'No chance' Giovani Lo Celso leaves Tottenham in January

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·10 December 2023

'No chance' Giovani Lo Celso leaves Tottenham in January

Tottenham Hotspur star Giovani Lo Celso has “no chance” of leaving the club during the 2024 winter market, as transfer insider Dean Jones assesses the midfielder’s role at Hotspur Way.

Spurs head coach Ange Postecoglou has called on the attack-minded player in the late autumn and early winter of 2023 following a spate of injuries across his Lilywhites squad.

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Tottenham had enjoyed a fantastic start to the 2023/24 Premier League season but have recently seen their from wobble. However, Postecoglou still has the backing of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and led his side to a 4-1 victory over Newcastle United on 10th December.

Lo Celso’s redemption at Tottenham

One of the primary beneficiaries of Tottenham's injury and suspension crisis has been Lo Celso. The 27-year-old arrived at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium from Real Betis in a deal worth £60m during the 2019 summer transfer window, having impressed during his time in La Liga. However, Lo Celso struggled to make an impact under Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo and Antonio Conte and was shipped out on loan to Villarreal for the second half of the 2021/22 campaign and the following season.

After getting minutes under his belt back in Spain, the Argentina international returned to north London, expecting to seal his permanent departure from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. However, Lo Celso found offers hard to come by during the 2023 summer transfer window before sustaining a hamstring injury that ruled him out of action throughout September.

In November, Football Insider reported that Spurs were prepared to listen to offers for the former Paris Saint-Germain star during the 2024 winter transfer window. It was suggested that Tottenham would accept offers between £15m-£20m for the outcast.

However, injuries and suspensions forced Lo Celso back into Postecoglou’s side, where he bagged goals against Aston Villa and Manchester City to remind Spurs fans of his quality. Journalist Paul Brown has recently told GIVEMESPORT (6th December) that the South American deserves his chance to replace the injured James Maddison at Hotspur Way.

Dean Jones on Lo Celso

Jones claims Lo Celso is ultimately a squad player at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium but could become an important player in Spurs’ success during the 2023/24 season. The journalist claims that the Lilywhites will want to hold onto him, and there’s “no chance of him leaving” in January 2024. Jones told GIVEMESPORT:

“[As a squad player], you have to consider what success is. To be part of a team like Tottenham right now, if you're getting good gametime, I think it's enough. Even if you're coming into a game as a sub, you're playing as much of the game as the starter has, anyway. Games are extending towards 100 minutes and beyond. So, if you're coming on at half-time, you're getting longer than the guy who started the match in the first place. This becomes part of being a squad player, which Lo Celso has been. He’s going to get more opportunities. I think he's going to be an important player, and I think the most telling factor of all here is that Tottenham are going to want to hold on to him for now, and there's no chance of him leaving.”

Tottenham transfer news on Branthwaite and Guehi

With the 2024 winter transfer window closing in, the rumour mill is swirling as Tottenham consider their next steps in the market. According to Sky Sports, Postecoglou wants to add more depth to his squad in January and will look to strengthen three key positions, including centre-back, left-wing and midfield.

The former is the priority after losing Micky van de Ven to a hamstring injury and recently being forced to play without Cristian Romero after receiving a red card in Spurs’ 4-1 defeat to Chelsea in November. Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi are high on their transfer shortlist, with OGC Nice defender Jean-Clair Todibo also admired at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

However, the same outlet insists Spurs have cooled their interest in Chelsea’s Trevoh Chalobah after considering a move for him on the 2023 summer transfer window’s deadline day. Wingers on Tottenham’s shortlist include Juventus and England U21 star Samuel Illing-Junior, whilst a loan move for former Celtic star Jota hasn’t been ruled out, with the former Portugal U21 winger struggling for minutes at Al-Ittihad.

The same report also claims Spurs would like to bring in a midfielder to cap off an ideal winter transfer window, allowing Eric Dier to leave for a fee. Hugo Lloris and Pierre Emile-Hojbjerg are other players Tottenham could look to move on next month.