Speaking after his side’s final pre-season game against Inter Milan, Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino did not deny the possibility of brining in new signings before the deadline on Thursday at 5PM.
Spurs were beaten by Inter after Stefano Sensi cancelled out Lucas Moura’s opener, whilst missed penalties from Christian Eriksen and Oliver Skipp meant that the Italian side came away with the win in the 2019 International Champions Cup.
Pochettino hints that there could be more incomings for Spurs
The Spurs manager insisted to the media that he is happy with his current squad:
“I am happy with my squad, we’re not at 100 per cent but we still have one week to be ready to compete in our best way back here next weekend against Aston Villa.
“There were a lot of positives. Tanguy [Ndombele] played more than an hour and many players had the possibility to play and to build their fitness, that’s most important for us. Also, our fans are unbelievable. I thank them for their support.”
Although, when asked on the potential of adding more bodies to his squad in this summer window, he didn’t deny it as a possibility but did not give much away either:
“In every season we are always open to improve the squad and to try to find the right players to be stronger and better and there are still four days.
“We'll see what happens in the next few days.”
The deals that are most likely to get done this summer
If Pochettino does add to his squad in the next few days, it would most likely be Ryan Sessegnon from Fulham and/or Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis.
Sessegnon has been linked with the North London side for the past two seasons, with many believing throughout the summer that he would become a Spurs player before the deadline, although as of yet, nothing has materialised.
Lo Celso is another of Pochettino’s top targets ahead of the new campaign, it has been reported on numerous occasions that a deal would happen for the Argentinian who wants the move to Spurs, especially after Betis brought in Nabil Fekir, who is possibly a replacement.
He was left out of the Betis squad for one of their pre-season trips and at this point it seemed likely to happen, with personal terms agreed according to reports, but there was just an issue with Daniel Levy offering slightly below the Spanish side’s asking price.
That appears to still be the case given that Lo Celso was included in his team's most recent pre-season squad, so his future is very much up in the air.
Pochettino even hinted in a recent press conference that he was not in charge of transfers or contract renewals at Spurs, he said:
"I know nothing about the situation of my players, I am only coaching them, trying to get the best from them.
“Things may or may not happen, sell or buy players, extend contracts or not extend contracts — it’s not in my hands."
With the recent injuries to Juan Foyth and Dele Alli, who has another hamstring problem, the feeling surrounding Spurs is that they must add more players this summer, especially considering how the depth of their squad was an issue last season despite an incredible Champions League campaign.