Their answer to Van Dijk: Spurs open talks to sign amazing Barcelona target

It’s not hard to identify Tottenham Hotspur’s biggest problems this season.

The most significant has undoubtedly been the absurd number of injuries they’ve had to deal with, but in a close second is their leaky defence.

For example, despite being 14th, Ange Postecoglou’s side have scored the second-most goals in the Premier League this season, but when it comes to goals against, they are the eighth worst.

Perhaps new defender should be at the top of their agenda when the summer window opens.

Tottenham Hotspur on the hunt for a new defender

So, it’s clear that even when they have everyone back from injury, the club need to add to their defensive options, which, based on recent reports, seems to be their goal, as a player likened to Virgil van Dijk has now been touted for a move to N17.

Indeed, according to a recent report from Spain, Tottenham are one of several teams incredibly keen on signing Bayer Leverkusen star Jonathan Tah.

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In fact, alongside the Lilywhites, the report has revealed that Liverpool have ‘already initiated contacts’ over a potential deal, as while it appeared as if the German was set to join Barcelona previously, the Catalan club’s precarious financial position has opened the door for other teams to try their luck.

While the level of competition remains far from ideal, the good news is that with the defender’s £46k-per-week contract expiring in the summer, the transfer would be entirely within the Lilywhites’ budget, even if the player demanded a sizable signing-on fee.

In all, it could be a complicated transfer to get done ahead of Liverpool and potentially Barca, but given Tah’s immense ability, it’s one well worth fighting for, especially as he could be Spurs’ own Van Dijk.

Tah’s comparison to Van Dijk

So, before we get into some of the other reasons why Spurs should sign Tah this summer, it’s worth examining this comparison to Van Dijk and where it comes from.

It primarily stems from FBref, which looks at players in similar positions across Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, then creates a list of the ten most comparable players for each one, and, in this instance, has concluded that the Dutchman is the number one most similar centre-back to the German.

The best way to see where this comparison has come from is to look at the underlying metrics in which the pair rank closely, including, but not limited to, progressive carries and passes, passing accuracy, blocks, interceptions, expected assists, aerial duel win percentage and more, all per 90.

However, while being statistically similar to arguably the best centre-back in the world is undoubtedly a massive reason to sign the Hamburg-born star, it’s not the only one.

For example, on top of his undeniable ability and decision-making, the 6 foot 5 “battleship,” as dubbed by former teammate Christoph Kramer, would bring some serious physical presence to the North Londoners’ backline, which is an increasingly important component of a winning Premier League team.

Finally, the sought-after defender has bags and bags of experience he could bring to Postecoglou’s young and promising team, as across his career, he’s made 20 appearances for Hamburg, 23 for Düsseldorf, 393 for Leverkusen, who he helped win a league and cup double last season.

On top of all of that, he’s also won 35 caps for the German national team.

Ultimately, while he might not be the biggest name in England, Tah has enjoyed a brilliant career in Germany and would undoubtedly improve Spurs’ defence, so Daniel Levy and Co should do all they can to bring him to N17 this summer, as he could just end up becoming their own Van Dijk.

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