Postecoglou responds to Solanke reports and insists Richarlison is not being replaced | OneFootball

Ange Postecoglou has played down expectations that Dominic Solanke is a replacement for Harry Kane and also insists Richarlison has a big part to play for Tottenham this season.

Tottenham are believed to be closing in on a deal to sign Bournemouth striker Solanke for £60 million, having lost Kane to Bayern Munich this time last year.

Kane returns to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for a friendly with the German giants on Saturday, and although Richarlison scored 11 goals in 18 games last season, Postecoglou knows they need another number nine.

“I don’t think we’ve been looking to replace Harry. I think I said a number of times last year, you can’t really replace a generational player,” he said.

“It’s fair to say the front third is an area we believe we need to reinforce. We’ve been working hard to get the right players into those areas for another challenging season ahead because we’re back in Europe, which means more games.

“Me speculating around these things is a bit like the chancellor of the exchequer commenting – the stock market could crash, and for us, Twitter or X could into meltdown if I speculate about things.

“It’s fair to say we’ve still got some work to do in the transfer window and those kinds of things will get resolved. It’s a bit difficult for me because I don’t have control over that to be definitive about it but I’m hopeful that over the next few days there will be some resolutions for both ins and outs.”

Richarlison’s future has also been speculated about, with interest from Saudi Arabia, but Postecoglou added: “This is not about replacing Richy, for us, it is about adding to our squad. We want to get stronger from every transfer window we’ve had and from my perspective, I’d say Richy is part of what we want to build here.

“Last year, when he played, he was very, very good for us and hopefully this year we keep him healthy and he plays more. Having more quality and depth in that front third means we hopefully protect our players a bit more and cover our absences when they are not there.”

Solanke managed 37 league starts last season and 32 the season before. That durability in itself is a huge asset, not to mention the 19 goals that he managed last campaign.

Tottenham’s record signing was Tanguy Ndombele for £63 million from Lyon in 2019. The fact they are willing to pay a higher fee for the Bournemouth frontman shows how highly he is rated by Postecoglou.

The Spurs manager will be hoping Solanke can finally lead the club to lifting silverware this season.

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