Spurs chasing “genius” Werner upgrade who’s a lot like Eze

It would be hard to describe this season as anything other than a disaster for Tottenham Hotspur so far.

Ange Postecoglou’s side are in the bottom half of the table, have a seemingly ever-growing injury list, and while there is still a chance they beat Liverpool in their upcoming League Cup semi-final, it’s a very slim one.

Moreover, while the club are the second-highest scorers in the league, players like Timo Werner continue to disappoint.

So, fans should be excited by recent reports linking the North Londoners to someone who would be the perfect upgrade on the German, someone so talented they have even been compared to the incredible Eberechi Eze.

Tottenham Hotspur news

According to a recent report from the Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, Tottenham are one of several clubs who have enquired about Barcelona’s Dani Olmo.

Alongside the Lilywhites, the report has revealed that fellow Premier League sides Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal are keen on the Spaniard, while Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich have also shown interest.

Interestingly, the report claims that while the player, who cost Barça £51m

in the summer, has his heart set on staying, he may leave for free if the Catalan club fails to register him by January 3rd, which looks to be a real possibility.

Due to the level of competition, it could prove to be a difficult transfer to get over the line, but given Olmo’s sensational ability, it’s one worth pursuing, especially as he’s won comparisons to Eze and would be a dream Werner upgrade.

How Olmo compares to Werner and Eze

So, before we look at how Olmo compares to Werner, let’s examine this comparison to Eze and where it has come from.

It primarily stems from FBref, which compares players in similar positions in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, then creates a list of the ten most comparable players for each one, and in this instance, has concluded that the Englishman is the second most similar attacking midfielder or winger to the Spaniard over the last 365 days.

The best way to see where this comparison has come from is to look at the underlying metrics in which the pair ranks closely, including, but not limited to, non-penalty expected goals, progressive carries, shots and shots on target, tackles won, successful take-ons and more, all per 90.

However, he shares another similarity with Eze, which is also one of the reasons Spurs should sign him: his positional versatility.

For example, like the Crystal Palace star, the £149k-per-week “genius,” as dubbed by journalist Josh Bunting, can play in multiple positions on the pitch but specialises in attacking midfield and out on the wings, which is why he could be an ideal Werner upgrade.

To see how much of an upgrade he’d be on the German wideman, we only need to look at their raw output since the start of last season.

For example, since the start of last season, the 26-year-old dynamo has scored 14 goals and provided six assists in 40 appearances, equating to an impressive average of a goal involvement every other game.

In contrast, the RB Leipzig loanee has scored five goals and provided seven assists in 51 appearances across the same period, which comes out to a far less impressive average of a goal involvement every 4.25 games.

Ultimately, if Spurs find themselves with an opportunity to sign Olmo this month, they must take it, as he’d be an instant upgrade on Werner as an option off the left, and he’s good enough to fight for a place in the midfield as well.