Tottenham were heavily linked to Sofiane Boufal before he moved to Southampton.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino
Tottenham Hotspur head coach Mauricio Pochettino has helped the club become Premier League title contenders – but the one area he has struggled in of late is the transfer market.
Victor Wanyama has been a success, but Vincent Janssen, Moussa Sissoko and Kevin-Georges N’Koudou have all flopped.
Tottenham’s Georges-Kevin Nkoudou in action with Liverpool’s Trent Arnold
N’Koudou was a winger signed from Marseille after a lengthy transfer battle, and Spurs were at one point ready to consider alternatives.
France Football reported that Tottenham renewed contact with long term target Sofiane Boufal last summer, after an impressive Ligue 1 season which saw him net 11 goals.
Yet they did not pursue him, concluding a deal for N’Koudou, leaving Southampton to sign Boufal instead.
N’Koudou has been a big disappointment at Spurs, failing to earn a Premier League start and being unable to make an impact from the substitute’s bench.
But if Pochettino is ruing not moving for Boufal instead he would be mistaken.
Tottenham’s Dele Alli in action with Southampton’s Sofiane Boufal
Boufal has had more chances than N’Koudou – making six Premier League starts, but has been unable to make a consistent impression.
The Moroccan netted a winner against Middlesbrough back in December, a moment he hoped would kickstart his season.
That is the only goal he has scored in 14 total appearances, with no assists.
He has started only one game in 2017 and played just 13 minutes of the EFL Cup final against Manchester United.
Boufal and N’Koudou are both struggling, and it seems whichever Pochettino would have moved for, the results would have been the same.
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