Tottenham Hotspur fell by the wayside in the Premier League last season, but they picked themselves back up and won the Europa League as part of Ange Postecoglou’s last hurrah.
The Australian coach’s will to win and promise kept have immortalised his name and legacy down N17, but chairman Daniel Levy made the tough call to axe his hero after abject league form and consistent inconsistency.
The decision polarised the fanbase and the wider football community, no doubt, but Levy will feel somewhat vindicated after some impressive early-season form from Spurs, now led by new manager Thomas Frank, winning 3-0 at home to Burnley before confidently dispatching Manchester City at the Etihad.
Mohammed Kudus is off to a flyer after his summer switch from West Ham United, while Joao Palhinha got on the scoresheet against Pep Guardiola’s side. It’s coming together.
However, Tottenham need more before the window slams shut, with sights set on bringing in a new attacking midfielder.
Spurs' search for an attacking midfielder
During a pre-season match against Newcastle United, James Maddison pulled up after going in for a challenge. It was innocuous, but it was clear from the outset that something wasn’t right.
The England international will miss much of the campaign with an ACL injury, and with Dejan Kulusevski currently out of action too, the need for a number ten is clear.
Many efforts have been exhausted this summer, missing out on both Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White and Crystal Palace superstar Eberechi Eze, who has joined Arsenal after a late hijack.
Attention has since been turned to Como’s Nico Paz, but the former Real Madrid prospect, 20, wishes to remain in Italy in hope of a future return to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Paz would be a fantastic addition, but he is young and raw and would likely need a bedding-in period on English shores, and Frank’s side need to make real, instant headway in the Premier League this season.
Spurs showing late interest in Premier League star
According to Caught Offside, Tottenham are gearing up for a late-window move for Aston Villa star Morgan Rogers, who has been priced at £80m as Unai Emery’s side look to ward off suitors.
Chelsea are ready to tussle with their London neighbours, with both sides showing ‘strong interest’, though it’s worth stressing that the Blues remain focused on signing RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons, their top target.
And Tottenham? Well, having struggled to land a new midfield playmaker after Maddison’s injury, it’s been suggested by sources that he is viewed as the perfect profile to complete Frank’s squad.
What Morgan Rogers would bring to Spurs
Once a speck in Manchester City’s youth academy, Rogers bit the bullet and joined Middlesbrough in the Championship as he sought to make a name for himself.
And a name the Three Lions sensation has made. Hailed as “a machine” of a player by The Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell, Rogers fostered his potential with Boro and earned a move to the Midlands, getting stronger and stronger and notching 30 goal contributions across the 2024/25 campaign.
The 23-year-old’s exploits saw him crowned the PFA Young Player of the Year earlier in August, thus underscoring his potential and the reasoning behind Tottenham’s bid.
His athleticism, dribbling and ever-growing potency make a telling comment on his capacity, and perhaps suggest that he could even prove to be an upgrade on Maddison and Como’s Paz.
Paz, who joined Como in Italy one year ago, is a silky and creative player with a combative approach to his defensive work. Through statistical analysis, data-led platform FBref have revealed he is comparable to Eze, so it’s clear to see why the Lilywhites have registered their interest.
25/26 (Villa)
2
–
–
24/25 (Villa)
54
14
16
23/24 (Villa)
16
3
1
23/24 (Boro)
33
7
9
But such data cannot stretch much further back than the 2024/25 campaign, for the Spaniard previously played in Real Madrid Castilla (Los Blancos’ second team), and was afforded four first-team appearances across the 2023/24 season.
Given that the outlay mooted would fall into the same £60m ballpark that Eze and Gibbs-White’s signatures were priced at, it would perhaps be worth forking out an extra £20m or so for a Prem-proven player like Rogers, who would add something to the berth while bringing his own tactical flavour.
The 28-year-old Maddison, after all, hasn’t been sold, and will be desperate to make a fluent return to form when he does haul himself out of the infirmary.
Rogers, still improving, isn’t cut from quite the same cloth as Maddison, who is more of a ball-playing specialist, but the injured Spurs stars’ compatriot offers much in the way of strength and impetus and directness, actually remarked to be “unstoppable” during a match against Everton by Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher last year.
As per Sofascore, Rogers didn’t just maintain a threat in front of goal, scoring eight times in the Premier League, assisting ten strikes too, but he proved himself consistent and reliable through reinforced underlying data, creating 16 big chances and averaging 1.2 tackles, 1.4 key passes and 4.7 successful duels per game.
The England man’s durability and wherewithal, coupled with an aptitude for the technical side of the game, suggest that he could be exactly what Frank’s Tottenham need, adding quality and depth at number ten and out on the left flank.
While a deal will be hard to pull off as the transfer window enters the final stretch, there’s no question that Tottenham’s interest is genuine, and with Chelsea still prioritising a move for Simons, Levy and co might want to act as swiftly as possible, lest they miss out on another top target at this critical early juncture of the campaign.
