Reported Spurs target Ramiz Zerrouki could be available on the cheap, the FC Twente star’s agent has told Voetbal Tijd.
If you asked Tottenham Hotspur supporters to name their dream signing, you’d imagine a 23-year-old Algeria international would be some way down the list.
But if yesterday’s stirring 1-0 triumph over Premier League champions Manchester City was a sign of things to come under Nuno Espirito Santo, a player of Zerrouki’s ilk could come in very handy for a side that looks set to retain some ‘Mourinhoistic’ elements as it adapts to life under a new head coach.
Tottenham were disciplined, hard-working and very aggressive as they kept Pep Guardiola’s star-studded side at arms’ length.
And it’s easy to imagine Zerrouki, a deep-lying enforcer in the Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg mould who averaged two tackles and 1.7 interceptions per game last season, slotting into one of those dual number six roles without too much fuss, shielding a vulnerable back line while giving Lucas Moura, Son Heung-min and Steven Bergwijn freedom to wreak havoc on the counter (WhoScored).
Could Ramiz Zerrouki be another Hojbjerg at Spurs?
Zerrouki was linked with a surprise move to north London by Algerian publication Fennec Football last month.
And, according to the midfielder’s agent, a man with just two years left on his contract wouldn’t break the bank.
“I don’t think (Zerrouki) is such a top talent who brings in ten million,” Rene Wagelaar says.
“Although the prices are indeed crazy, so you sometimes don’t know. But there is plenty of talent (in him).”
Zerrouki recently suggested he plans to spend one more season in the Eredivisie finishing school and, in truth, that could suit him down to the ground. The Algerian is far from the finished article.
And with Oliver Skipp making a fine impression alongside Hojbjerg against City on Sunday, Tottenham’s midfield already looks solid and settled only weeks into the Nuno era.
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