Tottenham Hotspur eyeing a move for versatile Serie A midfielder: Good option for Pochettino

Tottenham Hotspur are looking to sign AS Roma midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini who has a release clause of €35m.

According to a report on Calciomercato, the Lilywhites have been notified of the presence of Pellegrini’s agent in London. Arsenal and Inter Milan also seem interested in the 22-year-old who has expressed his desire to play Champions League football next season.

Meanwhile, Roma are also trying to make the midfielder sign a new contract which would make him the vice-captain at the club.

The Italian midfielder, who reunited with the club two years back in 2017, has already established himself as a key component at Stadio Olimpico.

In the 2018/19 season, he managed 4 goals and 7 assists in 33 appearances for the Serie A side across all competitions.

What will he add to the team?

Pellegrini is a multifaceted central midfielder who can slot into both defensive and attacking midfield roles in accordance with the situation. The 22-year-old who will be 23 in five days time generally played as an attacking midfielder in Roma’s 4-2-3-1 system.

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino also deploys a similar system at the north London club which could make his transition to the Premier League club a tad easier. His role as a mezzala syncs perfectly with Spurs’ style of play who currently use Christian Eriksen in a similar role in the midfield.

The Italian midfielder has a good passing range and is a constant threat from set-pieces. He averaged a 79.6% pass accuracy while making 2.4 key passes, 1.6 crosses and 1.4 long balls per game across all competitions which further highlights his passing prowess.

However, the Roma midfielder has found it difficult to penetrate the opposition backline averaging a poor 0.2 through balls per 90 minutes. This can be a cause of concern for Spurs who more often than not come up against low block oppositions in the Premier League.

Apart from his tackling prowess, Pellegrini’s defensive contributions remain subpar on the pitch. The midfielder managed an average of 1.4 tackles, 0.5 interceptions, 0.7 clearances and 0.1 blocks per game across all competitions which could be to an extent due to his average position on the pitch.

The former US Sassuolo player could be a fine alternative to Eriksen who earlier publicly revealed his intention of leaving the north London club. His flexibility would also allow Pochettino to tinker with his formation depending upon the opposition and personnel available to him.

All in all, this has the makings of being a good acquisition from Spurs’ perspective seeing Pellegrini’s age, potential and price tag which is something the Lilywhites will have to pay special attention to.

Stat Courtesy: Whoscored, Transfermarkt