Seven games into the new Premier League season and Tottenham have used 21 players. 16 of those have started matches. Ten were signed since Ange Postecoglou's managerial appointment in the summer of 2023.
Add in Destiny Udogie and Pape Matar Sarr - both of whom were already on the books but had been out on loan before being integrated - as well as Dejan Kulusevski and Pedro Porro, who had played for the club but were yet to make their moves to north London permanent, and the number of 'Postecoglou players' is 14.
The list of those who have departed since the Australian came in is even longer. It leaves a remarkable rate of change from an ageing and underperforming squad Antonio Conte oversaw to the vibrant and expressive one on show.
. Since Postecoglou's arrival, Daniel Levy as chairman has sanctioned £352million worth of transfers coming into north London, recouping less than half of that with £147.5million coming in.
A lot of the exits have been on free transfers, demonstrating the age and plateau many had gotten to in their Tottenham careers. It is worth adding that players like Min-Hyeok Yang and Manor Solomon have been accounted for here as well despite not being part of Postecoglou's options this season.
Alongside the signings, Three transfers windows, two summers, but just over 14 months in, and it's hard to argue that this isn't very much Postecoglou's squad.
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Looking at the list of those who are involved now and hadn't played for Tottenham before Postecoglou (12 players in total), the success on this front is clear. Using estimates from respected football data site Transfermarkt, these are the findings.
Under Postecoglou (and including Udogie and Sarr), Spurs signed nine of the 12 players for more than their market value. However, compared to some of their rivals, they didn't overshoot the mark by much.
The combined fees for the so-called 'Postecoglou players' (minus Kulusevski and Porro) was £310million. Transfermarkt suggests that at the time of buying, they were worth £239million.
For example, perhaps other than Timo Werner, who is still only on a loan. That means that the chances of them increasing in value is high, and the likeliness of that being a sharp rise is also big.
This will come with on-field success as well, but even someone like Radu Dragusin - who has hardly lit the world up since his move in January, has risen in value across 10 months. What makes things better for Levy, and is certainly not the case at Chelsea and Manchester United, is that wholesale improvement can already be seen.
but would almost certainly go for double that at current rates. In fact, evidence of this is that in just over 12 months of Postecoglou's tutelage, their value have already jumped to £150million.
In essence, for just over a year of ownership, Spurs would be set to bank an enormous profit. Of course, the aim is to see this born out into victories on the pitch, which is still showing signs of being behind some of their competitors.
Take the Van de Ven - Vicario effect, as it can be quickly called, and add that to the rest of the squad, the 12 'Postecoglou players' have a Transfermakt worth of £368.8million. That is already over £130million more than the value attributed to the same group when they were signed, and is almost £60million that the actual fee paid as well.
Given that someone of Archie Gray's stature - still only 18 - is a long-term investment and only deemed to be worth half the price Tottenham spent, this is mightily impressive. Compare it to Manchester United, who are also in the Europa League this season thanks to their unexpected FA Cup triumph in May, and it's night and day.
Erik ten Hag, who United hired a year before Postecoglou went to Tottenham, has a bigger influence on transfers at Old Trafford and has an outlay of £472.2million on players he signed that have been used this season, therefore discounting £77million on Leny Yoro and Malacia. Between just three players they are judged to be in a £113million value deficit.
The general trend in that squad is on the way down, although bright youngsters brought through offer a ray of light. As for Tottenham, their business has been much less flashy but so far more effective.
The next step is for Postecoglou to deliver the sort of results that a squad of this talent is capable of. Until then , but in reality his methods have already sown the seeds for financial and sporting reward further down the line.
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