Tottenham Hotspur bolstered their defence during the final days of the transfer window, hijacking a move to sign defender Kevin Danso from French side Lens.
It looked as though he was set to join Wolverhampton Wanderers, but it is Spurs who have secured his signature on an initial loan deal, which includes an option to buy in the summer for a fee of around £21m.
Ange Postecoglou moved onto defensive targets due to his current injury crisis at the back coupled with a series of poor performances that only stopped with their win over Brentford on Sunday afternoon.
That said, Danso wasn't the only player to arrive in the last couple of days of the window...
Last week, Spurs were keen on signing the Bayern Munich forward in a bid to bolster their squad ahead of the final few weeks of the season.
According to Sky Germany – as per Sky Sports – the two clubs had agreed on a deal worth £50m for the transfer of the Frenchman, but he initially turned a move to the club down.
This was certainly a big blow for the club, especially as they aim to improve on their recent poor form and a big signing like Tel would have given Spurs a major boost.
Fortunately, in dramatic circumstances on transfer deadline day, the French teenager reversed his decision and decided to sign for the Lilywhites on loan after a personal phone call with Postecoglou.
Nevertheless, despite their poor form, the manager has plenty of players who can cause chaos in the final third alongside Tel. Indeed, one of them is worth even more than the Bayern centre-forward…
Brennan Johnson joined Spurs on deadline day in 2023, moving from Nottingham Forest in a deal worth £47.5m. He had scored eight times for the club the previous season as they remained in the top flight, and it looked like Johnson would be a good signing for Spurs.
Five goals and ten assists in the top flight for a more than promising return for the right-winger in his first season at his new club, even being hailed by pundits and media alike, including Palace podcast HLTCO, who said:
"Johnson is such an exciting player to watch. He’s got frightening pace and directness; constantly looking to make something happen, it must be an absolute nightmare to defend against him."
Johnson vs Tel this season (domestic league only) | ||
---|---|---|
Metric | ||
Goals | 0 | 7 |
Assists | 1 | 2 |
Big chances created | 1 | 3 |
Shots per game | 1.3 | 2.1 |
Successful dribbles per game | 0.8 | 0.7 |
Key passes per game | 0.1 | 0.7 |
He has certainly improved this season - notably scoring seven goals in seven consecutive games. Not only does the Welshman now already have 12 goals to his name across all competitions, but the 23-year-old has also recorded three assists for Spurs.
The winger has also created three big chances in the top flight while succeeding with 56% of his dribble attempts.
Such performances for Spurs have seen his market value rise since making the move to London. According to the CIES Football Observatory, Johnson is currently valued at €80m (£66.5m), which is proof of just how much the player has improved at Spurs.
Not only that, but they have also hit gold on the winger, who coincidentally is worth millions more than Tel.
Tottenham Hotspur claimed their first Premier League win since December against Brentford.