Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho is said to want Diego Carlos in north London next season, according to reports…
What’s the word?
Spanish newspaper La Razon claimed that the Portuguese manager has asked the Spurs hierarchy to make a push to sign the Sevilla defender ahead of the summer transfer window.
It’s also thought that the La Liga outfit will have to make a major sale in order to balance the books and the 28-year-old has a whopping €75m release clause (£64m).
However, Sevilla would undoubtedly have to negotiate a lower fee if they are to cash in, whilst Julian Lopetagui is said to be a fan of struggling Spurs defender Davinson Sanchez, so a swap involving the Colombian could sweeten any deal.
Should Spurs swap Sanchez for Carlos?
Yes please!
No way!
Bye-bye Sanchez?
With that in mind, is it a decision that Mourinho and the Spurs hierarchy should make? There is certainly a case to be made.
Sanchez has long been thought of as the “weak link” of the defence in N17, although that hasn’t stopped the manager from selecting him as a first-choice defender in recent months.
Indeed, the once club-record £42m signing has started their last nine league outings but, on Easter Sunday, he reverted back to his calamitous old self as his mistake saw Newcastle punish Spurs in the dying stages of the match.
As Magpies winger Matt Ritchie’s cross was knocked back across the face of goal by Joelinton, Sanchez clattered into his teammate Joe Rodon to give Arsenal loanee Joe Willock a clear attempt at goal, with which he duly delivered.
“We had chances to kill the game but we create instability to ourselves with the mistakes that we made defensively,” lambasted Mourinho after the game. “You don’t need me to analyse with you the goals that we conceded, you don’t need me to go through the two goals that we conceded.”
In possibly getting rid of the former Ajax man, Spurs would need a replacement, which is why this deal could make the world of sense.
In Carlos, they’d be getting a like-for-like upgrade, as the Brazilian is another in the mould of being pacy and athletic from the back. His former Estoril coach Fabiano Soares has previously waxed lyrical to ESPN about the 28-year-old’s stature in this sense, he said:
“He is a dynamic, intense and fast player. Football nowadays, for the slow player the market isn’t so good. Players who are fast and strong and competitive and who have quality, the coaches will always look at them.”
This sort of presence would allow Spurs to play a much higher defensive line and, if they do get hit on the counter, having the 6 foot 1 monster there with his size and speed should be a difference-maker.
Similarly, Spanish football expert Domagoj Kostanjsak told the Liverpool ECHO that Carlos is “built like a tank” and that he’s “not called ‘the beast’ for nothing.”
The £25m-rated centre-back played a key role on Sevilla’s way to winning the Europa League last season, alongside current Spurs star Sergio Reguilon, and has continued that form into the current campaign.
Carlos has kept the likes of Timo Werner, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi quiet, whilst also proving to be rather adept with the ball at his feet, managing an 89.5% passing accuracy from an average of 61.5 attempts per game in all competitions, via WhoScored.
This is better than all of Spurs’ current central defensive options, including Sanchez (84%), so given that Mourinho likes to play out from the back, he would be a welcome addition on that front also.
The Spurs boss is longing for a defensive leader and they ought to look no further than Carlos this summer. His aggressive presence could be a neat fit for the English top flight.
Daniel Levy must sanction a swap involving Sanchez this summer.
AND in other news, Levy eyes Spurs swoop for “sensational” £36m beast, he’s everything Ndombele should be…