Having sold Michael Dawson to Hull City, Tottenham Hotspur have bolstered their defensive options by signing Federico Fazio.
Dawson had fallen out of favour at White Hart Lane in recent times, and despite the arrival of a new head coach in the summer, his situation didn’t show signs of improvement. So when the Tigers bid £3.5million for the former Nottingham Forest youngster, Mauricio Pochettino was happy for the 30-year-old to end his nine-and-a-half year spell at the club.
And almost immediately the Londoners were linked with Fazio, who has spent the past seven years in Spain with Sevilla. During this time the 27-year-old helped Los Rojiblancos to Copa del Rey glory in 2010, although he didn’t feature in the final against Atletico Madrid, and last season he was part of the team which overcome Benfica in the UEFA Europa League final.
Spurs have confirmed a deal has now been wrapped up to sign the Argentina international, whose two appearances for his country have ended in defeat, with the defender signing a four-year contract. Although a fee has not been disclosed, it is understood that the capital club have agreed to meet the £8million release clause in his Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan deal.
Fazio becomes the fourth signing his compatriot Pochettino has made since succeeding Tim Sherwood in the summer, following Ben Davies and Michel Vorm (both Swansea City), Eric Dier (Sporting Lisbon), and DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders). Meanwhile, the former Southampton boss has ruled out the sales of Andros Townsend, who is thought to be a target for the Saints, and Roberto Soldado, who has been linked with a switch to Milan.
On Soldado, Pochettino said: “Soldado is here. I never talk about any player rumours. He is in my plans. For the future? Yes. Yes. We’ve only had two games in the Premier League and one in the Europa League. I believe in all the squad. It is important you know I can only pick 11.” And when asked about Townsend, he added: “He is in my plans. It is impossible you play or have in the squad only 11 players – you need 24 or 25 players.”
Soldado has played just 13 minutes of Tottenham’s Premier League campaign so far, when he came on towards the end of the 4-0 win over Queens Park Rangers on Sunday afternoon. Townsend, meanwhile, played 35 minutes of the opening 1-0 win at West Ham United, although he is still short of match fitness as he recovers from a ligament injury.
Tottenham fans, do you think Fazio is a good signing? And what other business does Pochettino need to do before the window closes on Monday? Let us know what you think by joining in the discussion below!
