The puzzling lack of interest in Tottenham's Toby Alderweireld

Time is running out for Toby Alderweireld. With a little over two weeks until the summer transfer window closes, it also means a clause in the Belgian’s contract ends. As of midnight on the evening of Thursday July 25th, Tottenham can reject bids as low as £25m for the centre-back, a fee that potential suitors had to stump up this summer to land one of the Premier League’s most consistent defenders. 

Granted, Alderweireld has endured his injury issues in the past, but when fully fit, he is one of the best in the business. Indeed, the well-documented clause in his deal should have had teams queuing at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to secure his services for such a modest fee, and yet; it seems as though Alderweireld won’t be departing for £25m. 

Even at 30 years of age, Alderweireld would improve a majority of teams in dire need of defensive improvements. Speed was never the Belgian’s forte, but rather positional awareness and a knack of being in the right place at the right time to alleviate pressure on the Spurs goal. There’s a reason Alderweireld made only 37 tackles in 34 Premier League appearances last season; if you need to make a tackle, then you’ve already made a mistake. 

And yet despite a calm demeanour at the heart of the Spurs defence, which undoubtedly exudes confidence throughout the side, the only side to show a serious interest in Alderweireld was Serie A side Roma. A move to the Italian side appears to be dead in the water, and would mark a backwards step in the defender’s career, with all due respect to the Italian outfit, but a lack of Champions League football would rob Alderweireld of the chance to continue plying his trade among Europe’s best. 

When you see, say, Manchester United spending big to sign Harry Maguire, admittedly a very good defender, for a rumoured £80m, they could spend a quarter of that and land, arguably, a better centre-back, albeit, with more miles on the dashboard. In a world of inflated transfer fees, though, Alderweireld’s £25m clause represented a bargain.  

“Everything can go quick, but all I’m doing is focusing on Spurs and being fit for the start of the season,” Alderweireld said this week after being handed the captain’s armband for their pre-season 3-2 win over Juventus, in which may have been construed as a farewell act by head coach Mauricio Pochettino. The Belgian reaffirmed his commitment to both club and manager in the wake of the victory and with the new season fast approaching, this is good news for Spurs and their fans. 

Of course, plenty can change, not just between now and the clause deadline, but up until the close of the transfer window. Chairman Daniel Levy is rumoured to be upping his price for Alderweireld to at least £40m should the clause expire and no acceptable bids come in. Of course, it may be that the defender was keeping his cards close to his chest before committing to Spurs. 

At 30, Alderweireld has one big contract left of his career and he’ll be 31 by the time his current deal expires next summer. Spurs’ progression to the Champions League final was a step in the right direction for the club, as was the unveiling of their new stadium. The big money capture of Tanguy Ndombele from Lyon - Spurs beat off competition from a number of Europe’s elite to the Frenchman - is also a positive signal of intent by the club and that would help convince Alderweireld that he is best-suited remaining in north London. 

This remains a key period in the club’s history and after the signings of Jack Clarke, who was subsequently loaned back to Leeds, and arrival of Ndombele ended an 18-month transfer hiatus, big moves are still to be made before the end of the summer window, with Giovani Lo Celso and Ryan Sessegnon edging closer to switches to Spurs. 

It may also be that teams are holding out until next summer to land Alderweireld on a free, but this brings with it risks in itself as it may be that the defender pens a new long-term deal with the club or, at the very least, signs an extension that inserts a similar clause into his contract. Either way, as the clock ticks towards the clause deadline, it remains a mystery that none of Europe’s top teams have firmed up rumoured interest in a top quality centre-back they could acquire for £25m.