Tottenham have unearthed two of the Premier League’s best breakout midfielders of the season, with Dejan Kulusevski surprisingly thriving in an innovative role concocted by Ange Postecoglou as a ball-carrying midfielder.
The former Juventus right winger has become an incredible No. 8, playing more as a Mezzala in the Premier League than he ever did in Italy while at three different historic clubs.
Alongside him, Pape Sarr is emerging as a top young midfielder, having just bossed top-four rivals Aston Villa in a 4-1 drubbing of Unai Emery’s men. Sarr was the best player on the pitch, making top stars Amadou Onana and Youri Tielemans look almost amateurish in comparison.
Tottenham, though, are still one top midfielder away from having a truly great trio in the Premier League, and based on the most recent transfer tea leaves, they may be pursuing an upgrade on James Maddison, who is one of the world’s finest attacking midfielders.
According to a report from Calciomercato.com’s top insider Daniele Longo, Tottenham have joined Manchester City as two top Premier League clubs who are interested in AC Milan star Tijjani Reijnders.
Little-known before his arrival in Milan last season, Rejinders has been a big part of the squad from day one, and in his second season with the club, he is truly taking the step forward to superstardom that many Milan supporters foresaw after watching his inaugural campaign progress.
Reijnders was also a standout for the Netherlands at the Euros. The 26-year-old is in the prime of his career and is so important to Milan that they are desperate to give him a new contract with a raise in order to ward off all the interested clubs.
But with Milan in a state of flux due to the hire of Paulo Fonseca, there is an opening, and it is refreshing to see Tottenham going after a big star at an established club instead of sitting in an artificial comfort zone of bargain buys that Daniel Levy had kept up over the years.
Reijnders is an extraordinary dribbler and playmaker who creates a high volume of chances for himself and others while still pressing hard up the pitch to win easy attacking opportunities.
This season, Reijnders has scored three goals in four Champions League starts and is averaging at least one key pass and one dribble completed in Serie A action. On paper, the Dutch star is a perfect fit for what Postecoglou wants to do tactically – better than Maddison, when watching his dribbling and pressing.
