Abdukodir Khusanov: Should Tottenham sign interception & aerial duel “monster” before Newcastle this January? | OneFootball

Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United are both interested in signing Lens defender Abdukodir Khusanov according to reports.

Ange Postecoglou’s side have struggled with injuries in recent times, with both Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven suffering spells on the sidelines. Newcastle, meanwhile, have just five senior centre-backs in their squad, with three out until the new year.

The Telegraph says both teams have their sights set on Khusanov for the January transfer window.

Khusanov is just 20 years old and joined Lens from Belarusian club Energetik-BGU Minsk in the summer of 2023. In his first season, the Uzbekistani centre-back played 15 senior games for Lens across all competitions, 11 coming in Ligue 1.

He’s already matched his league appearances in 2024-25, playing in 11 of Lens’ 13 games. Khusanov has started nine of those, only missing two due to a red card suspension. When he is on the pitch, Khusanov has been excellent.

“He’s calm, powerful, he’s fast,” Lens boss Will Still recently said of Khusanov.

“He doesn’t talk but he’s good. When I arrived with the departure of Kev [Danso] in sight, (sports coordinator) Jean-Louis Leca told me ‘don’t worry, there’s Kodir who is here, and he’s ready.”

After a draw with Nice at the end of September, Still added: “He’s a monster, what he did again tonight. He scares me. No really! For his age, what he does.”

Initially replacing Danso, who had to take time out due to a heart issue, Khusanov has now partnered the Austrian and Facundo Medina in the back three.

The 20-year-old was named among our best young players in Europe in October for his fine start to the season. He’s in the top five centre-backs aged 21 or under across Europe’s top five leagues, according to Squawka Score.

Khusanov currently has a score of 64%, bettered only by Fiorentina’s Pietro Comuzzo and Nathan Zeze of Nantes. He has the same score as Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi, which should help show the level.

The Lens centre-back is an aerial monster, averaging 2.83 aerial duels won per 90 minutes in Ligue 1, the joint-most across the aforementioned data pool, at the second-best success rate (71.43%). He’s also made 17 headed clearances, bettered only by Danso among Lens players in Ligue 1 this season.

But he’s not just an aerial mountain. Khusanov is tough to get past on the floor too. At his young age, Khusanov is already an excellent reader of the game. He has averaged 2.72 interceptions that retained possession per 90 in Ligue 1, only bettered by Julien Le Cardinal of any centre-back across Europe’s top five leagues.

The 20-year-old also averages 1.47 tackles per 90, just 0.34 challenges lost and 3.17 possessions won in the defensive third.

Now, Khusanov doesn’t have the best passing statistics, averaging just 39.17 completed passes per 90 in Ligue 1 this season with an accuracy of 87.15%. But that’s because Danso and Medina are the main passers in Lens’ defence. That’s not Khusanov’s role.

Tottenham fans in particular will be happy that Khusanov has averaged 1.02 successful offside traps per 90 this season. These are awarded to the last defender when an offside decision is given. Given how Tottenham play, Khusanov being able to be in line with his fellow defenders would be key.