Tottenham Hotspur are going through somewhat of an injury crisis, with six members of the first-team squad currently out with a host of different issues. However, the biggest absentee from the team is undoubtedly summer signing James Maddison.
The former Leicester City attacking midfielder moved to the London outfit during the summer for £40m after the Foxes were relegated down to the Championship in unprecedented fashion.
Maddison has had a wonderful impact on the team since arriving, scoring three goals and recording five assists in 11 appearances before picking up a significant ankle injury which will keep him sidelined until after Christmas.
Nevertheless, head coach Ange Postecoglou is not wasting any time and has already identified the perfect player to sign in January to add more depth and quality to the number '10' position.
Spurs could make £60m signing
According to The Sun, Postecoglou is looking to bolster his squad after an excellent start to the 2023/24 campaign by bringing Sporting Clube de Portugal's attacking star Pedro Goncalves to the club. The 25-year-old has a release clause of £60m that Spurs will look to activate in January to ease the creative pressure off Maddison for the rest of the season.
Furthermore, the outlet are claiming that Tottenham have sent scouts to watch the Portugal international numerous times this term, including Sunday's derby against Benfica.
Goncalves is well-known to one fanbase in north London, having scored a sensational 46-yard strike against Spurs' bitter rivals Arsenal last season as Sporting knocked Mikel Arteta's side out of the Europa League.
The former Wolverhampton Wanderers academy star has had a fine season so far under Ruben Amorim at Sporting, bagging five goals and three assists in 15 appearances as the Portuguese giants sit joint-top of the Primeira Liga.
Pedro Goncalves' stats this season
Goncalves moved to Sporting just six months after club captain Bruno Fernandes joined Manchester United, who scored 63 goals and registered 50 assists in 137 games for the club.
It seemed impossible to replace Fernandes' numbers over the course of his two-and-a-half-year spell in Lisbon. However, in 225 matches, Goncalves has accumulated 129 goal contributions, including 79 goals and 50 assists.
Former Wolves assistant manager Rui Pedro even claimed that Goncalves "used to stand out" in training during the player's time at Molineux and tipped him to move to a big club in the near future.
That time could come soon as the playmaker is being linked with Premier League side Spurs. However, it's unlikely that Goncalves will be willing to play second-fiddle to Maddison given that the former is performing close, if not better than the the England international in a number of key metrics.
Key Passes
3.16
2.19
Crosses to Penalty Area
0.10
0.38
Assists
0.51
0.1
Expected assists
0.33
0.25
Goals
0.29
0.31
Expected Goals
0.29
0.42
Stats via FBref.
As the table dictates, Maddison is the better creative threat but if it's more goals the Lilywhites are craving, then Goncalves is certainly the better and brighter option, particularly when you consider he posted 20 goals in 51 outings last season.
Regardless, Postecoglou will find a way to put the duo on the same team. Goncalves is highly versatile and has played a number of different positions this season at Sporting, including on the left and right wing as well as in the number '10' position, but has also had minutes in central midfield.
In fact, Goncalves has had higher-rated displays in a deeper role in the middle of the park than as an attacking midfielder, according to WhoScored.
The Spurs coach could potentially deploy Goncalves off the right, with Maddison through the middle, or else utilise the duo as double '8s' with a more defensive-minded midfielder such as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg behind them in a 4-3-3 which would terrorise even the lowest of low blocks.
