Tottenham Hotspur signed Toby Alderweireld from Atletico Madrid in a reported £11.4m deal back in July 2015, and you would be hard pushed to find a better value-for-money signing in the Premier League since.
The Belgium international joined Spurs following a successful season-long loan spell with Southampton, where he showed he was more than capable of starring in the English top flight. While the north London outfit would have known the Belgian was a good central defender, even they have probably been a little surprised by just how well he has done.
The 28-year-old has arguably established himself as the best centre-back in the Premier League over the course of the last two-and-a-bit seasons, forming a strong relationship alongside national compatriot Jan Vertonghen at the heart of the defence.
It is hard to ignore Tottenham’s progress in the Premier League since the defender arrived at White Hart Lane, either. Mauricio Pochettino’s men ended the 2014/15 campaign in fifth position, 23 points behind winners Chelsea and six behind Manchester United in the final Champions League spot. With 53 goals conceded in 38 top flight matches it was clear to see that record needed to improve significantly if Spurs were to not only secure a top-four finish, but even challenge for the title.
Alderweireld’s presence in the back four instantly seemed to strengthen the north London outfit’s previously leaky rearguard, and they ended the 2015/16 season pushing title winners Leicester City until the final few games, letting in just 35 goals in the process to ensure they had the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League.
Even better was to follow last term, when Tottenham once again challenged for the title for the majority of the campaign before eventually finishing second on 86 points, and this time they did have the best backline in the division having only conceded 26 times in 38 matches.
According to Squawka, in 30 Premier League appearances last season the Belgian won 44 aerial duels and 32 tackles, while he made 167 clearances, 24 interceptions and 22 blocks.
His ability to play accurate and long diagonal balls has also helped Spurs create a number of chances and score a plenty of goals over the course of the last couple of years, and there is no doubt that he is a key player in the team.
However, Tottenham will be worried about losing the Belgium international, who has just 18 months remaining on his current deal – albeit the club does have the option to extend that by a further year.
The Times says that if that happens, Alderweireld can insert a clause into the deal that could see him leave the following summer window if someone offered £25.3m for his services – something that the north London outfit are understandably not willing to agree to. Transfermarkt value him at £31.5million, which is a rather modest estimate anyway.
They would rather agree a separate long-term contract with the central defender that includes no release clause, but their reported £110,000-a-week wage cap could prove to be an issue.
The Daily Mail reported earlier this month that the 28-year-old, who is currently on around £50,000-a-week, is looking for a deal worth more than their wage cap, but that Tottenham are so far unwilling to meet his demands.
Their form without the injured Alderweireld in recent weeks suggests they need to bite the bullet and give into those wishes, however.
Since the Belgian picked up a hamstring injury in the win against Real Madrid last month, Pochettino’s men have won just one of their last five Premier League matches, drawing two and losing two.
Despite Davinson Sanchez doing well in his absence, there is no doubt that Spurs are missing Alderweireld’s and Vertonghen’s strong partnership and understanding at the back, and his absence has perhaps outlined just how important he is.
Premier League rivals like Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United will likely be watching developments closely if they want to strengthen in central defence in the future, but Tottenham and chairman Daniel Levy must realise sooner rather than later that unless they increase their wage cap for players like Alderweireld, they will never make the progress that they want to.
The north London outfit move into a new stadium that should boost their revenue next season anyway, and if they want the Belgian to be playing in it they must invest in keeping him.
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