Liverpool or Tottenham – Who Should Douglas Costa Join In The Summer
Douglas Costa enjoyed a scintillating debut season for the Bundesliga heavyweights Bayern Munich following his £21million move from Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk. The Brazilian, however, slipped down the pecking order since Carlo Ancelotti’s arrival as Bayern boss and managed only 14 league starts for The Bavarians during this campaign. Costa has reportedly been seeking a move elsewhere in search of more regular first team football prior to 2018 FIFA World Cup as he is desperate to impress Tite, the Selecao boss, and make up the lost ground for Brazil national team.
A lot of Premier League clubs have inquired about his availability but as per German tabloid Bild, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are front runners at the moment to acquire the services of this £35million rated winger. Liverpool were pursuing AS Roma winger Mohamed Salah but the club is reluctant to be held for a ransom by Roma, despite agreeing on personal terms with the Egyptian international. The Reds are now planning to shift their focus elsewhere and Douglas Costa is now an option who suits Jurgen Klopp’s methodology of free-flowing football.
Tottenham, on the other hand, enjoyed a highly impressive campaign under Mauricio Pochettino as they finished second in Premier League below Chelsea. They are also keen to add to their firepower as Argentine winger Erik Lamela suffered an injury-plagued campaign and Christian Eriksen deputised in a make-shift right-wing role quite efficiently. Son Heung-min, the South Korean international, has been a shrewd buy for Spurs, who also enjoyed a scintillating campaign in Tottenham’s attacking third. However, they had a miserable journey in Europe and are now looking to strengthen their squad with some quality additions in order to improve their performance in Champions League football.
Costa, however, is predominantly a left-footed winger who usually operates from the left flank. He loves to dribble past the defence, hold on to the ball, cut inside and shoot from distance. He also owns great passing and crossing traits as he creates ample amount of chances during a game.
From Liverpool’s perspective, Sadio Mane has already been a massive influence from the right flank and Costa’s presence on the other will form a sublime attacking force as it will be so much easier for them to open the goalmouth against deep defending sides. However, the Brazilian international lacks defensive contribution and does not look like a work-horse who can satisfy Jurgen Klopp and his football philosophy.
However, a number of Liverpool players have transformed under the German gaffer as the likes of Adam Lallana, Philippe Coutinho and Georginio Wijnaldum have enhanced their work ethics and intensity. Costa needs rapid improvement in his work-rate so that he can suit in Klopp’s ‘gegenpressing’ if the deal finally takes place.
Both Liverpool and Tottenham are hailed for their attacking approach and Costa would fit in either of these two sides due to his fluidity, versatility and ability to play in multiple positions upfront.