The always quick-witted Ange Postecoglou might have been keen to point out that there is no such thing as a £45 million ‘bargain’ – transfer fees reaching such an eye-watering level that we’ve become guilty of losing all context – but, in the grand scheme of things, the fee Tottenham Hotspur paid to sign former Leicester City star James Maddison over the summer represents supreme value for money in today’s cash-splashing age.
Maddison has been so impressive since joining Spurs that (whisper it) Harry Kane has not been missed anywhere near as much as some had feared.
In five games, the England international has two goals and two assists already. Though these eye-catching statistics still pale in comparison to the numbers being put up by another in-form playmaker who, according to BILD, held talks with Tottenham some two months before Maddison arrived instead.
James Maddison and Dani Olmo both in top form
Dani Olmo, in truth, no longer felt like a primary target once discussions with Julian Nagelsmann and Luis Enrique – who coached the ex-Barcelona youngster at RB Leipzig and Spain – collapsed. But, still, Olmo’s fierce work-rate, tactical flexibility and his dead-eyed end-product would have suited Postecoglou’s enticing brand of controlled yet frenzied attacking football down to the groud, the silky Spaniard thriving in a similar system under current Leipzig boss Marco Rose.
A hat-trick in the German Super Cup over Kane’s own Bayern Munich was, in hindsight, a sign of things to come.Olmo’s laser-guided finish in Spain’s 7-1 hammering over Georgia saw him take his tally to six goals and one assist from just five appearances for club and country at the start of 2023/24.
If Maddison has stepped into the talismanic shoes of Kane, then Olmo is ensuring that – even without Dominik Szoboszlai and Christopher Nkunku – Leipzig are perhaps the biggest obstacle standing in Kane’s way of a long-awaited maiden league title.
Six goals in five games already
“Dani Olmo is an outstanding footballer,” Rose told the Bundesliga website after that Bayern hammering. “It was a great performance by him and by the whole team too. The way he took the second goal was fantastic.
“The thing that impresses me even more though is how he drives the team on and helps the younger players.”
Maddison may be one of the ‘bargains’ of the summer. But retaining Dani Olmo – in the face of interest from Tottenham and a number of other clubs – stands out as some of the very best business anywhere on the continent.
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