3 minute read
12/1/2023 | 09:10pm
Tottenham Hotspur chief Fabio Paratici is said to be a huge admirer of Allan Saint-Maximin…
What’s the word?
That’s according to ever-reliable football.london journalist Alasdair Gold, who revealed the following information to supporters in a recent Q&A.
“Spurs have long been linked with Zaha and Paratici is a big fan of Saint-Maximin. Zaha as a cheap or free transfer in the summer would be a good attacking addition, but at 30-years-old and presumably on a big salary, he doesn’t really tick fit the Tottenham mould any more.
“He does fit the [Antonio] Conte mould in that respect but I’m not entirely sure he does as a player with the amount of defensive work the Italian demands of attackers. He can also talk to foreign clubs about a lucrative transfer this summer.
FootballFanCast.com: Most Read
“Saint-Maximin has a long contract until 2026 so I can’t imagine he will come at a good price for a January window unless Newcastle have a sudden desire to get him out of the club which there currently does not seem any reason for.”
Would you like Saint Maximin at Spurs?
YES!
Vote
NO!
Vote
He’d add new flair to Spurs’ attack
The Magpies dynamo would be an intriguing attacking reinforcement, should it turn out that the Italian supremo has a fleeting interest.
Saint-Maximin was once compared to a player that many Lilywhites fans will recognize, one with similar ties the northeast.
“Can he be a David Ginola? He can be anything he wants to be, let’s be brutally honest, he can be anything he wants to be,” his former manager Steve Bruce once claimed, adding: “I hope in time that little bit of maturity, which will surely come one day… and yet, you’ve got to still have that maverick in him which makes him the player that he is.”
Indeed, the 25-year-old Frenchman could hand Antonio Conte a different sort of forward as he can offer much more flair than the likes of Heung-min Son and Dejan Kulsevski; whilst dynamic players in their own right aren’t the kind to beat opponents with close ball control, skill and trickery.
It’s why Saint-Maximin has been lauded as “breathtaking” by Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville and “unplayable” by Newcastle legend Rob Lee.
Injuries have hampered his prospects in Eddie Howe’s top-four chasing side this campaign yet he still tops the Premier League dribbling charts, averaging two per game, just as he did last term with 4.3 each outing, via WhoScored.
These figures are well ahead of the Spurs duo. Kulusevski is the only one to surpass the 1.3 dribbles/game mark this season.
Also lauded as a “wing wizard” by journalist Graeme Bailey in the past, it’s evident that the Magpies winger has something that no other Spurs player has right now and that has to be an interesting prospect for Conte, who badly needs further depth in the final third.
In the summer, Newcastle valued the former Nice gem at around £40m, as per Football Insider, but given his lack of game time since, he would surely be valued at a little cheaper.
As such, Paratici could well secure a breathtaking and quite frankly, surprising first January signing if he were to launch a move for Saint-Maximin, who journalist Liam Kennedy believes may seek an exit if his circumstances don’t change soon at St James’ Park.
AND in other news, Paratici must now seal Spurs swoop for £40k-p/w “game-changer” who’s outperforming Son…