Spurs target unreal Maddison upgrade in £40m “diamond”

As it was last year, this season has been a roller coaster for Tottenham Hotspur fans.

One week, the North Londoners look like the best team in the country and are pulling apart the Premier League champions 4-0, and then the next, they lose at home to winless Ipswich Town.

Ange Postecoglou has turned his side into great entertainers but has not been able to address their problems with consistency, and were it not for the incredible Dejan Kulusevski, things could be looking a lot worse at the moment.

So, fans should be excited about recent reports linking them to a player who could mirror the Swede’s journey to Spurs and be an incredible upgrade on James Maddison as well.

Tottenham Hotspur transfer news

According to a recent report from Caught Offside, Tottenham are one of several top-flight teams keen on signing Belgian sensation Charles De Ketelaere.

Alongside the Lilywhites, the report claims that Liverpool, West Ham United, Arsenal, Newcastle United, Manchester City and Aston Villa are all interested in the Atatlanta star.

This number of top sides vying for the talented playmaker is undoubtedly far from ideal for the North Londoners, but the good news is that the story claims he is valued at just £40m, which could prove to be a real bargain for someone of his quality.

It could still be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given De Ketelaere’s sensational ability, it’s one worth pursuing, especially as he could be the next Kulusevski and would be an upgrade on Maddison.

De Ketelaere’s comparisons to Kulusevski & Maddison

So, before we look at how De Ketelaere stacks up against Maddison, it’s worth examining the reasons his signing would mirror that of Kulusevski’s.

The first is that, like the Swedish international, the Atalanta star would be making his way over from Serie A, akin to the Lilywhites star’s move from Juventus in 2022.

The second, more meaty point of comparison is that, like the Stockholm-born star, the Belgian gem is an incredibly talented attacker who can, and has, played everywhere from centre-forward to the wings and all over midfield.

Lastly, like Kulusevski, the former Club Brugge prospect is just an incredibly entertaining player to watch and has that increasingly rare ability to get fans off their seats with a sublime piece of skill, unreal goal or pinpoint pass.

With that said, as he’s spent most of this season playing in an attacking midfield role, the “wonderful” talent, as dubbed by journalist Dougie Critchley, would likely come in as competition for Maddison were to move to N17, and unfortunately for the Englishman, we reckon he’d displace him, and quite easily at that.

For example, in just 23 appearances this season, the 23-year-old “diamond”, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has scored eight goals and provided nine assists, equating to a sensational average of a goal involvement every 1.35 games for the Bergamo outfit.

In contrast, the former Leicester City star has scored seven goals and provided five assists in as many games, equating to an average of a goal involvement every 1.91 games.

Finally, Postecoglou would be able to rely on the Brugge-born dynamo more than his current co-vice-captain, as the most games he’s missed in a single season through injury is just ten, which is a far cry from the Englishman’s spotty fitness record.

Ultimately, while Maddison is an unbelievably gifted footballer, De Ketelaere just looks to be even more so, and considering his valuation isn’t outrageous, Daniel Levy and Co should be doing all they can to bring him to N17.

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