- Aug 27, 2013
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In an effort to keep this discussion out of the ITK thread, use this thread to discuss the relative pro's and con's of Pochettino's transfers.
As near as I can tell, Spurs have signed 16 players since Poch became manager. To keep this simple, I'll assume that he gets credit when one works out, and gets blame when one does nto work out - setting aside the details of the inner-workings of the transfer committee, and whether these were Poch's first choice, or last choice.
Transfer Winners - 8
Dier
Dele
Alderweireld
Wanyama
Son
Trippier
Davies
Vorm
Each of these 8 players remain at the club and have contributed greatly to its recent success. Of these, only Son would be considered "expensive". I think we got lucky with Dele and Dier - but you can also say that we made our own luck by scouting, and convincing both to come to Spurs.
Mixed Bag - 2
Janssen
Wimmer
I would not call either a winner nor a loser at this point. Wimmer played well when called upon in 15/16, but struggled to get matches this season, particularly when we moved to 3 at the back. Seems like a bad fit for that role - but when we bought him it was to back up Vertonghen as the LB in a CB pairing - I think he still has a good future in that role. Janssen struggled, but he was also thrust into the spotlight earlier than expected with Kane's injury, and I think that contributed to his year-long struggles. He deserves a second year to see how he adapts.
Gambles that did not pay off - 2
N'Jie
N'Koudou
We were looking for a particular style of player here, but for whatever reason, neither player seems to have been able to acclimate to EPL. Not unusual for players to struggle, but these are close to misses for the scouting department. I don't rate these transfers as total losses though, as they were low priced gambles, and they were fringe needs - i.e. we were not trying to fill an important role with these signing.
Transfer Losers - 4
Yedlin
Stambouli
Fazio
Sissoko
These players never made an impact with Spurs, though Fazio had a few good moments. Nonetheless, Spurs made profits on the sale of Yedlin and Stambouli, and Yedlin, Stambouli and Fazio have enjoyed success at their new clubs. Fazio and Stambouli were poor fits with Poch's tactics, and Yedlin was not ready to contribute when we bought him (Yedlin maybe belongs in the gambles that did not pay off category instead of an outright loser). Sissoko seems like a panicked buy in retrospect.
If I am being honest - Sissoko is the only real bust in Poch's tenure. Expensive player, not suitable to Poch's tactics, and seems to be the result of not getting first choices in, rather than good scouting. 1 bad buy out of 16 is an acceptable ratio.
As near as I can tell, Spurs have signed 16 players since Poch became manager. To keep this simple, I'll assume that he gets credit when one works out, and gets blame when one does nto work out - setting aside the details of the inner-workings of the transfer committee, and whether these were Poch's first choice, or last choice.
Transfer Winners - 8
Dier
Dele
Alderweireld
Wanyama
Son
Trippier
Davies
Vorm
Each of these 8 players remain at the club and have contributed greatly to its recent success. Of these, only Son would be considered "expensive". I think we got lucky with Dele and Dier - but you can also say that we made our own luck by scouting, and convincing both to come to Spurs.
Mixed Bag - 2
Janssen
Wimmer
I would not call either a winner nor a loser at this point. Wimmer played well when called upon in 15/16, but struggled to get matches this season, particularly when we moved to 3 at the back. Seems like a bad fit for that role - but when we bought him it was to back up Vertonghen as the LB in a CB pairing - I think he still has a good future in that role. Janssen struggled, but he was also thrust into the spotlight earlier than expected with Kane's injury, and I think that contributed to his year-long struggles. He deserves a second year to see how he adapts.
Gambles that did not pay off - 2
N'Jie
N'Koudou
We were looking for a particular style of player here, but for whatever reason, neither player seems to have been able to acclimate to EPL. Not unusual for players to struggle, but these are close to misses for the scouting department. I don't rate these transfers as total losses though, as they were low priced gambles, and they were fringe needs - i.e. we were not trying to fill an important role with these signing.
Transfer Losers - 4
Yedlin
Stambouli
Fazio
Sissoko
These players never made an impact with Spurs, though Fazio had a few good moments. Nonetheless, Spurs made profits on the sale of Yedlin and Stambouli, and Yedlin, Stambouli and Fazio have enjoyed success at their new clubs. Fazio and Stambouli were poor fits with Poch's tactics, and Yedlin was not ready to contribute when we bought him (Yedlin maybe belongs in the gambles that did not pay off category instead of an outright loser). Sissoko seems like a panicked buy in retrospect.
If I am being honest - Sissoko is the only real bust in Poch's tenure. Expensive player, not suitable to Poch's tactics, and seems to be the result of not getting first choices in, rather than good scouting. 1 bad buy out of 16 is an acceptable ratio.