Tottenham are playing trio of Brazilians against one another
Tottenham are courting three Brazilian attackers
In previous transfer windows, Tottenham have demonstrated a propensity to bring in French wingers. Now, it seems that Spurs have shifted their attention to Brazilian targets. The North London club are playing three talented Brazilian attackers against one another this January.
The club’s interest in PSG winger Lucas Moura and Bordeaux star Malcom has been well documented. The new name on the club’s radar is Ajax attacker David Neres. Recent English reports claim that Tottenham are willing to pay as much as £44 million to bring Neres to England this January.
On the surface, the trio of wingers don’t necessarily have a ton in common. Lucas has proven he can play at a high level for PSG, but recent acquisitions have him on the fringes of Unai Emery’s squad. He’s almost a lock to leave France this month.
Malcom has been a relatively unknown player before this season. He played well for Bordeaux last season, but he has been a complete star this year for the Ligue One club. His club are desperate to hold on to him, but he’ll leave in one of the next two transfer windows. Bordeaux’s current posturing is a thinly veiled effort to drive the starlet’s price through the roof.
Neres is another young starlet who is a key part of his squad. Ajax allowed Davinson Sanchez to move to Tottenham last summer, but aren’t in a hurry to ship more talent to Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. It’s difficult to guess how an Eredivisie star will adjust to Premier League competition, but Neres seems like the sort of player who can handle the serious jump in competition.
What all these players do have in common is a home country. Each calls Brazil home. That might be a happy coincidence, but these three are currently being tied together by more than their nationality. They are all being used by Tottenham against one another.
It might not be completely above-board, but it’s a smart move by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy. PSG, Bordeaux and Ajax are all doing their level-headed best to make Tottenham pay through the nose. What choice does Levy really have but to apply a little pressure of his own?
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His logic is very simple. He’s already using the literal spectre of rising stadium costs to convince the clubs he doesn’t have a ton of transfer cash to spend. That can only go so far. Now, Levy is being forced to create other negotiating pressure points. There’s nothing that can make a potential selling club more anxious than the possibility that funds might dry up before they’re able to cash in on their talented player.
This tactic is likely going to hit PSG most severely. The Parisian powers have already determined they’re going to part with Lucas this month. Napoli are a serious contender for his services, but they won’t spend as much as Tottenham. The introduction on Malcom and Neres into the picture has to make officials in the French capital nervous.
Bordeaux and Ajax will both try to hold their negotiating lines. They aren’t going to capitulate to Levy’s tactics, but it will lessen their ability to drive their asking prices even higher. At worst, Levy has frozen the price increases by introducing multiple other targets to the equation.
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In the end, Tottenham will need to spend significant money to bring any of these three Brazilians into the fold. There’s almost no chance Spurs will splash the cash required to bring in more than one of the trio. It could turn into a first come, first serve situation for Pochettino’s squad.