3 Players Tottenham Must Not Sell This Summer
Tottenham Hotspur have already begun the process of bulking up for the new season with the signing of Southampton midfield enforcer Victor Wanyama.
More recruitment is expected, but so too are some departures.
While none of Spurs' first-teamers are likely to leave the club this summer, there are a number of squad players who could be sold for the right fee.
Chairman Daniel Levy is always keen to operate as near to a net transfer profit, or at least to break even.
With that in mind, Tottenham must avoid selling the wrong players and weakening their squad before a Premier League and Champions League assault gets under way.
Kevin Wimmer
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In an ideal world, Kevin Wimmer will not make a Premier League appearance for Tottenham next season.
When he deputised for the injured Jan Vertonghen in the last campaign, he was excellent. But Toby Alderweireld and Vertonghen are among the world's best defensive partnerships, and Mauricio Pochettino would be loath to break it up unnecessarily.
With his path to the first team blocked, Wimmer could reasonably be tempted by a move elsewhere.
According to Italian outlet Calciomercato (h/t talkSPORT), Roma are among the clubs keen to snatch Wimmer this summer.
Spurs face a busy season and, even if Vertonghen and Alderweireld avoid injury, fatigue will be a factor.
Vertonghen will be 30 before the end of next season.
He and Alderweireld are also still involved at Euro 2016 and could easily reach the final with Belgium.
Wimmer is a top-quality back-up and could certainly challenge Vertonghen in time. To lose him this summer would be a reckless move.
Nabil Bentaleb
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Nabil Bentaleb suffered through the worst season of his admittedly short professional career in 2015-16.
11 appearances in all competitions, two long-term injuries and none of the confidence and control that earned him a regular first-team place at age 18.
In his absence, Tottenham found a perfectly balanced midfield.
To further reduce his standing, Spurs have now signed Victor Wanyama.
Napoli have been repeatedly linked with a move for the Algerian this summer with Simon Jones and the Daily Mail just one outlet reporting their interest.
Tottenham battered Arsenal at White Hart Lane in 2015. They won 2-1 but, in truth, should have been out of sight.
Bentaleb was the chief architect of that victory. He dominated the midfield, winning possession and distributing with aggression and confidence.
His cross for Kane's eventual winner was sensational.
Bentaleb has proven that he has the talent and the physical qualities to thrive in Pochettino's midfield and star in the Premier League.
Mousa Dembele, his nearest analogue in the current first team, is seven years his senior and playing the best football of his career.
Spurs must hold on to their young Algerian maestro even if he is unlikely to be first-choice in the short term.
A loan this season, even to the apparently interested Partenopei, would be an acceptable compromise. But Bentaleb's future should be at White Hart Lane.
Clinton Njie
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Clinton Njie was the forgotten man of Tottenham's summer signings last season.
Kevin Wimmer, Toby Alderweireld, Kieran Trippier and Heung-Min Son all played important roles in their first seasons at the club, but Njie managed only 14 appearances.
In those, he averaged just 27.6 minutes as a regular substitute, per transfermrkt, before injury ended his debut campaign early.
He sat on the sidelines from mid-December with a knee injury.
According to Tom Sheen of the Independent, Njie was signed from Lyon for a not insubstantial £12-million fee.
Were Spurs to sell him this summer, they could not expect to make any kind of a profit on that outlay, while the benefits of keeping him around the first team are obvious.
Njie has pace, tactical flexibility and is an aggressive runner in behind tiring opposition defenders.
His ability to open up space late in games is hugely valuable, and his presence also reduces the defensive attention being paid to Harry Kane.
He is a comparable player to Michy Batshuayi, with whom Tottenham have been heavily linked.
The reported £31 million fee, per Sami Mokbel of MailOnline, could be better spent than on a player roughly similar to one already at the club.
Selling Njie this summer would make no sense on multiple levels.
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