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Tottenham's long-term plan for Archie Gray and Postecoglou's clear January transfer window need

Archie Gray could be in line for his first Premier League start for Tottenham Hotspur
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


With the international break at its most boring it was time for our Tottenham correspondent Alasdair Gold to answer your questions about the club.

Spurs have had a mixed start to the season in terms of results, winning six of their 10 matches, but their performances on the whole have been better in plenty of aspects as Ange Postecoglou's overhaul of the club continues. They were 18 dodgy minutes at Brighton away from making it six victories on the trot.

Instead they threw away a two-goal lead and Tottenham supporters have been waiting for the international break to end in order to see their team put that right.

While we wait for the international games to be done and for Premier League football to return, we got our Spurs man Alasdair to answer your questions about the north London outfit. Here's the full transcript with everything he said.

Ryangoles: "What positions do you think Spurs will look to strengthen in come January?"

Alasdair says: "Annoyingly, Spurs still have to be aware of the Europa League squad restrictions, knowing that whoever they bring in, if they want them to play in Europe, then other players will have to be removed from that squad.

"Postecoglou could well take that into account but mainly he'll be thinking about the other three competitions and the need to keep evolving his squad, which should override the European concerns.

"I would say a left-back able to play in the inverted style and another centre-back with a bit of pace are the biggest priorities in my opinion as potential January additions. In an ideal world, a player who could fill both roles would only require one person to come out of the Europa League squad if they are to be registered should Spurs get to the knockout stages.

"Beyond that, Vicario needs someone to challenge him going forward and further midfield and attacking options are going to be required to continue the development of the squad."

READ MORE: Why Cristian Romero was suspended for Argentina as Ange Postecoglou handed Tottenham boost

READ MORE: Tottenham's transfer priority in January revealed after 10 games of the season

bblakemore10: "How do you avoid falling into the crisis narrative that follows this club every time we don’t get a result? Five wins in a row and one bad half sends the whole internet into a frenzy. Why do you think that is? Do you think we can ever get rid of that?"

Alasdair says: "I think that's more just how modern football is nowadays with the instant, extreme reaction that social media brings. Five victories in a row and then 18 minutes of bad football is all it takes to rewrite everything that came before. Suddenly Brentford are a bad team, winning at Old Trafford is nothing (even if United then went and drew at Villa) and winning in the Europa League with 10 men for almost 90 minutes is easy while only a second European away win in 10 games is expected.

"There's been one of the biggest overhauls of the club in decades and it's about time Spurs stuck with someone to actually see a rebuild through, instead of panicking and pointing the finger.

"The club's motto is 'To dare is to do'. It's about time they adhered to it, rather than screaming and panicking every 18 months or so.

"That's how we get rid of the constant frenzy around Tottenham Hotspur, by the club actually being a stable one for a prolonged period of time rather than one that mostly exists in utter chaos. That cascades down to all those who follow it and who knows, a bit of stability might bring that silverware we've all wanted for so long. Chopping and changing clearly hasn't worked."

tulsamatt: "How's the marathon training coming along?"

Alasdair says: "Thanks for asking. I'm getting in the miles. I've got more than 130 miles into my legs over the past two months even if that's meant muscle and knee pains aplenty! It's all worth it though because it's for a great cause - Cancer Research UK. So far, 916 brilliant people have donated on my Just Giving page and we're almost at £17,000 raised which is fantastic. If you would like to donate as I tackle the TCS London Marathon then you can do so on https://www.justgiving.com/page/alasdair-gold-1725490059956."

TommySanFrancisco: "Any chance of making a change to the Europa League squad before January (i.e. Djed for Timo)?"

Alasdair says: "You can't change the squad before the knockout stages. At that stage, if Tottenham make it into them, it's all on Djed Spence really and his performances over the next couple of months. He needs to make his case impossible for Postecoglou to ignore. There's also the prospect of new January signings needing to be added in for the knockout stages if Spurs get through. The Spurs boss will have plenty of decisions to make."

READ MORE: Ange Postecoglou is three games away from Tottenham nightmare as suspension risks explained

READ MORE: Archie Gray and Timo Werner roles in Tottenham power rankings as Cristian Romero issue clear

mikonu: "Do you think Spurs will offer Son a new contract any time soon? Isn't it getting risky with how much he’s got left?"

Alasdair says: "There's the option to extend it until 2026 which means there's a bit more time to work with. I'm sure Spurs want Son to remain with them for the foreseeable future as he's so important to them on and off the pitch and the Tottenham captain wants to, in his own word, justify being called a legend at the club by winning something with them."

minnie6: Do you think Ange will buy a new number six at some point? I don't think currently any of our midfielders are suited to the role.... Maybe Archie Gray longer-term."

Alasdair says: "In my view Archie Gray is the long-term candidate for the role but I wouldn't be surprised if Spurs bring in another option for the position in the mean time in the summer and one of the current incumbents moves on."

seanyspurs61: "Given his late return from international duty, would you drop Romero from the West Ham game and play Dragusin, as his performances have been less than stellar since season started? He did not have much of a summer break either."

Alasdair says: "I still wouldn't drop him because I think (the Arsenal goal aside) he's got the mentality you need for a derby match. Romero also being suspended for Argentina's first game means he's got a good week's break, albeit then having to rush back from the second game. Postecoglou will check on his physical condition in the days ahead of the game but I think he'll be wary of leaving him out for this one when he can do that against AZ."

suppco: "Has the £50million that wasn't used in the £150million from a couple of years ago been drawn down yet for January?"

Alasdair says: "There's nothing on Companies House to suggest it has."

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