Tottenham Hotspur have been urged to sell Davinson Sanchez during the upcoming January transfer window
This season has seen the defender make 12 appearances for the Lilywhites across all competitions, with just seven of those coming as a starter.
This suggests that he is not at the top of Antonio Conte’s pecking order in the defensive area of his team. With the January transfer window approaching, this has led to one pundit suggesting that the north London side should look to move the Colombian out of the club.
Speaking to Football Insider, Spurs expert and pundit, John Wenham, had this to say about the current squad and what changes should be made in January.
“We need to improve the defence. The players I am happy with at the moment are [Eric] Dier, [Cristian] Romero, [Clement] Lenglet, and [Ben] Davies. That is four taken already.
“You then have to look and think about who we could realistically move on and get a decent fee for as well as someone who takes up a foreign player spot.
“That’s Davinson Sanchez or Japhet Tanganga. Tanganga, the whole world apart from me thinks he must be sold but they don’t understand the basic principles of the homegrown regulations. He counts as club trained as well so if Tottenham got an offer for either, I am telling you right now they would accept the offer for Sanchez.
“He is on bigger money and he counts towards one of the foreign player spots. Where do I stand on Sanchez? It is probably time now, he has been here for a number of years, we are playing three at the back now and he hasn’t established himself as one of the starters.
“Maybe he looked better when he first joined because he was playing alongside [Jan] Vertonghen or [Toby] Alderweireld, who were world-class defenders.
“I always thought he was ok while others criticised him. But we are at the point where we need to upgrade the defence and get someone out, he is the one.”
The Verdict: A decision for Conte
Despite not always being included in the starting XI, the 26-year-old has shown how much of a useful defensive option he can be as he currently sits in the top five for the average of tackles (1.4), interceptions (1), blocks (0.6) and clearances per game (2.4) at Spurs.
However, having been slammed for his “shocking” performances in the past by Jamie O’Hara, Sanchez’s efforts in the league this season have earned him a rather disappointing overall rating of 6.53/10 from WhoScored, leaving 11 Spurs players above him.
Taking all of this into account, it seems as though Conte may have a big decision on his hands over whether or not he decides to keep the £65k-per-week defender at the club beyond January or not.
