Tottenham Hotspur have the option to sign Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis this month but one question remains: Should they?
On the chalkboard
The deal to sign Lo Celso on loan in the summer comes with two clauses that chairman Daniel Levy agreed to.
One allows Spurs to buy him this month for a reduced fee – €32m (£27.1m) instead of €40m (£33.8m) – while an option to sign him in the summer for the latter fee will become an obligation if they qualify for the Champions League.
He has not garnered a huge sample size because he has made just two starts for Spurs this season, with nine substitute appearances in addition.
Nevertheless, his statistics remain enlightening.
The big fat Tottenham quiz of 2019 – how much do you remember about the last year at Spurs?
He has yet to score or provide an assist for Spurs in the league and, per WhoScored, he has averaged 0.5 shots per game, 0.5 key passes and 0.4 dribbles, while drawing 1.5 fouls.
Lo Celso also averages 15.5 passes per game, with a success rate of 85.3%, along with 0.5 key passes.
Defensively, he makes one tackle per game, along with 0.2 interceptions and 0.5 fouls.
Nobody knows
This is much of a muchness from Lo Celso.
He is hardly a standout midfield player at Spurs but one has to wonder if that is purely because he isn’t playing enough.
It is difficult to garner a proper statistical view on a player who has completed 90 minutes just once in the league. Those came against Sheffield United in Mauricio Pochettino’s last game as manager.
Under Jose Mourinho, he has started twice in a row – against Norwich City and Southampton – but he has been substituted in each game.
Thus, bringing him in would represent something of a punt purely because he has only been allowed to show flashes of his talent thus far.
Bringing him in on a permanent basis could well lead to Spurs signing an excellent playmaker who can run games for years to come; it could just as well be a mistake.
At this stage, until he starts playing regularly, it simply isn’t clear.
Meanwhile, Spurs are tracking an excellent striker in fine form.