Spurs extensively scouted Rafa last season
5 min read
Spurs fans are well aware Mauricio Pochettino wants to improve the wide attacking areas at Tottenham and we have been extensively scouting a candidate in Portugal, not a country we scout a lot.
Regular and long term readers will remember me suggesting for a couple of years a young player from Portugal, a certain Eric Dier, well Rafa, as he is commonly known, is another lad and Spurs have been sending sxouts for over a year now to watch him play.
On the left we have an improved 25-year-old Nacer Chadli with 11 Premier League goals, 5 assists last season and sometimes 23-year-old Christian Eriksen with 10 Premier League goals, 2 assists, not nearly enough for a playmaker.
On the right however we have 23-year-old Erik Lamela 2 Premier League goals, 7 assists and 23-year-old Andros Townsend with 2 Premier League goals and 2 assists.
There is a big difference in return and Pochettino has to find a way of making the right side more productive while not diminishing the output from the left. The left side is not ideal for Eriksen so we have been scouting alternatives to Chadli on the left as well.
A player we have high on our list is 22-year-old Rafael Ferreira Silva plying his trade at SC Braga as a right footed left winger. Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, the highest selling sport newspaper in Portugal, report that Tottenham are regularly sending a scout to closely watch the player, in Portugal club release to the press who is attending games.
This has continued and instead of having Celtic and Zenit St Petersburg as company a year ago our scouts are now seeing Juventus and Barcelona scouts take an interest in him. Last season O Jogo were running stories throughout the season of our interest.
If we are to make a move for him and the extent of the scouting suggests that is a serious possibility then this window may be the time to do it. If we leave it any later his value will start to rise and a move to one of European footballs names, with a greater chance of winning trophies might become more attractive.
He is impressing scouts with his skill and dribbling ability and reports on him suggest he has a skill level only elite players have. Over the last couple of years it's thought he will be a future star as he progresses with first team football under an experienced coach. Having been moved centrally he was developing as the attacking midfielder, but still with outings on the wing.
Under a new coach last season he was deployed as a wide man in a 4-3-3 system. He isn't the finished article yet, he needs to to work on his consistency, decision-making and ability to stick to his role within a tactical system. The ability is there to play at the top level, for me he is a player who will increase in value in line with our policy and would be a welcome addition to the squad.
He reads the game, the team ethic upbringing aids this development, has tight ball control and that rare ability to leave defenders flatfooted by stopping and changing direction. Rafa has a powerful shot using a low backlift and quick release allowing him to take shots early, too many of our players want to perfect opportunity to shoot. He has creativity and scoring ability meaning he has been compared to Edin Hazerd.
He has not had it easy getting to the top Portuguese division even at his tender age and has shown commendable determination to get there, a trait that shows a winning mentality. he came through local youth sides rather than a big clubs academy, then signed for a second division side before moving to Braga.
When he was 20 and had only just come out of the second division his new coach, now former coach, had some profound words to say to the media about him, words that differ from the individualistic based football we see.
That is exactly what Mauricio Pochettino is trying to instil at Tottenham. It is no good a player like Mousa Dembele playing for himself, and by that I mean indulging in his favourite pastime beating players, if it isn't to benefit our play. Andros Townsend is rumoured to do what he wants rather than what Pochettino tells him to do. It's all about the individual or the team, players have to adapt.
Regular and long term readers will remember me suggesting for a couple of years a young player from Portugal, a certain Eric Dier, well Rafa, as he is commonly known, is another lad and Spurs have been sending sxouts for over a year now to watch him play.
On the left we have an improved 25-year-old Nacer Chadli with 11 Premier League goals, 5 assists last season and sometimes 23-year-old Christian Eriksen with 10 Premier League goals, 2 assists, not nearly enough for a playmaker.
On the right however we have 23-year-old Erik Lamela 2 Premier League goals, 7 assists and 23-year-old Andros Townsend with 2 Premier League goals and 2 assists.
There is a big difference in return and Pochettino has to find a way of making the right side more productive while not diminishing the output from the left. The left side is not ideal for Eriksen so we have been scouting alternatives to Chadli on the left as well.
A player we have high on our list is 22-year-old Rafael Ferreira Silva plying his trade at SC Braga as a right footed left winger. Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, the highest selling sport newspaper in Portugal, report that Tottenham are regularly sending a scout to closely watch the player, in Portugal club release to the press who is attending games.
This has continued and instead of having Celtic and Zenit St Petersburg as company a year ago our scouts are now seeing Juventus and Barcelona scouts take an interest in him. Last season O Jogo were running stories throughout the season of our interest.
If we are to make a move for him and the extent of the scouting suggests that is a serious possibility then this window may be the time to do it. If we leave it any later his value will start to rise and a move to one of European footballs names, with a greater chance of winning trophies might become more attractive.
He is impressing scouts with his skill and dribbling ability and reports on him suggest he has a skill level only elite players have. Over the last couple of years it's thought he will be a future star as he progresses with first team football under an experienced coach. Having been moved centrally he was developing as the attacking midfielder, but still with outings on the wing.
Under a new coach last season he was deployed as a wide man in a 4-3-3 system. He isn't the finished article yet, he needs to to work on his consistency, decision-making and ability to stick to his role within a tactical system. The ability is there to play at the top level, for me he is a player who will increase in value in line with our policy and would be a welcome addition to the squad.
He reads the game, the team ethic upbringing aids this development, has tight ball control and that rare ability to leave defenders flatfooted by stopping and changing direction. Rafa has a powerful shot using a low backlift and quick release allowing him to take shots early, too many of our players want to perfect opportunity to shoot. He has creativity and scoring ability meaning he has been compared to Edin Hazerd.
He has not had it easy getting to the top Portuguese division even at his tender age and has shown commendable determination to get there, a trait that shows a winning mentality. he came through local youth sides rather than a big clubs academy, then signed for a second division side before moving to Braga.
When he was 20 and had only just come out of the second division his new coach, now former coach, had some profound words to say to the media about him, words that differ from the individualistic based football we see.
“Rafa? He came out of the second division and brought a lot of excitement, but some people forget that he is not a true footballer yet. He is still trying to get there.
I have trained plenty of ‘Rafas’ during my career. A 20-year-old without much experience at this level needs to learn how to best use his individual abilities for the collective good. He could only be a ‘top’ player when he learns how to play as part of a squad.
"I see him as a forward who could play in any of the front three positions, but he can improve his finishing further and he needs to become more robust.”
That is exactly what Mauricio Pochettino is trying to instil at Tottenham. It is no good a player like Mousa Dembele playing for himself, and by that I mean indulging in his favourite pastime beating players, if it isn't to benefit our play. Andros Townsend is rumoured to do what he wants rather than what Pochettino tells him to do. It's all about the individual or the team, players have to adapt.
While 2 goals and 6 assists in 34 league games may not sound a lot we are looking at him as a player who will improve and a purchase will depend upon what player we feel he can develop into, in addition to what he can produce now. He has been capped by Portugal already and went to the World Cup as the youngest player in the Portuguese squad. His stock is rising, if we want him now may be our only chance.
Related article: Developing Youth
Related article: Developing Youth
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