielders.

Kone is actually the most well-rounded midfielder on this list, with his most impressive qualities being his technical ability and press resistance. To a Spurs midfield that at too many points last season looked stiff, uninventive, and devoid of technicality, Kone would add some much-needed versatility and fluidity.

De Zerbi’s familiarity with Serie A will likely result in an increased amount of links to players in the Italian leagues, while rumours of a move for a player like Kone indicate that Spurs at least seem to be targeting the right kind of players.

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