Why Tottenham shouldn’t be interested in selling Toby Alderweireld
According to a report in the Telegraph, Tottenham Hotspur’s decision to extend Toby Alderweireld’s contract has sparked a renewed interest from French champions Paris Saint-Germain. The Belgian’s 12-month extension means that he can leave the club for £25m during the summer, two weeks before the window shuts.
Hence, the current situation is such that the centre-back will stay in north London till the end of this season, however, he could offered a move out in the next transfer window. As per the report, many other clubs were also interested in the player, including Manchester United, but PSG have good relationship with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy.
The report further states that the French side are willing to offload Thomas Meunier to get Alderweireld over the line in Paris. Here’s why Spurs should keep the player up until the end of his extended contract, and possibly try to further elongate his stay at the club:
Toby Alderweireld is a defensive glue Spurs could do with
Tottenham have made the best possible start to their league season, but still find themselves behind the two best teams in the division – Liverpool and Manchester City. However, the job Mauricio Pochettino and his impressive squad are doing at such a low budget is exceptional, to say the least.
Hence, from that perspective, Spurs are in a fantastic position and should be happy that they are close to the two teams who have spent more than them in the past two to three years (since the arrival of Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola).
But, the aim should be to keep their best players at the club for as long as possible. The extension of Toby Alderweireld’s contract signals their right intentions towards progressing further as a team. The Belgian is probably one of the best centre-backs in the league and also mirrors the way Pochettino likes to play football, building from the back.
In a sense, he is a defensive glue this team needs throughout the course of the season. Thus, Spurs should look to resist any offers coming in from clubs during the summer window, by offering a brand new contract to the player.
If they are not buying players to enhance the quality of the squad, the least they can do is to increase the wage bill and keep their best assets. And Alderweireld is one of them.