I know we’re all still flying after beating Arsenal in a preseason friendly North London Derby in Hong Kong and lifting another trophy (when will it get old hat? Not yet, clearly), so I’m sorry to barge in like the Kool-Aid Man with what might be considered bad news. But according to The Athletic, Tottenham Hotspur are currently in negotiations with Bayern Munich over a season long loan for 30-year-old midfield ball-winner Palhinha.
I say “bad news” but this actually represents an improvement over past rumors connecting Spurs with Palhinha who joined Bayern last summer and was so impactful the club is already desperate to get rid of him. Real talk: a loan is better than a purchase. You can cock your head, squint, and make an argument that loaning in an experienced midfielder who is legitimately good at winning the ball playing at the base of midfield is a good thing, even if that ball-winning destroyer can’t pass, dribble, or score. It’s just not a very GOOD argument.
Notably, the Athletic doesn’t mention whether this would be considered a “dry” loan (i.e. no purchase option or obligation) or not. If there’s a purchase option, then whatever — options are, well, optional. An obligation would make me mad, as it would mean we’d be spending real money to bring in a 30+ guy who I frankly don’t think is very good, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.
I’m still not thrilled with this rumor and I think it represents a lack of vision and recruitment in the midfield by Johan Lange and his team, especially when we STILL don’t have any good midfield passing in the team. But a one year Palhinha loan wouldn’t make me want to break things at least. That’s pretty thin gruel, but I guess I’ll take it?