Opinion: Tottenham were right to sign £30m starlet but he is not yet at the required level
Tottenham Hotspur have completed the permanent signing of Mathys Tel and it is a move which has already divided Spurs supporters.
Things were not looking good for Tottenham on the transfer front back in January. Spurs had failed to sign an outfield player towards the end of the window and were actively pursuing Mathys Tel. However, reports revealed Tel rejected a move to Tottenham.
This soon changed when Ange Postecoglou personally contacted the Bayern Munich attacker. Mathys Tel revealed how a chat with Ange Postecoglou in a barbershop convinced him to join Tottenham.
After a few months on loan at Spurs, the Frenchman has now put pen to paper, as Tottenham signed Tel for £29.6m on a six-year deal.
Signing Mathys Tel is good business for Tottenham
Tel only turned 20 in April, meaning he has the potential to improve in the future. Even if he is not yet at the level to be a first-team starter, he has plenty of time to develop.
With the ability to play up front or on the wing, Tel is a useful player to have in the Tottenham first-team squad. These are both positions where Spurs could use some improvement, after a disappointing Premier League campaign.
Tel’s price tag is another reason to feel positive about his permanent move to Spurs. An option to buy him for £45m was included in his loan move to North London, but rather than paying Bayern’s asking price, Tottenham negotiated and secured the France U21 international for just two-thirds of that price.
Tel has been underwhelming at times for Spurs
There are reasons to believe Tel is a good signing for Spurs, but if truth be told, he has not done a lot since switching the Bundesliga for the Premier League.
Despite Heung-min Son facing more criticism than ever for his performances and Richarlison spending about as much time injured as he is available, Tel failed to claim a regular spot in Tottenham’s first team.
Tel only managed to register three goals and two assists in 20 appearances for Spurs last season. Of course, not all these appearances were starts, but if Tel is to play regularly for Tottenham, he needs to provide an attacking threat.
One could point out that Spurs were collectively poor in the latter half of the season in everything except the Europa League. However, even Tel’s stats at Bayern are not that impressive. His 10 goals and six assists the season before last were better, but this was in 41 appearances.
It is too early to judge Mathys Tel at Tottenham
There is a reason Tottenham wanted to sign Tel. The speedy forward may not yet be the finished product, but he has shown glimpses of what he is capable of over the past few months.
To write him off after a short spell at a struggling side would be both unfair and unwise. He is still early on in his career and if he works hard and builds up confidence, he could have what it takes to light up the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and claim a spot in the first team.
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