Tottenham make sizeable bid for player they may not need
Tottenham have three senior right-backs at the moment, but that hasn’t stopped Spurs from making a big bid on a fourth right-sided fullback.
Finding a backup striker may be Tottenham’s biggest outstanding need of the summer, but it isn’t where Spurs are spending their time at the moment. Instead, Fabio Paratici is working hard to bring in a fourth right back to provide Nuno Espirito Santo with the talent he requires in North London.
According to Sky Sports, Tottenham have submitted a bid in excess of £25 million for 22-year-old Barcelona right-back Emerson Royal. The young fullback originally seemed dead set on staying in Spain to fight for a place with the La Liga giants, but recent reports suggest he might be ready to take his talents to the Premier League.
The curious nature of the bid is that Spurs are well-stocked at the right-back position at the moment. Japhet Tanganga has seized the spot for his own in the early season ahead of former Wolves star Matt Doherty and Serge Aurier. Both veterans are thought to be very available in transfer talks if Tottenham receive any sort of meaningful bid.
So does signing Emerson make sense?
Just because Tottenham have three senior right-backs currently doesn’t mean bidding for Emerson isn’t a smart move. Neither Aurier nor Doherty have earned their new manager’s trust during the preseason. That’s particularly a shock for Doherty considering the success he enjoyed playing for Nuno at Wolves.
It’s also still possible that Tanganga’s best position is at centre back. He’s excelled on the campaign playing out wide, but Emerson would definitely give Spurs a more natural attacker to deploy on that side of the formation.
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In the end, Spurs need to have two right-backs they can trust on the squad at all times. Tanganga gives Tottenham one option they fancy and Emerson can give Spurs a different sort of player to serve as his foil. This may not be an area of intense need for Tottenham but buying Emerson still makes plenty of sense.