da marjack bet： Tottenham’s season thus far has been a difficult one to pin down as a success or a failure.
da jogodeouro： Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in the middle, but we’re sure Lilywhites supporters are as disappointed with seeing their team outside of the top four and eliminated from the Champions League as they were proud of their early-season run, whichÂsaw them go longer undefeated than any other side in the Premier League.
It really could go one of two ways for the north London club, then, which makes next month’s transfer window all the more intriguing. Typically, the mid-season sales are not the best place to find value for money, but the White Hart Lane club could certainly do with one or two additions to solve a couple of the problems – namely turning draws (no other side in the top five can match their return of six) into wins (of which they have the fewest in the top five).
So, maybe revisiting their supposed summer interest in Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha (above) would make some sense. The two-cap England international has been excellent for the Eagles so far this term and for the right price, the south London club would surely do business.
Here are FIVE reasons Spurs should revive their interest in Zaha…
Form of his life…
People can scoff all they like, but there are few better wingers in the Premier League right now than Zaha. The Ivory Coast-born ace’s stats (above) make excellent reading for Eagles fans, and it’s scary to think where the south London club wouldÂbe in the table without his three goals and six assists – he’s directly contributed to 33.3% of their league goals.
It’s not just his goal threat, though with Zaha also completing 61 take-ons and making 25 tackles to illustrate his all-energy approach, which would be well-suited to Mauricio Pochettino’s high-tempo Spurs side.
Dribble king…
Only Middlesbrough’s Adama Traore has made more dribbles-per-game than Zaha’s 4.4. The Palace man sits above the likes of Eden Hazard and Raheem Sterling, putting him among winger royalty in the division and demonstrating his confidence right now. Interestingly, he’s been fouled 2.6 times-per-game, showing that his neat skills are bamboozling defenders with regularity – but he is being dispossessed of the ball, on average, on 3.5 occasions-per-match.
A different option for Spurs…
Leading on from the last point, Spurs don’t really have a wide attacker even close to Zaha’s style of play, with the bulk of Pochettino’s options better at cutting inside to support the attack. Heung-min Son is the closest to the two-cap England international in terms of dribbles-per-game, but his return of 2.2 is exactly half of Zaha’s.
As well as the tangible stats, the Palace man offers the sort of pace that none of Spurs’ wide players possess. The likes of Son, Erik Lamela and Christian Eriksen are not known for their speed across the turf, meaning that Zaha would offer an alternative option and make the north Londoners a little more dangerous on the counter-attack. Georges-Kevin N’Koudou is, perhaps, capable of doing that job, but his lack of game time hints that he may not be ready for English football just yet.
Not cup tied in Europe…
Spurs may not be in the European competition they crave after dropping from the Champions League to the Europa League, but continental football is something Pochettino will have to cope with in early 2017.
The Lilywhites have shown in the past that the Thursday to Sunday grind has an impact on form, so getting another body in for these games makes some sense. Zaha, unlike many talented players from across the various European leagues, is not cup-tied for the tournament, meaning he could come straight into the squad and offer either added energy in league games or a creative, alternative option in the UEL.
Man United experiment…
Spurs should not be put off by Zaha’s stint at Manchester United. The now 24-year-old spent a largely unsuccessful two-an-a-half years as a Red Devil, but only six months of that period were as part of the first-teamÂsquad.
Shipped back to Crystal Palace, then to Cardiff then back to Palace on loan, Zaha’s only opportunity in the Man United first-team came in the opening half of the David Moyes season, in which he was often overlooked as the Scot searched for quick fixes to ease the massive levels of pressure on him for poor results and performances.
The flying winger will surely be better now for that experience and eager to seize an opportunity at another big club.