How Johan Lange’s comments on Tottenham’s summer transfer business are now proving to be an issue for Ange Postecoglou’s squad

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What Tottenham Hotspur’s Technical Director Johan Lange said about the club’s summer transfer business is now proving to be an issue for Ange Postecoglou’s team.

Tottenham signed six players last summer, four of which were all teenagers. Spurs brought in some of the best young talents from around Europe and there was much excitement about all of them.

Lucas Bergvall arrived from his loan spell at Djurgårdens, Archie Gray was signed for £40 million from Leeds United, Wilson Odobert joined in a £25 million deal from Leeds United and Yang Min-hyeok will join in January having been bought for £3 million.

At the time it looked like smart business as the North London club looked to build towards the future, however, too much inexperience in the squad is starting to cause complications for the manager.

What Johan Lange said about Tottenham’s young signings

Johan Lange insists that Tottenham want to make signings to be competitive now but also bring in players who will be good in the future. Spurs’ Technical Director claims the club are trying to strike the right balance in each area of their squad between having experience and players who will peak in a few years.

Lange told Tottenham Hotspur’s YouTube channel last summer: “Firstly we are here to be competitive now, but we’ve also made it clear we want to be a destination for the best talents. The young players we have brought in are here to compete now. But we have to bear in mind their age – they have very exciting potential for the future.

“In my experience when you are building a squad, the age profile within the different positions is quite important. For instance our midfielders right now, we have three or four players in their absolute peak age and three or four players who will reach that in a few years. To have that balance in each part of the team is key to building a sustainable and successful squad.”

How Lange’s youthful summer signings are causing Spurs complications

There is no doubt that signing players before they become superstars can make up an important part of a well-run football club’s success. However, there needs to be a balance and under Lange, there are question marks currently as to whether Tottenham have found that blend between adding youth and experience.

Spurs’ latest injury crisis may just highlight how the club have not done enough to bring in players who are ready to make an impact now.

Lange has now been the Technical Director at Tottenham for two transfer windows and during that period he has signed eight new players. Back in January, Spurs brought in Radu Dragusin, Timo Werner and Luka Vuskovic. Meanwhile, Dominic Solanke, Bergvall, Gray, Odobert and Yang were the additions made back in the summer, along with Mikey Moore and Will Lankshear being promoted to the first-team.

That means that just two of his eight signings have been aged over 21, with five of them still being teenagers. Again, it’s great to be planning for the future but when Postecoglou looked to bench against Fulham on Sunday he had seven players who had never made a Premier League appearance.

Tottenham needed more senior signings

When Postecoglou required the club to add much-needed depth to his squad last summer he was given a handful of players who aren’t ready for regular game time. Bergvall has played just 52 minutes of Premier League football, whilst Gray has featured in six minutes less and is yet to make a single start in midfield.

It must be noted that any Premier League squad would struggle to contend with the players Spurs are currently missing as Postecoglou was without five regular starters in the draw against the Cottagers. But had even two or three of their summer additions been more senior players whom the Australian manager could trust, it would have allowed him a better chance to rest and rotate some of his key men who now look dead on their feet or out injured.

The Lilywhites need to address their lack of experience when the transfer window opens next month, but they have also left themself in the position of now adding players who could block the pathway for their new youngsters; it’s an awkward predicament Lange must fix.