As things are, Brentford is having some issues. They have a game in hand against Manchester City, but they are still three points from safety. Though Thomas Frank’s approach still seems to be effective, they are having trouble scoring goals and don’t seem to have the same creative spark as before. They need another Christian Eriksen, to put it briefly.
Brentford is not the only team in need of midfield assistance right now; Tottenham Hotspur is playing well right now, but Ange Postecoglou is obviously looking to make some midfield changes. Their Australian coach prefers hard-running, box-to-box midfielders, which is why they have been looking at Conor Gallagher. He doesn’t seem to be very fond of players like Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Højbjerg.
However, Brentford can’t just snap their fingers and produce a playmaker out of thin air, and Chelsea can raise the necessary funds by selling someone else (Armando Broja has recently been put up for auction for this exact reason), so Conor Gallagher might not be coming. Nevertheless, these two teams could benefit from one another.
An exciting, bustling group of midfielders plays for Brentford; they will run themselves into the ground in a high press and are equally content to make challenges and recover possession as they are to surge forward to assist attacks. Spurs, on the other hand, have a talented playmaker in Giovani Lo Celso who is essentially going to waste but has the vision and passing range to give Brentford the extra attacking aspects they need.
The Argentine offensive midfielder hasn’t exactly locked down the number 10 position, despite James Maddison’s injury and a glaring opportunity at the position. He hasn’t played the entire ninety minutes and has only started four league games. He is now recovering from one of a few minor injuries, but overall, it appears that Spurs won’t be able to employ him for very long.
That’s partially because he isn’t the type of all-action, ball-carrying midfielder Postecoglou values, and he doesn’t really fit into his system. He is not as strong as Maddison when it comes to taking down a man one-on-one and consistently creating overloads behind them. However, as his goals against Manchester City and Aston Villa show, he can also score goals. He also has a great passing range and an eye for the game-winning pass. Brentford, who have lost Bryan Mbeumo and have turned into somewhat of a blunt weapon in attack, sorely needs all of those attributes.
Conversely, Spurs most likely wouldn’t bat an eyelid at a couple of Brentford’s tough center midfielders. Particularly Christian Nørgaard and Mathias Jensen have very comparable skill sets; they can both force turnovers, have excellent endurance and a willingness to go up the field, generate good amounts of final balls and shots in the vicinity, and have a respectable passing range.
If we had to choose one for the purposes of this hypothetical transfer, Jensen would likely be Postecoglou’s top choice because he has the extra ball-carrying ability that makes a big difference in the avuncular Aussie’s system. On the other hand, Brentford would likely gently nudge Nørgaard toward the exit because he is only 18 months into his contract and is a year older. In any case, Spurs would get depth in a crucial area and Brentford would receive what they need to rekindle a little bit of their spark.
Naturally, all of this is merely speculative. We wouldn’t be upset if Frank took a chance on Lo Celso, as he did with Eriksen, but we would be amazed if he was still with Spurs in a year. Brentford changed completely when the Dane took over in the middle at the Community Stadium. Their already formidable strength and work ethic were complemented with trickery and grace. They appear a little clumsy because they were unable to come up with a substitute.
Now that Ivan Toney has returned from his protracted ban for violating the Football Association’s gambling regulations, their goal output should significantly improve. However, even having the best number nine in the world wouldn’t guarantee a winning season if you don’t have a strong supporting cast. At the moment, Brentford lacks dynamism and vision because they don’t have a Mbeumo or a playmaker along the lines of Eriksen.
When players like Pape Matar Sarr, Rodrigo Bentancur, and Yves Bissouma are available, Spurs have no shortage of grit, graft, or box-to-box dynamism. However, if they are to successfully reintroduce European football to the lineup next season, they will require depth, particularly if Postecoglou gets his wish and makes some slight roster purges.
As no one seems to be doing swap deals these days, this is essentially just a succinct method to talk about two viable possibilities for two teams who have different needs in the future, as well as a path forward for two players who might not be around for very long. Although it doesn’t seem likely that Spurs will be that atmosphere, Lo Celso has the skills to thrive there. Nørgaard, on the other hand, is getting close to 30 and has the right to advance to the next level; Brentford won’t be able to take advantage of him for very long. Thus, such a move would be quite logical. However, this is the market for transfers. It’s not made sense since when?
