Football League World
·18. Dezember 2024
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·18. Dezember 2024
Two of the Championship's best shot-stoppers are on Ange Postecoglou's radar.
Tottenham Hotspur will not make a move for a goalkeeper until the summer amid links to Burnley and Sunderland's respective keepers, James Trafford and Anthony Patterson, according to GiveMeSport.
As soon as Guglielmo Vicario suffered an ankle injury against Manchester City, that is set to keep him out for months, it was no surprise to see reports of them looking to shop in the glovesmen department.
It was also not a shock to see Ange Postecoglou's side - one that likes to play out from the back - look at some of the young talents of the second tier, including Trafford, 22, and Patterson, 24.
Burnley's number one, who already has experience in the Premier League thanks to his first season with the Clarets, was a target of Newcastle United's in the summer, but the two clubs could not reach an agreement. Now it is Spurs who have a supposed interest in the England under-21 international, according to talkSPORT.
The Sun's Alan Nixon has since reported that Sunderland's first choice has also emerged as an option for Tottenham. The club's academy product has been their starting keeper for the past three-and-a-half seasons, and has also been linked with other top flight teams like Manchester United.
The timing of Vicario's injury - not too long before the new year - made signing someone in his position in the winter window seem like the logical thing to do. Fraser Forster is currently in net for Spurs, and while he's by no means useless, the 36-year-old is not necessarily the type of goalkeeper that Postecoglou would recruit to start games for him.
Burnley and Sunderland supporters may have feared potentially losing their first choices between the sticks, but, according to GiveMeSport, Spurs are going to wait until the summer to bring in someone that can challenge Vicario.
If they do make a move for a goalkeeper, they would most likely slot in as the number two behind the Italian, but with the view that they could push him and not just be like Forster, who is there in case of emergencies like the current one.
The talent of the two sides' shot-stoppers makes it inevitable that higher-ranking teams will be interested in them almost every single window. Burnley and Sunderland aren't likely to settle for any less than £20 million for either player, but someone will test that sooner or later.
The Clarets do have a strong back-up, or maybe two, in the building already, with promotion-winning keeper Vaclav Hladky and Etienne Green on their books.
Sunderland have less of an obvious long-term option if Patterson were to go. Simon Moore is the current back-up, but they do have some good talents coming through the ranks, like 18-year-old Matty Young, who is currently on loan at Salford City.
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