A big Tottenham Hotspur claim has emerged on their plans to add to their defence in the summer transfer window...
What's the talk?
Transfer insider Dean Jones has claimed that Fabio Paratici may wait until January to bolster that area of the pitch as he weighs up what to do between now and the end of August.
When asked about the club's pursuit of a centre-back, he told GIVEMESPORT: “I think that situation is on pause right now unless a great situation lands on their doorstep.
“I think it’s one they might look at in January after the World Cup. If they feel the first half of the season hasn’t gone their way or it’s left them short, that’s when I think they might look to get another one.”
Antonio Conte will be worried
This claim from Jones will surely leave the Italian head coach worried as the centre-back position is in need of strengthening ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.
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In the Premier League last season, Japhet Tanganga and Joe Rodon ranked 21st and 23rd in the Spurs squad for average SofaScore ratings. They both averaged scores of 6.65 or lower and Conte rarely looked to them as they made 14 appearances between them in the top flight.
This suggests that the manager does not trust them with regular minutes on the pitch and their dismal ratings indicate that he is well within his right to make that decision.
Ben Davies, who is a left-back by trade, was the main option on the left side of the back three in the Premier League for Conte. He averaged a solid SofaScore rating of 6.88 and won 54% of his duels in the division as he made himself a reliable option.
Whilst he was not a major liability to the team, there is plenty of room for improvement in the left centre-back position. You only have to look at Christian Romero and the impact he made to see how much Spurs could benefit from signing another central defender.
The Argentine international averaged a sublime rating of 7.15 in the top-flight and won 62% of his individual duels as he delivered quality displays on a regular basis for the club.
This is why Conte will be worried by the lack of urgency in the pursuit of a new centre-back as it is a position that is in need of reinforcement ahead of a gruelling Premier League and Champions League campaign.
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