Why Tottenham Should Replace Llorente With Arnautovic This Summer
Whether it’s to do with the owners, the stadium or simply that the club never seem to have a sustained period in the top half of the Premier League West Ham United does not seem to sit well with talented players as a long-term destination.
Former Stoke man Marko Arnautovic is now the latest to be linked with a big summer move, Tottenham Hotspur being a possible destination as the North London side themselves move into a plush new stadium.
With 7 goals from 24 appearances for Spain, there is little down that Llorente has plenty of talent, however sin, e his move from Swansea City last summer he hasn’t really hit the sort of heights Spurs fans may have expected and at 32 years of age he’s not likely to suddenly improve.
Strictly speaking, of course, Arnautovic for Llorente is not a straight swap given that the Austrian has tended to start out wide for most of his career. That said, Arnautovic has started six games up front for West Ham in the league this season and delivered 5 goals in that time, marking him out as an ideal striker.
In any case, replacing Llorente with Arnautovic in Tottenham’s 25-man Premier League squad is a wise move purely based on the number of goals which can be expected from each of them.
Arnautovic is hitting his peak now and wouldn’t mind playing wider or deeper than a centre-forward, an ideal situation when you know your competition is Harry Kane, hence the move would be an obvious improvement for Spurs.
I’ve nothing against West Ham United and it would be a shame to see yet another player up sticks and leave their club after only a year, but at the level, Arnautovic is reaching and being 28 years of age he perhaps deserves a crack at the very top level. Should Tottenham make the Champions League next term he would find the move very much to his liking.
In an attack-minded team, Llorente is averaging a goal every 219 minutes this season across all competitions while Arnautovic is banging one in every 194 minutes and that in a struggling set-up having done so from no less than 8 different starting positions.
A more settled role in a top six squad would be much more appropriate for the 67-times capped Austrian international right now and I’m sure Spurs could afford to throw £25million-plus at West Ham for his services.
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