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Hojbjerg Needs To Tell Spurs To Get On With It
at 00:06 4 Aug 2020

Thank you Saint Nick for being a voice of reason and calm in a sea of panic and self-flagellation! You are spot on in so many ways and I think there are more things that can be added:

* Hojbjerg cannot leave for free in January - I am pretty sure that is rubbish and his contract runs until next summer.
* Hojbjerg is worth way more than £15m - even allowing for the fact that his contract is due in a year's time and that we are in a context where it is rumoured that players' values are likely to drop (an expectation that has not been demonstrated in many of the deals being done so far!)
* Walker-Peters is not worth anything like £15m yet - especially in the current climate, though admittedly his performances at Saints probably have added something to his transfer value - maybe even doubling in value from £5m to £10m.
* Premier League winnings are way above the ridiculous figure of £19m that someone quoted above. I think they are closer to the £123m that someone else quoted above.
* £123m is a lot of money that can cover the cost and wages of a reasonably decent player.
* Very rarely are player deals paid up-front - instead they are paid in instalments. Consequently there is some lee-way for negotiation even allowing for any failure to sell Hojbjerg this summer.
* Spurs do not hold ALL the cards on this. They need a central midfielder and will not go without one just to hold Saints to ransom over the amount we will accept. If we hold on and/or set a deadline somehow then they may be forced to shop elsewhere at which stage we may be able to sell PEH to one of the other bidders. In principle I would sell elsewhere than to Spurs as it could make a huge difference in the future if they realise we will not give in to their pressure.
* Hojbjerg definitely does not hold all the cards - if we hold on for a higher fee he will miss out on his dream move as Spuds will go elsewhere (after all this is Spuds not Liverpool we are taking about!), will end up a forgotten man in our reserves and will end up having to accept something far below his current aspirations! (In this respect the OP was right).

I really cannot believe that some people think we should just give in to Spuds demands over this - indeed some people seem even to be advocating going even further than Spurs are wanting us to go!! Are there Spurs, Bompey and Skates fans among us?.... NO, we definitely should NOT accept a straight player swap, nor even just £5m!

Instead I think the rumours that suggest we may end up buying KWP for £12m while selling PEH for £20m are probably much closer to the truth. Figures like that still feel a little like we have given in to Spud demands, but seem a fair compromise.

However, I would feel they should be the ultimate extent of our compromise to get this deal over the line. After all, we need enough money to not just buy KWP but to replace PEH, to shore up our defence and to invest in the future.

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