da betobet： Paul Jewell, Ipswich manager, said today that it would be extremely difficult to turn down an offer of £15m for his 18 year-old striker Connor Wickham. This will no doubt alert Spurs who have been linked with him every week since the beginning of the season. What I want to address today is the value of young talent. At £15m, does Connor Wickham represent good business or a massive gamble?
da pinnacle： With the recent success of Gareth Bale, it is easy for a Tottenham fan to become a bit romanticised with spending large sums on ‘wonder-kids’. They must remember there is always a risk. Tottenham’s immediate need is a proven striker, not a youngster. Wickham is an investment, not the finished article and £15m is a lot of money. But, given Tottenham’s net-spending on transfers in the last few seasons, it appears they can afford to invest in Wickham, as well as the big name signing the fans have been crying out for.
It is likely that Keane, Bentley and Pavlyuchenko will all be sold at the end of the season, so Tottenham’s budget should be able to cope with the purchase of Wickham. I have been told in the past that ‘a product is worth as much as someone is willing to pay for it’. This meant Andy Carroll cost Liverpool £35m and Darren Bent cost Aston Villa £24m. If Tottenham can afford £15m as well as a top class striker then Wickham is worth it, just as Gareth Bale was worth £10m in 2007.
The chances are that Spurs would not have to pay the full fee up front. £15m will be his eventual fee, after he has fulfilled all of his performance related bonuses. This is what happened with Bale, who was bought for an initial £5m, but ended up costing £10m. Transfers like that benefit the bigger clubs, and I am sure the transfer of Wickham will be no different. So Tottenham could potentially, sign him for £10m now, with £5m add-ons. With this in mind it seems a good deal, even if he does not become the next Alan Shearer, he is not exactly going to seriously depreciate in value. If he does not develop, Tottenham lose less money and if he does develop Ipswich are rewarded.
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When talking about Wickham, you have to remember he is only 18. In the early part of this season Ipswich were not playing well, and Wickham did not look great either. He was more noticeable for his white boots and ankle tape, than his performances in the games I watched. But, under Paul Jewell, Wickham has played every game, and he is playing very well. In February he scored his first hat-trick, against Doncaster. And earlier this month I saw him, at Portman Road, produce a very classy finish in a 1-3 loss to Reading. He has shown, more consistently, that he has all the attributes needed to be a top striker. He is skilful with his feet, and powerful in the air.
Importantly, his form has increased with his pitch-time, the last thing he needs is to be signed by a Premier League club and to be put on the bench. For his optimum development he could do with another year playing every game, not warming the bench at White Hart Lane. So if Tottenham sign him at the end of the season, his development might be stunted.
But the longer Tottenham leave it, the more expensive he will get. If he is signed next January or in 18 months he could be valued at as much as £20m. With this in mind, the best thing Tottenham can do is sign him in the summer and then send him back to Ipswich on loan for another season where he can continue to progress and work at his game on the pitch.
So I wouldn’t say it was a bargain in the way Pienaar, Kranjcar, Gallas or van der Vaart were, but I would say it is a fair price for both teams. It is a slight gamble, but one Tottenham can afford to make, given the amount of money they can make through selling players, and the potential rewards the deal could create.
Joe is on twitter at @joeautin8
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