Six weeks ago, with only a few hours remaining in the January transfer window, the representative of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg insisted that his client would not be going anywhere.
Well, not on February 1st anyway. His more long-term future – tellingly – was not something Lars Halgreen felt like discussing.
“His only focus is Tottenham,” Halgreen told The Athletic. “To finish the season well and to help as much as possible.”
It it probably not coincidental that Halgreen opted not to look beyond the remainder of the current campaign. And with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg featuring just as sporadically since the close of the window as he did in the first half of the season – the £15 million signing from Southampton has averaged only six minutes on the pitch in his last four outings – you’d be brave to put any money on the Denmark international still being a Spurs player in 2024/25.
Particularly with his contract running down, and neither player nor club having been given much of a reason to hunt down an extension.
Tottenham could sell Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg
HITC Football, meanwhile, understands that Tottenham are one of a number of Premier League clubs – alongside Aston Villa, Wolves, Newcastle and Manchester United – keeping tabs on Fenerbahce’s Ismail Yuksek.
And when you consider Yuksek’s strengths, his stand-out attributes and the position in which he does much of his best work, you’ll forgive us for assuming that Tottenham’s post-Hojbjerg succession plan is very much underway.
A deep-lying defensively-minded central midfielder player, Yuksek – alongside ex-Man United ace Fred – has been one of the driving forces behind Fenerbahce’s Super Lig title charge. An average of 2.5 successful tackles per game places him amongst the best ball-winning midfielders in Turkey too (WhoScored).
Hojbjerg is more than a destroyer, however, even if he is not the most expansive. He scored five goals last season. And Yuksek has an attacking streak of his own. The late-blooming 25-year-old has five assists to his name in 2024/25.
Yuksek’s defensive stats, meanwhile, are broadly similar to those posted by Hojbjerg back in 2020/21, his first and best season in Tottenham colours, under Jose Mourinho.
Spurs eye Turkey international Ismail Yuksek
Having slipped down the pecking order under Ange Postecoglou, Hojbjerg played only a few brief moments during Sunday’s 4-0 thrashing of Aston Villa. Although, as Spurs legend Clive Allen told SPURSPLAY, he certainly played his part in a statement win over a direct top-four rival.
“Hojbjerg, I describe him as ‘the closer’ now,” Allen quipped. “He’s coming on in games and he’s been impeccable in the way that he’s kept possession of the ball at the right time. He’s drawn a free kick, he’s slowed the game down, he’s sped the game up.
“He has been absolutely superb.”
While Hojbjerg still has a part to play at Tottenham, the odd cameo appearance late on in proceedings is unlikely to be a role that keeps the midfielder happy for long.
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