2021 has seen four managers take to the Tottenham Hotspur dugout and fans will be hoping for more stability in the New Year.
Antonio Conte has made a strong start to life in north London, but that really doesn’t tell the whole story of how far Spurs have stagnated.
In 2019, Spurs were competing against Liverpool for the Champions League final and now they have been knocked out of the Europa Conference League.
It’s going to take more than just a few players entering and leaving to sort the club’s mess out, but a clear out is needed at Hotspur Way and here we take a look at three players that the club could sell in 2022:
Matt Doherty – The biggest sign for Doherty that it’s not working for him at Spurs was his former Wolves manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, handing him only seven minutes of Premier League football during his infamous four months at the club.
Signed up by Jose Mourinho during the summer of 2020, Doherty wasn’t able to replicate those same performances he displayed at Molineux.
Perhaps a new face was going to do the job, perhaps the man that helped elevate his career to the Premier League level? If anything, he went further back under Nuno.
There is still time for the Republic of international to showcase his forward-thinking engine under Conte, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him sold in 2022, either in January or next summer.
Steven Bergwijn – When Bergwijn was wheeling away in celebration after scoring on debut against Manchester City, the box-of-tricks winger had the world at his feet.
Mourinho, the man that brought him to Spurs from PSV, got one over on his old foe, Pep Guardiola, and Spurs fans were starting to see the light again, less than a year after their Champions League final heartache.
But, fast forward to this day, and Bergwijn might just be the first player out of the door under the Conte era.
That goal against Manchester City was perhaps the highlight of what he did at Spurs, as the 24-year-old has only managed two Premier League goals in one-and-a-half seasons, including against West Ham on Wednesday night in the League Cup.
Rumours are already rife that he could be heading back to Holland and joining the free-scoring train of Ajax, as Eric ten Hag has spoken about a possible transfer.
Dele Alli – Nobody has had a greater fall at Tottenham than Dele Alli, who has struggled for any form or rhythm for a number of years now.
It has been suggested that Spurs are now willing to let the player leave during the winter transfer window and it’s probably ideal that he does.
Some may point towards his performance against Liverpool last time out as potential hope that it could work once again under Conte.
But those in the Tottenham boardroom have to accept any offers that come their way for the player in January because too many questionable performances have outweighed the positives in recent years.
Newly-rich Newcastle are a club seemingly looking at Dele’s talents and given their current predicament, it might just be a win-win situation for all.
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