In the big news of the day coming from north London, Tottenham forward Vincent Janssen has completed a season-long loan move to Turkish Super Lig side Fenerbahce on their deadline day, the club confirmed on their official website.
Things haven’t particularly worked out the way that the 23-year-old would have wanted in the Premier League after making his £17 million switch from Eredivisie outfit AZ Alkmaar last summer.
In his first season under boss Mauricio Pochettino he was awarded just two starts in the Premier League, scoring twice in 27 top-flight appearances altogether, and he consistently failed to impress.
And the deadline day arrival of Fernando Llorente from Swansea City has only pushed him down the pecking order, being left out of Pochettino’s Champions League squad announced earlier this week.
In other news, the Tottenham boss has dismissed the ongoing speculation over defender Toby Alderweireld’s future by saying that he remains “fully committed” to his duties in north London.
The Belgian international’s agent, Stijn Francis, spoke out earlier this week to Het Nieuwsblad and openly claimed that Alderweireld’s displays at the club merit a better contract than the current £50,000-a-week deal he’s on.
But speaking on Thursday afternoon, the Evening Standard relays that Pochettino said: “He was talking with me in my office this morning and he’s so happy, he wants to make it clear he is fully committed with the club.
“He’s happy with his contract, two years plus one. It’s not an issue. I recognise some rumours in the last few days. His idea is to try to play here – he’s happy here, there’s no reason to move.”
Alderweireld’s current contract runs out in 2019, with Tottenham having the option to extend this by a further year, and the Argentine is allegedly confident that there’s no reason to rush into anything.
And finally, speaking in his pre-match press conference Everton manager Ronald Koeman has been full of praise for Tottenham’s top-flight rejuvenation, claiming they have set the example for others.
The Dutchman is a known admirer of Spurs boss and, ahead of the clash between the two sides tomorrow afternoon, Koeman has once again praised the impact Pochettino has had at the club.
The Daily Mail relay that he said: “In my opinion, they are one of the strongest teams in the Premier League.
“Maybe they haven’t had the start they expected [four points from three matches] but they are a really strong side and I like how they play football.
“It is an example of how we need to make the next step as Everton. What they did is hard work, the development of young players and a really good manager.”
Tottenham have the opportunity to record four consecutive away victories for the first time since January 2014 when they travel to Goodison Park, looking to get back to winning ways in the league.