Why Lorenzo Pellegrini would be a fantastic signing for Tottenham

According to the Calciomercato (h/t The Daily Mail), Tottenham have expressed an interest in signing AS Roma midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini.

The 23-year-old’s performances this season have seen him become one of the most exciting players at the club. He played Roma’s opening six matches of the Serie A season before being sidelined with a metatarsal fracture in early October.

Since returning from injury against Brescia, Lorenzo Pellegrini has helped the Rome-based outfit to back-to-back wins in the Serie A. Paulo Fonseca’s men have beaten Brescia and Hellas Verona 3-0 and 3-1 respectively, with the midfielder bagging two assists in the process.

With Pellegrini impressing in the Serie A, Tottenham should make a move for the midfielder in January.

As per Telegraph, Christian Eriksen has made it clear that he’ll not sign a new contract with Tottenham. The Denmark international is out of contract at the North London club in the summer of 2020 and is free to talk to other clubs from January. The report adds Juventus and Inter Milan are looking at Eriksen, and the playmaker could depart in January for the right offer.

Jose Mourinho, who has replaced Mauricio Pochettino as the Tottenham boss, has a readymade Eriksen replacement in Giovani Lo Celso, who arrived at the club in the summer on a season-long loan from Real Betis. But Lo Celso has struggled to make an impact at Tottenham, especially due to injury problems.

Nevertheless, if Eriksen isn’t ready to extend his stay at Tottenham, Mourinho should sell the Dane in January and replace him with Lorenzo Pellegrini.

A central midfielder by trade, Pellegrini is adept at playing anywhere across the midfield, although he has thrived in the number 10 role under Paulo Fonseca this season.

The Italian is excellent when it comes to taking set-pieces while he can also march forward and thread incisive passes in the final third. He boasts a very powerful shot from outside the box with his right foot as well. In the video below, one could get a glimpse of Pellegrini’s style of play and the qualities he could bring.

The 23-year-old midfielder has averaged an impressive 3.1 key passes per game for Roma this season. Pellegrini is no slouch defensively as he has averaged 1.1 tackles, 1.1 interceptions and 0.8 clearances. [Courtesy: WhoScored.com]

Verdict

Pellegrini’s potential addition would undoubtedly bolster Spurs. At the age of 23, the Italian has a whole lot career ahead of him and working under one of the best managers in world football would certainly help him elevate his game. All in all, the Roma ace would be the perfect long-term replacement for Eriksen at Spurs.