Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou is confident Mathys Tel will stay at the club past his loan spell after stating he did not “bring him here for six months”.
The 19-year-old was signed on an initial temporary deal from Bayern Munich on Transfer Deadline Day, with a £45m option to make the switch permanent included, after performing a dramatic U-turn on his decision to reject a move to Spurs three days earlier.
If the option to make the transfer permanent is triggered, Tel will sign a six-year deal, and Postecoglou is confident that will happen.
“He will play a significant part in our end to the season for sure and beyond,” Postecoglou said ahead of Thursday’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Liverpool, live on Sky Sports. “He wants to make an impact and I expect him to do that.
“He will be a Tottenham player. I think he will show everyone he will be a Tottenham player in the next six months. I didn’t bring him here for six months.”
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Harry Kane gives an insight into his team-mate Mathys Tel and shares his opinion on his loan move to Spurs
Ange on ‘selling’ Spurs to Tel
As previously noted, Tel initially turned down the move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before reversing his decision and joining on Deadline Day.
Sky Sports News reported this U-turn came about after a lengthy conversation with Postecoglou on how he would be used in the team, which reignited the player’s interest in joining the club.
When asked about his powers of persuasion, Postecoglou played down claims of him “selling” the move and instead focused on the belief he has in the project as the reason why Tel chose to join.
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Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou says he told Mathys Tel he’d be the ‘perfect fit’ for Spurs and credits the young forward for taking his time before accepting the offer
He said: “There is something to be said for honesty and integrity. I think I have a pretty compelling story to tell because I think when I speak to players, I am not trying to sell anything that there isn’t plenty of evidence for.
“It is not about smooth talking or selling. There is a good story here that I really believe in. I speak from a strong conviction that what I am saying will come to fruition.”
When asked if any conversations with players had failed, Postecoglou added: “I don’t need to do anything special. You hear the success stories but there have been plenty that haven’t worked out. There was a couple this window!
“You know straight away that there is a disconnect. I don’t have a 100 per cent hit rate. I walk away and think good player but won’t be a good fit.
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Spurs’ new signing Mathys Tel reveals his reasons for joining the club from Bayern Munich and highlights what the Tottenham fans can expect from him
“I don’t like having conversations unless there is real interest from both sides. I don’t like to waste my time.”
Tel could make debut vs Liverpool
Postecoglou also confirmed Tel and fellow new arrival Kevin Danso are available for selection against Liverpool but Micky van de Ven will miss out with the club looking to take precautions with his return after Radu Dragusin’s ACL injury.
Van de Ven returned in the Europa League win against Elfsborg after missing seven weeks with a hamstring injury but was absent for the subsequent victory against Brentford last weekend.
Cristian Romero, who has been out since December with a thigh injury, will also be unavailable.
“Mathys and Kevin are both available,” Postecoglou said.
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“With Micky and Romero to a certain extent, I just feel we need to be more conservative with them.
“My view is we are not going to risk these guys. We’ll keep them ticking over in training and make sure they are ready and don’t have any setbacks.”
Where will Tel play for Spurs?
The young forward adds well needed versatility to Spurs’ injury laden side, with his new manager claiming he could operate as the striker or out wide given Dominic Solanke, Wilson Odobert, Brennan Johnson and Timo Werner are all currently sidelined.
Mathys Tel offers well needed versatility to Tottenham as injuries continue to pile up
“Archie Gray wanted to be a central midfielder, so who knows where he’ll end up,” Postecoglou joked when asked about where Tel will play.
“He’s got the attributes to play as a No 9 for sure. He’s played wide well for sure. At the moment we’re probably going to need him in all those areas.
“As much as we’ve got issues at the back, we’ve probably got bigger issues in attack – we’re missing three wingers and our main striker.
“I get people are still dismissing the fact tomorrow we’re going to have nine first-team players out. Having Mathys, who can play both wide and centrally, in the short-term he’ll fill all three roles.”
