Arsenal: Toby Alderweireld capture a Spurs-esque trophy
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal are a bigger club than Tottenham will ever be, and that is what makes Toby Alderweireld’s potential exit so delicious. Let’s explore the implications.
Arsenal are a club known to celebrate real things, such as trophies. You know the type – FA Cups, Premier League trophies – any big shiny thing that resembles a cup and signifies having won something other than pride.
Tottenham Hotspur, meanwhile, have nothing to celebrate. They put the pressure on some teams, came in third in a two-horse race and finished above the Gunners a couple times and for the Spurs, that encapsulates a successful decade of Premier League dominance.
But Arsenal are bigger than that, and can’t be troubled with such trifling matters. What they can be trifled with, is the potential to steal another Spurs defender and pay him what he deserves while making him the solution to their biggest problem.
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Toby Alderweireld has been struggling to find his footing at Spurs all year, as he has had injury problems as well as continued (and unsuccessful) contract negotiations. He wants £150,000 in wages, which is reasonable given his abilities, but Spurs are reportedly only willing to pay him £110,000.
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With only a year left on his deal, this summer may be the time to cash in on the Belgian defender, or risk him doing a full Sol Campbell next summer.
Whether or not the Spurs would willingly sell such a key (or formerly key) component of their defensive solidity is a question that will have to be answered in the summer, but if it’s between that and watching him walk for free next summer, then it shouldn’t be much of a contest.
The most beautiful thing about this potential deal is obviously the mental toll that it would do to Spuds fans. How can all of their numerous successes still fail to keep their best players away from their North London superiors?
Not just that, but if this move were to go the other way. Say, if Nacho Monreal went to Tottenham (it’s funny to even type, because it would never happen), you can be 100% certain that they would celebrate it like one of their numerous trophies over the past couple decades and potentially even release a DVD entailing how they came to be so successful in the first place.
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Of course, there is also the added benefit that Alderweireld is an excellent Premier League defender with the physical domination that we need on our back line. So, you know, if all that hum-drum rivalry garbage doesn’t get you riled up, the practicality of it all might.