Tottenham fans desperately urge Antonio Conte to sign Southampton star

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Tottenham Hotspur were linked with a move to sign Southampton skipper James Ward-Prowse in the summer, but such never materialised. However, the England midfielder is getting better and better – and his set-piece ability was on show on Wednesday night. Spurs fans have responded to his goal and performance, urging the club to sign him.

Ward-Prowse, 27, curled in a delightful effort as Southampton drew 2-2 with Crystal Palace on Wednesday night. The Saints were good, although they ultimately failed to beat Patrick Vieira’s inconsistent Palace. But England ace Ward-Prowse matched Cristiano Ronaldo, in terms of direct free-kicks scored in the Premier League.

Indeed, he matches Ronaldo, Newcastle icon Laurent Robert and Swedish veteran Seb Larsson on 11 direct free-kicks. Only three remain above him, although there are no prizes for guessing who tops the list. David Beckham is way out in front, on a whopping 18. Thierry Henry and Giofranco Zola both have 12 to their name.

Not only did he score, but Ward-Prowse produced more key passes than any other player at Selhurst Park – with four. The midfielder also enjoyed the best passing rate of any Southampton player with around 78%, completing 25 of his 32 passes throughout the game. Little surprise, that clubs continue to sniff around for Ward-Prowse.

Tottenham need a hard-working midfielder, Ward-Prowse ideal for Conte

Spurs currently use Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the middle of the park. In Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3 system, the two central midfielders are initially expected to protect the back four – and be busy. Work rate, aggression, tackles, interceptions etc. When in possession, they must also boast the quality to feed the attackers.

Other than the wing-backs, the two midfielders probably have the biggest work load – not just in terms of distance run, under Conte. So, finding the right kind of player to play that role is important. Tanguy Ndombele is not fit enough, Dele Alli and Gio Lo Celso are not defensively disciplined. Ward-Prowse would be perfect.

He has that dogged determination to play as a Conte midfielder. Not only that, but Ward-Prowse also adds a creativity to Tottenham’s midfield – and of course, his enormous quality from free-kicks. It can be argued that Tottenham do not really have the perfect candidate to take free-kicks, with Harry Kane and Eric Dier the best of the bunch.

What do Tottenham fans think of Southampton star Ward-Prowse?

The Telegraph reported in the summer that Spurs were battling Villa to sign Ward-Prowse. Of course, Spurs are starting to use the Saints as a bit of a scouting pool in recent years. They signed Hojbjerg from the Saints in 2020, while also nabbing Toby Alderweireld, Mauricio Pochettino, Victor Wanyama and Paulo Gazzaniga from the south coast club.

Following Wednesday night’s efforts, Spurs fans think there should be another name on that list. It remains to be seen how much the Saints would want for Ward-Prowse, but a fee between £40million and £50million is certainly fair. TransferMarkt report that he has the same agent as Joe Rodon, and Ben Davies.