Tottenham director explains process behind transfer business as Dominic Solanke insight offered

Tottenham’s sporting director, Johan Lange, has discussed the success of the summer transfer window.

In a video interview posted on Spurs' X account, he outlined the processes carried out in the window, which saw Ange Postecoglou’s squad bolstered by five new members: Dominic Solanke, Archie Gray, Wilson Odobert, Lucas Bergvall, and Min-hyeok Hyand, all signed for the north London club. Several players also departed the club, with the likes of Oliver Skipp, Giovanni Lo Celso, and Emerson Royal transferring to new destinations. Also, a number of players, including Eric Dier, Ivan Perisic, and Tanguy Ndombele, left after the expiration of their contracts.

On the summer business, Lange said: “We every transfer period as an opportunity to, step by step, build the squad in the direction we want - I think this summer has been another positive step in that direction. Last summer it was about building a team but this summer the emphasis has been on building a squad.

He continued “We wanted to improve the team…we have welcomed five players - all of them were long-term targets for us. They come with the right personality and the hunger to win and be successful with this football club.

“More than ten players have left the first-team squad; some of their contracts expired, some left on transfers, some went on loan to get valuable game time. If you add the three [or] four January players [departures] who left in the January market, it is an unbelievable squad turnaround.”

Two of the most promising new men are Gray and Odobert. The former Leeds youngster arrived at Spurs with a heavy price tag thought to be around £30m but has looked beyond his years with calm, assured performances. On the pair, Lange said: “Both of them; we followed them for a long time. Archie [Gray] played a lot of matches last season for Leeds; very exciting talent with a high ceiling, a versatile midfielder with both technical and tactical ability to play within our style of play and I also see a clear future leader.

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“Wilson we have known for a long time when he was in France before he moved into the Premier League. We were impressed by his transition into the Burnley side last year; a versatile offensive player… fantastic dribbler, and a two-footed player.”

Arguably the highest profile addition is that of former Chelsea striker Solanke - last season he scored a career-best 19 Premier League goals for Bournemouth which tempted Spurs to spend £65m on his services, Lange said: “We were very committed to add another striker to the squad and Dominic [Solanke] was our first priority. Stylistically he was a very good fit for us - he’s capable of playing in a possession-dominant team, and he is aggressive in the box.

"Then, out of possession, he has all the physical capabilities for the demands. Again, it is fairly unique to find a player with all these qualities at the same time, so we are very satisfied to get that deal over the line.”