Tottenham Hotspur have one of the best managers in the world at the helm right now in Antonio Conte, but unfortunately, the north London club’s squad isn’t shaped in his vision.
Indeed, the Italian is yet to have a transfer window, and when you look at Spurs’ squad, you can tell.
Conte’s 3-4-3/3-5-2 relies on having players that fit the system perfectly, and unfortunately, at Spurs there are a few makeshift players filling in at the moment, notably in defence.
Now, we’re not saying that Ben Davies and Japhet Tanganga are poor players, but there is a reason why Antonio Conte is reportedly chasing two centre-backs in the January window, his current options simply aren’t the best fits.
Davies is more naturally a left-back, while Tanganga remains an inexperienced option who hasn’t quite found his feet at full-back or at centre-half.
Conte is on the hunt for two new defenders in January, but perhaps he wouldn’t have such a dilemma if Spurs hadn’t sold Juan Foyth in the summer.
The Argentine moved to Villarreal for just £13m after a successful loan spell, but after Conte’s arrival, that’s looking like a bit of a mistake.
Foyth has all of the attributes needed to be a success as the right-sided centre-half in a back three. He’s mobile, he’s good on the ball and he can also fill in as a full-back which can be beneficial when the wing-backs decide to bomb forward.
Conte even wanted him at Inter Milan at one point, while the fact that Mauricio Pochettino described him as ‘fantastic’ during his time at the club shows just how much talent he has.
We’re not going to pretend that Foyth was without his faults. He had the odd mistake in him and his injury record wasn’t the best, but Conte has proven he can transform players in the past, and if he was given the chance to work with Foyth, he could have been perfect for his system.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
