Will Spurs Look to Offload Fernando Llorente This Summer?
Source: Fernando Llorente via Twitter
Much was expected of Fernando Llorente when he arrived at Tottenham from Swansea City in the summer of 2017. The striker has a huge pedigree, having won Serie A thrice with Juventus, the Europa League once with Sevilla, as well as the World Cup in 2010 and the European Championship in 2012 in Spain. During the 2016-17 campaign, despite playing for a Swansea side struggling to avoid the dreaded drop to the Championship, Llorente scored 15 goals and provided one assist in 28 Premier League starts.
Llorente was bought as a back-up to Harry Kane, who is the undoubted first-choice striker at Tottenham. The Spain international striker, who cost Tottenham £12 million in transfer fees when they signed him from Premier League rivals Swansea in the summer of 2017, has struggled to even make the substitutes’ bench on a few occasions despite being fully fit. Just one start in the Premier League and only 226 minutes in the Champions League so far this season pretty much tell their own story.
It is clear that Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has not rated Llorente highly enough to make him a key player in his team. Tottenham, who are 1/33 to finish in the top four this season according to the latest Premier League betting odds, would arguably have done as well as they have done this campaign even if Llorente had not played a single minute. A peripheral figure at Spurs, it is hard to see the former Athletic Bilbao star being in the North London club's first team when they move into the new stadium next season.
Source: Fernando Llorente via Twitter
With Llorente now 33 years of age and having a bad season on a personal level, Tottenham will struggle to recoup the £12m they paid for him last summer, but the North London outfit will have to bite the bullet and sell him in the summer transfer window. The departure of the Spaniard will free up a space in the squad, and Spurs could sign a younger and better striker in his place who can progress and develop under manager Pochettino in the coming years.
While some would consider it a bit harsh to offload Llorente after one season, given what he has achieved and accomplished in his career, Tottenham need to be ruthless if they are to compete with the likes of Manchester United and Manchester City for the Premier League and progress to the knockout rounds of the Champions League.
Selling Llorente even for £5m would not be a bad idea, if they invest the money in a player who will actually help the squad and add to the quality of the team. Llorente is on £75,000 per week as salary, which means that selling him will also save Tottenham on wages, which they can then use to increase the wages of some of their top players, such as South Korea international attacking star Son Heung-min, who are contributing more often to the success of the team on the pitch.
