Ryan Mason

[Gutter Boy]

To get Spurs to the next level Mason will have to be compared to the best we have and also the best money can buy to improve the squad. Thats the harsh reality with Spurs now.

We would traditionally spend 40-50m a summer give or take, add Champions League and TV money and that could be upwards of 100m without it even making a dent this summer. With no real glaring need for first X1 changes the new signings made can afford to be Marque and that includes Def Midfield.

For that reason I think Mason will need to either improve 10 fold this summer or make way.

We've had zero net spend for 16 consecutive windows since the stadium was first announced.

And we'll be lucky to raise £8m combined from our unwanted players (Yedlin and Fazio).

Personally I think we're in for a very quiet, and thankfully settled, summer.

 

[Grays_1890]

I am not saying it should be unsettling but if we are to add anything it should be of genuine quality.

And you can't tell me that to stay at this and reach next level we don't need it..

 

[Gutter Boy]

I am not saying it should be unsettling but if we are to add anything it should be of genuine quality.

And you can't tell me that to stay at this and reach next level we don't need it..

We'll grow through our very young squad maturing, Poch's coaching, young players pushing through from the academy, and the amazing bond and team spirit this group has.

While United, Chelsea and City will continue in their spirals of decline by churning over countless ill-suited mercenaries.

 

[Grays_1890]

Yeh but I liked the old United model

Nurture what you have and add one/two players of finished quality per summer to push you on.

Thats in my opinion where we are/should be

 

[Rorschach]

Yes, like missing glorious chances. He used to score before, but now he seems unable to convert, no matter how good a chance he's presented too. Must have lost his shooting boots or something.

Yeah the recent misses hurt (a lot) but I think a some of that is down to match sharpness or lack thereof.

 

[Vega]

We'll grow through our very young squad maturing, Poch's coaching, young players pushing through from the academy, and the amazing bond and team spirit this group has.

While United, Chelsea and City will continue in their spirals of decline by churning over countless ill-suited mercenaries.

To a large degree i find myself agreeing with GB - (again)

I am now going for a shower in bleach.

 

[billyiddo]

Yeh but I liked the old United model

Nurture what you have and add one/two players of finished quality per summer to push you on.

Thats in my opinion where we are/should be

i think that is where we are/what we are moving towards - but i think our targets will more likely be keeping in line with our strategy of up and coming players with potential to improve or established players available at a bargain price. i think, for example, Wanyama and Batshuayi would fit in with that.

 

[Rorschach]

Agreed. Only problem for Mason is that we have plenty of players ahead of him for those attacking positions.

Mason strikes me as a good old fashion attacking central midfielder, but in a game where at the very top players increasingly need additional aspects to their game both physical and technical, he just doesn't have that in his locker.

That's true but if he's willing to be a squaddie then I think that would be fine (for Spurs). He may not settle for that though.

 

[Grays_1890]

i think that is where we are/what we are moving towards - but i think our targets will more likely be keeping in line with our strategy of up and coming players with potential to improve or established players available at a bargain price. i think, for example, Wanyama and Batshuayi would fit in with that.

I think to an extent they would fit in with what I am saying too, ok cheaper than my pie in the sky figure but proven quality to add.

Rather that than signing 8 cheap players and hoping one works

 

[Finney Is Back]

Yet Bentaleb's best ever performance for us was in defence. I think the positional side can quite easily and quickly be coached into him, because he's an intelligent player. It's just a shame he lost this season to make those developmental steps.

Playing Bentaleb in Dier's position is something of a waste. He is potentially a far more dynamic player than Dier is. The player himself also wants to get involved further forward. Occasionally with a player like Bentaleb you can convert them to a deep midfielder later on in their career when their legs have started to go (as Liverpool did with Gerrard) but to ask them to play there early in their career isn't likely to produce the best result, as the player knows that they are better than that.

Personally I would rather have a player who wants to play as a holding player. The position that the player occupies when playing this role is key. I watched Bentaleb play for us last year and too often he was getting beyond Mason and joining attacks. That is suicide for a team that plays the way that we do with our fullbacks so high. If the opposition turn the ball over when we are attacking then our two central defenders fan out to cover the wide areas and Dier drops in to cover the space centrally. Wanyama took up those exact positions for Southampton yesterday when they attacked (and a few times he was then in the perfect position to mop up when their attacks broke down). Unfortunately in similar scenarios for us last year Bentaleb was sometimes be up joining in with our attack.

