Were Tottenham Left Short in Attack by Baldini's Failure to Land a New Striker?

It would not be Tottenham Hotspur if there was not some possible drama around the corner.

The Mirror's Dave Kidd reported on Sunday that "Franco Baldini's future as Tottenham's technical director is under increasing scrutiny after the club failed to land a front-line striker during the transfer window."

Baldini was rarely seen or heard this past summer, reasonably assumed to be behind the scenes helping Mauricio Pochettino shape his new squad for the season.

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Kidd's story suggests a disagreement between the two over attempts by the club hierarchy to sell Nacer Chadli, Aaron Lennon and Andros Townsend. The failure to sign a striker—Wilfried Bony, Loic Remy and Danny Welbeck are mentioned—is regarded as the prime source of reported dissension.

If there is discord between the manager and Baldini, it once again raises questions over Spurs' decidedly mixed success using the technical/sporting director role over the last decade. An intriguing occurrence given it is currently as in-vogue as it has even been in English football—The Observer's Daniel Taylor recently compared its use at Chelsea and Manchester City favourably to the frantic late-transfer window dealings by the more traditional setups at Arsenal and Manchester United.

More pressingly for fans, though, will be the concern their new boss might feel he has not been sufficiently equipped in a crucial position of his team.

Publicly, Pochettino has given the impression he is satisfied with his squad. He told Tottenham's official website last week:

"

We want to deliver exciting, attacking and pressing football and the range of forwards we have are extremely well-equipped to work within this system. We have quality and versatility in these areas so we are confident that they can play anywhere across the front line when called upon. 

We have quality throughout what is a balanced, talented squad.

"

As things currently stand, Spurs have three recognised strikers available: Emmanuel Adebayor, Harry Kane and Roberto Soldado.

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Given the Argentinian has so far gone with one forward at the head of a 4-2-3-1 formation, it could be deemed he has enough. All three have had minutes leading the line already.

It should be noted that, even had Baldini and Pochettino recruited an additional goalscorer, the manager will still have been expecting goals from attacking midfield too (the manager almost certainly had these players partly in mind in the above quotes). That remains the case.

Yet, barring exceptional seasons from those two and the likes of Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela, Tottenham will still require production from their proper front-men.

The north Londoners scored 13 goals less than fourth-placed Arsenal last season. The respective situations of the same three strikers at the club has left doubts—certainly from outsiders, possibly from within the club—as to whether they have enough between them to better last season's efforts.

Injury has already been an issue, as Soldado missed the last two games with neck/back problems. Two of the team's strikers being out at any one time would leave Spurs little scope to change things mid-game.

Form-wise, the strikers have performed decently enough so far this season. The Spaniard and Adebayor have each netted once already, while Kane has struck twice. It is early days, though.

The biggest question mark over Adebayor relates to his consistency.

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Considering he did not play for nearly half of last season, the Togo international's eventual return of 14 goals was respectable enough. In the final couple of months his effectiveness undoubtedly diminished, a problem given he had been a large part of the team's better performances up until then (notably in wins over Manchester United, Newcastle United and Dnipro).

Signs of that inconsistency have already been seen this season. Largely quiet against West Ham United, he was then hugely influential in the 4-0 win against Queens Park Rangers. Although busy in the Liverpool loss, he was too ponderous in possession against the incessant Reds (as typified by Squawka's tally of him being tackled in four out of his seven take-on attempts).

Soldado's injury and initial non-selection in the Premier League has denied us the chance to see just where his form stands after his tough first season in England.

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The Spaniard's expertly taken finish away at Limassol hinted he has found his shooting boots again. Even if he has, it remains to be seen if Pochettino trusts in him to lead his attack without the physical presence of Adebayor or Kane.

The manager has given mixed signals on the latter. Soldado did not start the two league games he was available for, but did get the nod to lead the line against Limassol, ahead of Kane who was deployed in a more supporting role.

Given his relative inexperience, Kane is the biggest unknown for Tottenham. The 21-year-old has continued his bright early season form on international duty:

Although undoubtedly progressing as a finisher and in his all-round play, Kane is still raw. This was seen against West Ham, where his great assist for Eric Dier's winner contrasted starkly with his rushed and sloppy initial contributions off the substitute's bench.

Kane's versatility helps Pochettino in regards to balancing his options. He can be accommodated in a deeper supporting role to one of his peers, also allowing an easy transition to a front two if it is so desired.

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It might be too big an ask to hope Kane can be Spurs main-man up front already. Then again, the responsibility might be the making of him.

Tottenham could be worse off than they are in attack. They arguably have been over the past couple of seasons, when they had less than they do now talent wise (notably early in 2012-13, before Gareth Bale came to the fore).

Be it through Baldini's hesitations in the transfer market, or Pochettino being content with his options, they have to get on with things now.

While it might been useful to add another striker to help with the numbers, none of the players Spurs were linked with were sure-fire successes. There was always going to be an onus on Adebayor, Kane and Soldado to deliver, regardless.