Antonio Conte proved right with his call for reinforcements in January after the Brentford match.
Tottenham fans won’t need to be reminded why Antonio Conte’s main targets in the January transfer window are Josko Gvadiol and Pedro Porro after his defensive disaster against Brentford. The Italian coach is eyeing improving his defense after acknowledging that the continual streak of conceding first is starting to take a toll on his team.
Spurs returned to action following the World Cup hoping to consolidate their place in the top four against their London rivals. But at the start of the lunchtime break at Gtech Community Stadium, mistakes abounded in the Spurs defense line to the frustration of Conte on the sideline.
Eric Dier and Japhet Tanganga were at fault for allowing Bryan Mbuemo too much time on the ball to cross to Mathias Jensen at the far post, and when the midfielder’s shot was deflected into Vitaly Janelt’s path, the German made a single tap to give the lead to the Bees.
Time and again, the four Spurs defenders looked disorganized and nervous as Ivan Toney dominated aerial challenges, with Brentford lamenting his inability to put the struggling visitors to the sword.
But then it was Dier again who made a careless mistake to put his team under pressure, cutting a direct corner clearance and from there Brentford scored a second. The ball sailed past the right corner and was headed home by Christian Norgaard, who found Toney alone at the far post for another close-range finish to make it 2-0, leaving Spurs looking down the barrel of defeat.
It was certainly no surprise when Conte turned things around midway through the second half. The tactician will acknowledge his mistake in selecting Japhet Tanganga, with just 17 minutes of action under his belt, it was an error of judgment in dropping Davinson Sanchez in his place.
But the fact that he has left the Colombian on the bench, along with £30m right-back Emerson Royal, speaks volumes about his lack of faith in the current options available to him.
Spurs are understood to be among the clubs hoping to lure Gvadiol away from RB Leizpig in January following the 20-year-old’s stellar displays for Croatia during the World Cup.
The Bundesliga side are believed to want a world record £88m (€100m) fee for the defender if they are to let him go. Chelsea and Manchester City are the other clubs interested in signing the defender, with Tottenham perhaps unable to match his buying power.
Porro could be a more realistic target fooooooooooooooooor the club, as the Sporting right-back could be available for around £26m in January. Conte would have been able to see the Spaniard in action up close when the two teams met in the Champions League.
Even after coming back from two goals down against Brentford thanks to goals from Harry Kane and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, their defensive nightmare may have taken their toll in the race for the top four. And Conte hopes to avoid repeating those mistakes in the future if he receives the funds to spend in January.