Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor

Another transfer window draws near and the rumour mill has already started turning. Tottenham are once again at the heart of a large amount of these stories, but one proposed deal that seemingly won’t go away is Harry Redknapp’s supposed interest in Manchester City’s Emmanuel Adebayor.

The reports suggest that the Togolese striker, who has had a number of spats with manager Roberto Mancini, is confident that he can orchestrate a move away from City in January. It is believed that Tottenham is his destination of choice, but would Spurs fans ever accept Emmanuel Adebayor?

If there are a few of you who are wondering why such a fuss is being made about this particular rumour then I’ll give you a quick lowdown. Adebayor is an ex-Arsenal man but it’s not as simple as that, his goal-scoring record against Spurs was, for want of a better word, fantastic. His eight goals in nine North London derbies during his three year spell with the Gunners didn’t exactly enamour him with the White Hart Lane faithful. Adebayor is also known as being a rather disruptive presence amongst his team-mates which was great when he was at Arsenal, but would be a worry if he were to come to White Hart Lane.

After securing a surprise move to Manchester City in 2009, Adebayor got off to a blistering start by scoring in his first four league games. But after injuries he failed to rediscover his form and after a number of reported bust-ups with management and players he is once again looking for a move.

Obviously comparisons will be made with the recent transfer of William Gallas - both are ex-Arsenal and are just as famous for their attitude as their ability. But after Harry Redknapp felt like he needed to remind people that he hadn’t signed the “Yorkshire Ripper”, Gallas appears to have won over the Spurs fans relatively quickly. The reason being is that due to injuries Gallas’ services this season have been invaluable and after regaining full fitness he has put in some good performances. Tottenham could do with a new striker, so could Adebayor ‘do a Gallas’ if a loan move were to happen in January?

Tottenham’s striker problem isn’t looking as grim as it was only two weeks ago, Jermain Defoe’s return means that Redknapp’s pursuit of a striker is now a priority rather than a necessity. Many Spurs fans would also question whether or not Adebayor would actually improve the quality of the squad, could he keep Peter Crouch of Roman Pavlyuchenko out of the squad on merit?

If Adebayor came to White Hart Lane and made a start to his Tottenham career similar to the start he made at Manchester City then all could quickly be forgotten. At the age of 26, Adebayor should be at the peak of his career and could quite conceivably provide Tottenham with the added fire-power they need to go on a good post-Christmas run and if Gallas can calm down at Spurs, why can’t Ade?

Of course a deal is a long way from being signed and sealed. A deal would need to be thrashed out to fit Adebayor into Spurs’ wage structure and if Mancini was reluctant to let Craig Bellamy join Spurs then it is unlikely that he’d let Adebayor play for City’s nearest fourth place rivals.

If Harry Redknapp decides that Emmanuel Adebayor would be a good signing to help Spurs have a successful season then I’d back his judgement – he hasn’t done a lot wrong while at Spurs. That’s not to say I wouldn’t have a doubting voice in the back of my mind, but if he scores goals for Tottenham who cares who he used to play for?

[divider]

[divider]