Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly plotting summer moves for both Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Southampton’s Jay Rodriguez.
According to The Express, Tottenham Hotspur are keen to land both Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Southampton attacker Jay Rodriguez over the summer.
Spurs were quiet during the January transfer window, as Mauricio Pochettino chose not to make any new additions – just like most of the top six, with Arsenal the only team to add a new signing, and that was non-league defender Cohen Bramall.
Tottenham and Pochettino tend to do most of their work during summer transfer windows, where there is more time to get deals done, and clubs are more open to selling players than they are midway through the season.
Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha
Now, just days after the January transfer window closed, The Express report that Tottenham are preparing summer moves to sign Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Southampton attacker Jay Rodriguez.
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Ivorian international Zaha, 24, was a top summer target for Spurs and has since enjoyed his best Premier League season to date, notching four goals and six assists for a struggling Palace team.
Inter Milan’s Miranda tackles Southampton’s Jay Rodriguez
Meanwhile, 27-year-old attacker Rodriguez has four goals and one assist to his name this term, and is no stranger to Spurs boss Pochettino having worked together at Southampton.
Both players would offer Pochettino more options in attack, whilst their experience in the Premier League would make them smart targets for Spurs, and whilst fans may be aiming for bigger-name targets – such as Real Madrid’s Isco or Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez – both Rodriguez make sense for Spurs.
Spurs have often lacked pace and direct running in attack, and whilst Heung-min Son provided that against Middlesbrough on Saturday evening, Zaha – a long-term target for Pochettino – would add even more speed to the Spurs side, and with his end product rapidly improving this season, he can provide a goal threat as well as constant service to Harry Kane.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez understands how Pochettino likes to play, and whilst he can play out wide, he may actually be the backup striker Tottenham have been searching for behind Kane.
Vincent Janssen has yet to impress since arriving from AZ Alkmaar last summer, but Rodriguez – who hit 17 goals under Pochettino during the 2013-14 season – fits the bill as somebody who can step in and play if Kane suffers an injury, but isn’t so much of a big name that Tottenham would have trouble balancing his playing time with Kane’s.
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Landing both Zaha and Rodriguez could set Tottenham back around £40million, but they fit what Pochettino wants to do, and that has always been more important to the Spurs boss than landing the big names.
Would you like to see Spurs sign Rodriguez and Zaha this summer?
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