Tottenham have stepped up their pursuit of a number 10 after James Maddison’s serious knee injury, with the club confirming some very bad news on Thursday.
The England international is now set to undergo surgery on a ruptured ACL, which is expected to keep him out for the majority of 2025/2026 – dealing a major blow to Thomas Frank ahead of his first full season in charge.
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Tottenham’s best-performing regulars in the Premier League – 2024/2025 |
Average match rating |
|---|---|
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Son Heung-min |
7.00 |
|
James Maddison |
6.98 |
|
Pedro Porro |
6.95 |
|
Dominic Solanke |
6.84 |
|
Dejan Kulusevski |
6.83 |
|
via WhoScored |
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Frank watched on from the sidelines as his Spurs side were thrashed 4-0 by Bayern Munich on Thursday, and while it’s important not to read too much into pre-season, the Lilywhites looked bereft of ideas in Bavaria.
The trouncing occurred almost immediately after Tottenham confirmed the dreadful news about Maddison, and supporters are very keen to see chairman Daniel Levy swiftly enter the market for a new playmaker.
The 28-year-old joins Dejan Kulusevski, who was also sidelined with a serious knee injury earlier this year, on the sidelines – with Tottenham now minus two key creators.
Club legend Son Heung-min drew the curtain on his 10-year stay in north London with an MLS record-breaking £20 million move to Los Angeles FC earlier this week too, following an emotional goodbye in Seoul – further emphasising the need for Levy to bring in another attacker.
According to recent reports, Spurs are wasting no time in trying to find a man who can help to fill the voids left by Maddison, Kulusevski and Son.
Sky Italia reporter, Gianluca Di Marzio, claims that Tottenham have already had a £35 million bid rejected for Como starlet Nico Paz, while it is also believed that Spurs made contact over signing top Everton target Jack Grealish in the last few days (Fabrizio Romano).
Liverpool attacker Harvey Elliott, who’s attracting serious interest from the Bundesliga after his stellar Euro Under-21 campaign with England, has been mooted as a potential target as well.
Harvey Elliott keen to join Tottenham after direct talks with Thomas Frank
Despite RB Leipzig’s advancing pursuit of the 22-year-old (Florian Plettenberg), Football Transfers have shared that Spurs are not completely out of the race just yet.
According to their information, Elliott has held direct talks with Frank about joining Tottenham, and he’s keen – seeing a move to London as the ‘ideal opportunity’ to compete for a place in Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions squad ahead of the World Cup next year.
Frank apparently views the Anfield sensation as “central” to his attacking plans, and the Dane has already informed Elliott of his ideas to use the attacker as Tottenham’s new number 10 in Maddison’s absence.
The former Fulham starlet could leave Merseyside for around £40 million, but Liverpool are insistent that a buy-back clause must be included in any proposed deal.
It is claimed that Levy is “willing to meet all of Liverpool’s demands” when it comes to terms, meaning negotiations are poised to take a positive turn.
Elliott’s sky-high potential, and the fact he can help to fill Tottenham’s ‘locally trained’ Champions League quota, make him a standout attacking candidate at pretty good value.
The player stands to earn far more minutes down south than he does under Arne Slot next season, so this deal could be a serious win-win for everyone involved, as Liverpool also need to balance the books after a serious summer of spending.
