‘I want to use Son Heung-min on the left’…
Tottenham Hotspur are on the hunt for a new striker, and the price tag could be huge.
The Telegraph’s Matt Law reported on Friday (Nov. 5) that “Tottenham are pursuing a move for Dominic Solanke. The buyout for Solanke is 65 million pounds ($114 million). No club is willing to pay this buyout. Tottenham are willing to negotiate, but they have a lot of work to do. Manager Enze Postecoglou is very keen to add a new striker. He wants to bring in a striker to utilize Son Heung-min on the left side.”
“He has interest from Saudi Arabia. Solanke wants to play for a major Premier League club. Chelsea were also interested but were rebuffed by Bournemouth’s high asking price,” he added.
Tottenham, who finished fifth in the Premier League, will play in the UEFA Europa League (UEL) next season. He is still struggling with injuries, leaving only Son Heung-min in the squad. On the tour to South Korea, the team looked to use Dejan Kulusebski up front to create space through interplay and attack the center of the field, but even that seems like a stopgap measure.
When I asked Postecoglou why he was using Kulusebski up front, he said, “We don’t have anybody else to use.” Up front, more than any other position, is urgent. Tottenham have targeted Solanke alongside Ivan Toney and Jonathan David, but Solanke seems to be the player they are most interested in at the moment.
Growing up in the Chelsea youth ranks, Solanke was a regular for England’s age-group national teams. Dubbed the future of England, Solanke won the 파워볼실시간 Golden Ball in 2017 when he led England to the FIFA U-20 World Cup. He wanted to establish himself at Chelsea, but after failing to make an impact, he moved to Liverpool. He didn’t do anything at Liverpool either, so he moved to Bournemouth.
After back-to-back failures at Chelsea and Liverpool, he didn’t have high expectations at Bournemouth. He didn’t have much of a presence in his first season, and in his second season, he only scored three goals in 32 league games. After staying on as the team was relegated, Solanke scored 15 goals and provided eight assists in 42 games in the English Championship (second division) in 2020-21. The following season, he scored a career-high 29 goals in 46 games. Solanke’s performance led Bournemouth to promotion to the Premier League.
He showed that goals can work in the Premier League. In 2022-23, he scored six goals and provided seven assists in 33 league appearances. Last season, he had his best Premier League campaign of his career, scoring 19 goals and providing three assists in 38 appearances. With his eye for goal and the way he uses his teammates to beat defenses, he was naturally a target for several teams, including Tottenham.
The problem is the transfer fee. Solanke has just over three years left on his Bournemouth contract and a £65 million buyout clause. While Tottenham are in desperate need of a striker, it’s certainly not the kind of money they can afford. It would be a Tottenham club record, surpassing Tanguy Ndombele. At the moment, negotiations don’t seem to be progressing. It’s still rated as an interest.