Spurs might have one of the strongest squads in the league at the moment so imagine if they’d kept a few of these in-form stars.
Mixed. That would probably be the best way to describe Tottenham Hotspur’s transfer dealings in the last few seasons. Yet, for the most part, they’ve signed rather well under Mauricio Pochettino though the Argentine may be wishing he could turn back the clock and prevent these talented late-bloomers walking away from White Hart Lane.
Nabil Bentaleb
From the safest of sideways passers to an all-action all-rounder, slicing apart opposition defences with a razor sharp through ball one minute and thumping wonderdrives in off the crossbar the next; it’s fair to say Nabil Bentaleb has grown up fast since leaving Tottenham for Schalke in the summer.
Consistency remains elusive but, in just five months in Gelsenkirchen, the Algerian international looks to have upped his game in every possible aspect. A case in point; Bentaleb had only scored one career goal before this season. By the winter break in the Bundesliga, he’s added five more to his collection.
Etienne Capoue
Unfortunately tarred with The Beatles brush, French midfielder Capoue was just one of a vast array of underwhelming incomings bought following the sale of Elvis to Real Madrid for a then-world record fee. Yet, while Paulinho chased the Chinese cash and Roberto Soldado slumped back to Spain, Capoue has forged a very respectable Premier League reputation just 20 miles North West of White Hart Lane.
An effective distributor with a new-found goalscoring touch, the former Toulouse youngster has flourished at Watford, averaging a goal every three games from a nominally defensive midfield position.
Iago Falque
Honing his trade in the eminent academies of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus, it’s taken till the age of 26 for the diminutive Spaniard to show what all the fuss was about. After a Premier League ‘career’ that amounted to five minutes off the bench at Everton, Falque embarked on a nomadic trip around the mid-table clubs of Spain and Italy, eventually finding himself in Turin.
Sold for just 5 million euros by Spurs in 2014 per Football Italia, Falque is now a driving force behind arguably the greatest Torino XI in generations, though his eight goals from midfield have been rather overshadowed by the perpetually prolific Andrea Belotti.
Gylfi Sigurdsson
“I think after he moved to Swansea and we saw his development, [we realised] he was a perfect player for us.”
Pochettino was hardly subtle about his dismay surrounding Spurs’ decision to sell the Icelandic playmaker weeks before his appointment at White Hart Lane, per the BBC. After all, Sigurdsson is every bit the prototype Pochettino player; versatile, hard-working, creative.
If the Swans are to survive this season, then the former Reading youngsters’ reliable goal tally and deadly set-piece deliveries will be a major factor. In 17 Premier League starts this season, Sigurdsson has scored or assisted 10 times.
Charlie Daniels and Adam Smith
Spurs may possess the most lethal full-back partnerships in the Premier League but Bournemouth are not too far behind. For all the probing of Harry Arter and the intelligent movement of Callum Wilson, the raiding runs of Smith and Daniels remain a reliable source of goals for a side who continue to perform above expectations.
Both discarded by Tottenham after learning their trade at White Hart Lane, Spurs’ loss is Eddie Howe’s gain. The question is; would they have been an upgrade on Kieron Trippier and Ben Davies?
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