Tottenham Hotspur will start the post-Gareth Bale era at home to Norwich City on Saturday in search of a performance that suggests they are on course for Champions League qualification. The sale of Bale to Real Madrid for a reported fee of £86 million ($132.5 million, 100 million euros) dominated Spurs’ close season but also provided the bulk of the funding for a £110 million spending spree that saw seven new faces arrive at White Hart Lane.
In 2012-13, Bale was named player of the season by both his fellow professionals and football writers in England, but Tottenham could only finish fifth and missed out on the Champions League. Now manager Andre Villas-Boas is hoping his new recruits can blend together quickly as he knows a top-four finish is expected of him after he broke the club’s transfer record three times in the close season. ‘Our objective is the same: it’s Champions League qualification,’ he said.
‘It never crossed our mind to do anything different, bearing in mind the changes we have made. This is the minimum requirement towards what we want to achieve. ‘Our level of expenditure in the transfer market raises expectations, but they have to be real, not false expectations. ‘We don’t have the experience to deal with the pressure of a team that plays for a title. We have never done it in recent years. ‘We will compete, as usual, for the Champions League places, providing we assume the responsibility of having failed that objective the season before, and we want to do better this season.’
Erik Lamela is in line for a first appearance at White Hart Lane following his arrival from Roma and Christian Eriksen, recruited from Ajax, is hoping to make his debut, but a third newcomer, Romania defender Vlad Chiriches, cannot play as he has yet to be granted a work permit.
Tottenham will kick off in sixth place after picking up six points from their first three Premier League fixtures, with Norwich three places below and two points worse off. The Canaries have also spent a club-record amount on new recruits, including Netherlands striker Ricky van Wolfswinkel. They would want to get results.
New boys steeled for EPL debuts
LONDON: Mesut Ozil and Willian could be among the players making their first appearances when the Premier League resumes on Saturday. No sooner did the transfer window close on September 2 than the international break began, meaning that fans have had to wait close to two weeks for a first glimpse of their clubs’ new signings in action.
Arsenal’s capture of Ozil from Real Madrid in a club-record £42.4 million ($66 million, 50 million euros) deal stole the deadline-day headlines, and he is expected to make his debut at Sunderland on Saturday.
The deal made Ozil the most expensive German footballer of all time, but the 24-year-old has played down the significance of his price tag.
‘I would have come here without a fee. That would not be a problem,’ he said. ‘Of course I am proud of this, but the most important thing is that the manager trusts me. That was crucial for me and that is why I came to Arsenal.’
Spurs offset Bale’s departure by spending around £110 million on new players and could hand a debut to Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen against Norwich. ‘We expect great things of Christian Eriksen and we want to develop him into becoming that sort of important player for us as well,’ said Villas Boas.
Defending champions Manchester United were not nearly as active in the transfer market, but they could hand a debut to £27.5 million new recruit Marouane Fellaini against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Manager Jose Mourinho will have Willian at his disposal for the first time since he completed his £30 million move from Anzhi Makhachkala.