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Tottenham star is making sure Malcolm goes to Arsenal

By Rucker Haringey

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 13: Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after scoring his sides first goal during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Everton at Wembley Stadium on January 13, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 13: Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after scoring his sides first goal during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Everton at Wembley Stadium on January 13, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images) /
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Heung-Min Son has secured his place at Tottenham

Any Tottenham fan who is upset at the club for dropping out of the race to sign Malcolm need only blame one man. Heung-Min Son has simply played too well for Spurs to spend big money on another wide, attacking player.

As it stands, the odds strongly favour the talented Brazilian moving to Arsenal instead. Some fans have pointed to this reality as a lack of ambition from Tottenham’s ownership group. In my estimation, it’s just proof that Daniel Levy and company are being smart stewards of the club’s limited resources.

The reality is that Bordeaux can comfortably ask for a transfer fee in excess of £40 million for their exciting attacker. English reports claim Arsenal may be willing to stump £44 million to acquire him in January. That fee isn’t outside of Tottenham’s price range, but it is more than Levy and company are willing to spend on a player who isn’t going to make an unquestionable entry into Pochettino’s starting XI.

Son’s emergence as a legitimate Premier League star simply doesn’t leave for Malcolm to force his way into Tottenham’s starting lineup. The South Korean’s recent tour de force against Everton was clear evidence that he’s too good to leave on the bench. He may not be the most complete player in England’s top flight, but the offensive firepower he provides Pochettino’s squad is impossible to ignore.

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If you accept the reality that Son is a nailed-on starter for big matches, it’s easy to see how Malcolm doesn’t fit. It’s not as if he is going to knock either Christian Eriksen or Dele Alli out of the starting XI either. It would take a protracted run of putrid form for either player to be removed from Pochettino’s good graces.

As such, Spurs supporters who are desperate to see Malcolm join Tottenham are asking the club to break their transfer fee record to purchase a player who would serve as a bench player the majority of the time. While he’d certainly be a massive improvement over Pochettino’s current options, he just doesn’t represent an efficient use of resources for Spurs at the moment.

Next: Tottenham deal transfer blow to Real Madrid and PSG

In the end, you have to give credit where it’s really due. Heung-Min Son has played so well for Spurs recently that he has changed the club’s likely January transfer policy. Some Tottenham fans will call that a lack of ambition, but more rational fans will see it as very valuable internal improvement.

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