Forget the Money, the Time Has Come for Tottenham to Offload Emmanuel Adebayor

After a typical transfer deadline day full of hearsay and bluster, one of the most prominently speculated-about players remained at his club—Tottenham Hotspur striker Emmanuel Adebayor.

The Telegraph's Matt Law reported Adebayor nixed potential attempts to move him to Crystal Palace and Queens Park Rangers in favour of a loan transfer to West Ham United. However, Chairman Daniel Levy, unsurprisingly, was not interested in letting the player join a fierce local rival, especially one still engaged in a battle for European places with Tottenham.

It also would have riskily left head coach Mauricio Pochettino with just two established strikers to select. But even though Adebayor has remained in north London for now, this summer will surely see him offloaded, regardless of money or any other obstacle.

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The 30-year-old's nearly four-year spell at White Hart Lane is probably best described as turbulent.

On loan from Manchester City, the former Arsenal man scored 18 goals in 2011-12 but then saw his second season at Spurs suffer from the protracted negotiations of a permanent deal. After eventually getting fully fit, he finished that campaign in decent form, only to fall out with then-manager Andre Villas-Boas in the summer, appearing just once before the Portuguese's December 2013 departure.

Adebayor returned to favour under Villas-Boas' (ultimately interim) replacement Tim Sherwood and helped reinvigorate Spurs' season. The club fell short of their top-four target. but the Togo international would have had high hopes he could sustain his personal momentum.

Instead, Adebayor's performance level has again dipped this season. Glimmers of good form in wins over QPR and Southampton soon receded, and he failed to shine under his new boss.

Pochettino has provided him with playing opportunities as recently as last month. Adebayor contributed to Spurs' defeat of Sunderland but was kept quiet in his subsequent start versus Sheffield United and did not make an impact off the bench against Leicester City.

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His recent use underlines why Levy was right not to sanction a January exit. Harry Kane, Spurs' new main man upfront, has been excellent but cannot be expected to lead his team's attack without occasional relief. Like Adebayor, Roberto Soldado is similarly lacking for goals and, while a willing team-mate, does not provide the same focal-point alternative as his 6'3" fellow forward.

Even if Adebayor proves useful in the remainder of 2014-15, all that has preceded in his story makes a fresh start probably the best option for him and Spurs this summer.

The frosty reception that greeted his recent first appearances since his November questioning of the White Hart Lane atmosphere was in keeping with a player-fan relationship that has never blossomed in the way it has with others (for instance, Soldado or the homegrown Kane). They have sung his name during good displays, but the combination of his Arsenal past and a temperamental work ethic has not endeared him comprehensively.

Speaking to the Daily Express' Matthew Dunn, Andros Townsend made a passionate defence of Adebayor after the first leg of the Capital One Cup semi-final with Sheffield United:

"

Everyone knows what Manny can offer—last season and the season before, he scored loads of goals. He has had a few off-the-field problems this season. He has got his head right, he has got himself fit. ...

The manager has picked him from the start because in training he has worked hard. In training he has got his head down and showed he deserves to be in the squad.

"

Townsend's words reiterate why booing Adebayor is counterproductive. It has rarely clicked for him this season, but this is a player trying to make it work.

Still, that Townsend even has to make the argument is evidence of the deterioration of his team-mate's status at Spurs. The fans' perception of him will not be easily altered, nor will Pochettino's, it seems, given the evidence of this season.

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Adebayor's reported contract of £100,000 per week until 2016—per The Telegraph—has seemingly proved a tricky factor in negotiating a move until now. It is understandable he would not want to give them up for an unappealing swap professionally.

But with the chances of his Tottenham career being revitalised diminishing with every passing week out of the team (he was not involved again this past weekend), a move this offseason is a must for his career. It would allow Spurs to remodel their attack too.

Adebayor is a great talent on his day, and the effort to bring the best out of him has intermittently proved worth it for the north Londoners. Beyond the next few months, though, there is little remaining reason to prolong such attempts from either party.

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