Tottenham can bolster their hopes of signing defender Koki Machida if they agree to a key element in the structure of any deal.
Machida is a new name emerging on the list of Tottenham at the moment. A new defender is thought to be a high priority for Ange Postecoglou in the January window and Machida ticks a lot of boxes.
Reports have claimed Spurs could land Machida for just £12.8m, with Union Saint-Galliose apparently aware they could be powerless to resist big-money offers.
However, a further report from Lavenir today has suggested the could be a way for Union to keep hold of their star defender. Well, for the time being anyway.
Koki Machida could join Tottenham before being loaned back
Lavenir report that one of the ways Tottenham could convince Union to do business on this one is by allowing the defender to be loaned back until the end of the season.
The Belgian outfit apparently accept that the defender will leave but they don’t want to lose him mid-season and see a loan option as the ideal solution.
Of course, Tottenham are unlikely to want that to happen, given they’d be bringing Machida in for the here and now. With Micky van de Ven injured, a new defender is of paramount importance.
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Spurs would likely be willing to pay the modest £12.8m fee for Machida but the notion of him staying in Europe instead of coming to immediately help out seems an odd one.
Spurs need help now not in the summer
It’s all well and good making new signings in January but those players, when it comes to Spurs anyway, need to be able to contribute straight away.
Machida is clearly a defender with a lot of talent in the bag and there’s a reason why Spurs have apparently identified him.
But they need players to help from January onwards and not in the summer. Their injury issues have left them woefully short and someone like Machida can help massively.
Ange Postecoglou, then, is unlikely to want this sort of deal get the ok.