As far as short-term cover goes, Tottenham Hotspur could do a lot worse than Southampton’s Charlie Austin.
Tottenham Hotspur won their first game without Harry Kane on Sunday by beating Fulham 2-1 at Craven Cottage.
Harry Winks scored a last-second winner as Tottenham came from behind to record a victory that merely papered over the cracks.
Mauricio Pochettino still needs a top-drawer replacement for Kane – who’s out injured until March at the earliest – and Fernando Llorente, who opened the scoring for Fulham by scoring an own goal, clearly isn’t it.
Instead, Pochettino should take a serious look at Southampton’s Charlie Austin.
Last summer it was revealed that Austin actually had a better goals-to-minutes ratio than Kane during the 2017-18 campaign.
And let’s face it, had Pochettino signed Austin instead of Vincent Janssen or Fernando Llorente then Spurs probably would have been a lot better off.
This is a player who Pochettino has needed for years, but now could be the ideal time to get him.
The 29-year-old, who has 34 goals in 66 Premier League starts, hasn’t been heavily used by Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl since taking the reins on December 5.
But if the money is right then Tottenham could probably tempt him to North London.
Lilywhites fans will want a world-class name – a Timo Werner for instance – but it’s not realisic. Austin, on the other hand, is and Pochettino should make it happen.
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