Sky Sports pundit Kevin Phillips has tipped Tottenham midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg to make the move to AS Roma in the summer transfer window.
The Lowdown: Important to Tottenham
The 26-year-old joined Tottenham from Southampton in 2020 in a deal worth £15m. Since then, the Denmark international has gone on to play an important part in Spurs’ midfield, having amassed 85 appearances for the club.
Hojbjerg has predominantly been used as a ball-winning defensive midfielder this season, having appeared in that role 22 times, averaging 2.1 tackles and 1.5 interceptions per game (via WhoScored). Those figures rank him fourth and joint-second among Spurs’ squad for those respective metrics.
The midfielder has been ranked as Tottenham’s second-best player of the campaign so far, with a 7.14 SofaScore rating trumping star striker Harry Kane and bettered only by Heung-min Son.
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The Latest: Phillips tips Hojbjerg for Roma move
Last summer, Football Insider reported that Roma manager Jose Mourinho was keen on a reunion with the Spurs midfielder, who the 59-year-old knows from his stint in north London.
Phillips, who appears as a pundit on Sky Sports, has now claimed that the decisive factor over the Dane’s future is the amount of game-time he receives before the end of the season. Speaking with Football Insider, he said:
“I can see that happening [a move to AS Roma]. Mourinho really likes him as a player. You could tell that when they were together at Spurs.
“He sits in front of that back four and breaks up the play well. Mourinho likes that kind of midfielder.
“I think Italy would suit him as well. It is not as quick as the Premier League, not that the pace of the Premier League is a problem to him. Hojbjerg is very aggressive in his play and can occasionally chip in with a goal.
“It just depends if he’s going to play regularly under Conte. Conte will have decided by the end of the season who he wants at the club. If Hojbjerg’s not a big part of the plans I can see him leaving for Roma, for sure.”
The Verdict: Blow for Conte
Conte may have found his starting midfield partnership following Spurs’ dramatic 3-2 win over Manchester City on Saturday.
Whilst it was Harry Kane who stole the show with a 95th-minute winner, Hojbjerg and Bentancur’s double pivot held Spurs together in the midfield. The 52-cap Denmark international made three tackles and two clearances, illustrating why he should be a guaranteed inclusion in Conte’s starting XI.
If Mourinho proves successful in his pursuit of the player, this will come as a huge blow for the current Spurs boss, who utilises a wing-back formation which requires two holding midfielders to control the game.
Having been benched just once under Conte in league action, it appears that the Italian values Hojbjerg just as highly as Mourinho does. Therefore, if the Dane opts to reunite with his former manager in Rome, it would be a massive blow for the 52-year-old.
In other news: Spurs not planning on contract talks with star player
