Tottenham Hotspur snapped up Fernando Llorente from Swansea City on deadline day.
Ex-Tottenham Hotspur manager David Pleat has told BBC Radio Five Live that he thinks Fernando Llorente will be an interesting option in attack for Spurs after signing from Swansea City.
Tottenham went into deadline day last week with three summer signings already in the bag, having landed goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga as well as defender Juan Foyth and Davinson Sanchez.
Spurs then landed Serge Aurier early on deadline day, before tying up a late deal for striker Fernando Llorente, snapping him up from Premier League rivals Swansea City in a surprise move.
The Spaniard hit 15 goals for Swansea last season having signed from Sevilla last summer, and joined Spurs ahead of London rivals Chelsea, making him something of a coup for Mauricio Pochettino’s men.
In truth, Llorente doesn’t really fit what Tottenham have been doing in recent years. Pochettino’s transfer policy has been focused on signing younger players with potential, giving them a chance to develop in a young, vibrant Tottenham side.
At 32, Llorente bucks that trend, and instead brings a winning mentality having won the World Cup, European Championships, Europa League and three Serie A titles in recent years, as well as a proven track record for goals.
Additionally, Llorente is a classic target man, using height, strength and aerial ability to score goals, which largely goes against how Tottenham play under Pochettino, but he will give Spurs a different option off the bench.
Ex-Tottenham manager David Pleat has now had his say on the deal, telling BBC Radio Five Live that he thinks Llorente will be an interesting signing given his aerial ability, claiming that he will not only offer another option rather than Harry Kane in attack, but also bring power to the Spurs attack that may well have been needed under Pochettino.
“He’s good in the air, it will be an interesting one,” said Pleat. “Everyone thinks automatically that they might be able to give Harry a rest occasionally; the boy has had a hard time for a long time, and takes a lot of pressure. Someone made the comment earlier on about how well Son did when he had to play as the lead man when Kane was injured, and I just think this adds to the all-round depth of the squad.”
“I certainly saw him score some good goals for Swansea, and he’s a presence – a physical presence – and sometimes you need that, if you’re a good footballing side, and you need that power at the end of it,” he added.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
