Playing for 90
Fansided

Tottenham waited until precise moment to swoop for Arsenal target

By Rucker Haringey

Saint-Etienne's French defender Mathieu Debuchy (L) vies with Saint-Etienne's French defender William Saliba (R) during the French L1 football match between Saint-Etienne (ASSE) and Bordeaux (FCB) on April 14, 2019, at the Geoffroy Guichard Stadium in Saint-Etienne, central-eastern France. (Photo by ROMAIN LAFABREGUE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ROMAIN LAFABREGUE/AFP/Getty Images)
Saint-Etienne's French defender Mathieu Debuchy (L) vies with Saint-Etienne's French defender William Saliba (R) during the French L1 football match between Saint-Etienne (ASSE) and Bordeaux (FCB) on April 14, 2019, at the Geoffroy Guichard Stadium in Saint-Etienne, central-eastern France. (Photo by ROMAIN LAFABREGUE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ROMAIN LAFABREGUE/AFP/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The timing of Tottenham’s swoop for William Saliba was no accident. They waited until the ideal time to take aim at the Arsenal target. 

Tottenham have been keeping tabs on William Saliba for weeks. They waited until Friday to make a firm move for the Saint-Etienne youngster though. Spurs waited until the perfect time to try to steal the young centre back away from their North London rivals.

Arsenal officials believed they had a deal for Saliba all but sewn up when they decided to fly to the United States this week. As soon as many of the Gunners’ executives boarded a plane, Tottenham officials launched their carefully planned raid.

According to Telegraph reporter Sam Dean, the timing of Tottenham’s move was “no coincidence.” Instead, it was a very intentional move by Daniel Levy and the rest of the higher-ups at Spurs. Not only did they rush forward with a bid that trumps Arsenal’s offer to Saint-Etienne, but they also made the move at a time where Gunners officials would struggle to counteract their efforts.

At the moment, Saliba’s future is still hanging in the balance. Saint-Etienne would prefer to accept Tottenham’s offer for financial reasons. The player himself still seems to be working to decide which club he’d rather join. There’s also a great deal of confusion about whether or not Spurs would allow him to return to Saint-Etienne on loan next year. That’s a concession Arsenal were reluctantly willing to allow.

Spurs certainly don’t have a pressing need to bring the 18-year-old to England. Even if Toby Alderweireld leaves in the next few weeks, Mauricio Pochettino’s side has a lot of promising talent at centre back. Jan Vertonghen, Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier and Juan Foyth can all comfortably slot in as starting central defenders when called upon. It would be difficult for Saliba to earn meaningful game time at Tottenham next season.

Next. Tottenham will not give in to Roma's request. dark

Both North London clubs should expect a decision from Saliba and his representatives soon. Neither he or his current club are interested in dragging this process out. The young centre back’s future should be sorted out quickly. It will be interesting to see if Tottenham’s transfer gambit turns out to be successful.

Home/Tottenham Hotspur