 

[Jurgen the German]

Yet Bentaleb's best ever performance for us was in defence. I think the positional side can quite easily and quickly be coached into him, because he's an intelligent player. It's just a shame he lost this season to make those developmental steps.

Which game are you referring to? You can cherry pick any games you want in isolation, but would honestly be confident in Bentaleb playing Dier's role? A big reason why we conceded so many goals last season was the two in front of the centre halves did not protect them enough. Didn't we concede 55 goals last season?

 

[Finney Is Back]

We've had zero net spend for 16 consecutive windows since the stadium was first announced.

And we'll be lucky to raise £8m combined from our unwanted players (Yedlin and Fazio).

Personally I think we're in for a very quiet, and thankfully settled, summer.

I think that sort of money for those two players is probably about right. Remember that we also have the £12 million Townsend money from the January window. So that's £20 million to spend.

I doubt there will be too many outgoings this summer. Perhaps Chadli will be sold for the right sort of fee? (£15 million+) and I wouldn't be hugely surprised to see Bentaleb go either (I would rather we kept him but I wonder whether Poch doesn't think he has the right mentality).

As I said in another thread, it wouldn't surprise me to see us have a net budget of about £30 million this season. The new TV deal is massive and we'll also have the extra revenues that come from qualifying for the Champions league group stages.

 

[billyiddo]

I think that sort of money for those two players is probably about right. Remember that we also have the £12 million Townsend money from the January window. So that's £20 million to spend.

I doubt there will be too many outgoings this summer. Perhaps Chadli will be sold for the right sort of fee? (£15 million+) and I wouldn't be hugely surprised to see Bentaleb go either (I would rather we kept him but I wonder whether Poch doesn't think he has the right mentality).

As I said in another thread, it wouldn't surprise me to see us have a net budget of about £30 million this season. The new TV deal is massive and we'll also have the extra revenues that come from qualifying for the Champions league group stages.

i agree that Chadli and Bentaleb could quite realistically join Townsend as departures this summer - that could take us to around the 40m mark before we consider other low level departures (Yedlin, Fazio) imv

 

[the dza]

Re. Wanyama, there would also be occasions where we could play both him and Dier, with Dembele at 10 or in a wide position. Imagine the 2nd half at Chelsea...2-0 up, bring on Wanyama for Son, move Dembele further forward and shut up shop with 3 monsters in the middle of the pitch. We don't have that option currently.

In any case, I'd still like us to keep Mason.

 

[Gutter Boy]

Which game are you referring to? You can cherry pick any games you want in isolation, but would honestly be confident in Bentaleb playing Dier's role? A big reason why we conceded so many goals last season was the two in front of the centre halves did not protect them enough. Didn't we concede 55 goals last season?

Everton - the W3-1

Last season we had Fazio CB, Chiriches RB and our AMs weren't pressing well.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I think to an extent they would fit in with what I am saying too, ok cheaper than my pie in the sky figure but proven quality to add.

Rather that than signing 8 cheap players and hoping one works

Isn't Wanyama exactly one of those 'Stambouli' players? £8-10m, easy deal because he's only got a year left on his contract. Because we can't afford/attract the real deals like Ruben Neves or Johannes Geis

 

[Vega]

Isn't Wanyama exactly one of those 'Stambouli' players? £8-10m, easy deal because he's only got a year left on his contract. Because we can't afford/attract the real deals like Ruben Neves or Johannes Geis

No that would be Lee Cattermole.

 

[Finney Is Back]

Isn't Wanyama exactly one of those 'Stambouli' players? £8-10m, easy deal because he's only got a year left on his contract. Because we can't afford/attract the real deals like Ruben Neves or Johannes Geis

I thought you rated Stambouli as a player?.... Or have I got that wrong and it was instead Capoue that you used to big up?

 

[Finney Is Back]

Everton - the W3-1

Last season we had Fazio CB, Chiriches RB and our AMs weren't pressing well.

Maybe I have this wrong but I'm sure you were a fan of both Fazio and Chiriches at Spurs?

 

[Gutter Boy]

I thought you rated Stambouli as a player?.... Or have I got that wrong and it was instead Capoue that you used to big up?

I thought he was useful backup that season. But we already have better back-up players than Wanyama now - i.e. Bentaleb