Tottenham look at signing £25m star as Postecoglou eyes Werner replacement

Tottenham Hotspur are looking at signing a potential bargain long-term replacement for Timo Werner, with manager Ange Postecoglou personally keen to bring in another winger next year.

Postecoglou publicly criticises Werner after Rangers display

Spurs narrowly escaped Ibrox with a 1-1 draw against Rangers in the Europa League on Thursday, and while there were a few sub-par performers on the night, Postecoglou particularly took aim at Werner after his showing.

The Lilywhites boss publicly labelled Werner’s display as nowhere near good enough, demanding more of a German international who has plenty of experience plying his trade at the very highest level of European football.

“I said that to Timo. He’s a senior international, he’s a German international,” said Postecoglou on Werner’s performance against Rangers.

“In the moment we’re in right now, it’s not like we’ve got many options. I need everyone to at least be going out there trying to give the best of themselves. His performance in the first half wasn’t acceptable.”

The comments, of course, sparked plenty of discussion – with Postecoglou later sticking to his guns and calling his message an “assessment” rather than outright criticism.

“No, it wasn’t criticism. It was assessment,” said Postecoglou on his Werner comments.

“If we played poorly, we played poorly. With Timo it wasn’t about whether he played well or not. It was a difficult game last night. I’m asking 18-year-olds to do some massive jobs and you want senior players, and he’s a senior player, he’s an international and he’s won the Champions League, there’s a level of application and performance you need to rise to, to help the team.

“He didn’t reach that. I think me taking him off at half-time was a statement enough. The same way I won’t be hiding behind poor team performances, the same with and no different for the players or anyone else. It wasn’t criticism, it was just an assessment of his performance and on a really challenging night for us, which we knew going into it, it needs to be better.”

The £165,000-per-week forward, who’s scored just once in all competitions since March, has been repeatedly criticised by some for his wasteful finishing and lack of end product since signing for Spurs on loan from RB Leipzig last January.

Tottenham have the option to buy Werner outright for around £8.5 million, but according to GiveMeSport, the north Londoners are highly unlikely to take it up.

Tottenham look at signing Rayan Cherki

Indeed, it is believed Spurs are on course to let Werner depart at the end of the season, with Postecoglou personally desiring a new wide player in 2025. Of the targets mentioned, the most interesting one is Lyon star Rayan Cherki.

The French starlet could be available for just £25 million – with his club in the midst of a financial crisis and could be forced to sell on the cheap next month – as they attempt to balance the books in a bid to swerve their provisional relegation to Ligue 2.

This has sparked interest from N17, with Tottenham looking at signing Cherki as a potential replacement for Werner. The 21-year-old has a glowing reputation from abroad, and the notion he could be signed for under £30 million has been called a potential bargain.

“You see figures around Cherki and there’s like 25 million pounds is talked about, which just seems like too good to be true,” said journalist Dean Jones on the Ranks FC Ultras podcast recently.

“He’s just different, this player. If you haven’t seen Cherki play, then just either stop the pod and go and watch him on YouTube for 10 minutes and then come back or just go watch him while we’re talking right now. Because his skill level is outrageous. He feels like he could become one of the best players in the world.”