Schneiderlin v Sandro

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Schneiderlin speaking about Pochettino:

“I think a manager like that is good for every club. With the quality Tottenham have, Mauricio Pochettino will get the best out of each player. He came in and made Southampton play and now Tottenham have a great future. He improved me very much. He improved whole squad and improved me as a player. He’s a great coach and good man and it’s a shame Southampton lost him"

I love stuff like this. Firstly, they are direct quotes so context wise there isn't much here to muddle your senses. He's been asked about Pochettino and he's answered honestly about how much he rates his coaching abilities.

Now read it like you're a Spurs fan obsessed with wanting to see the club spend more money and it appears Schneiderlin is tapping himself up for a move to our beloved club simply because he's speaking so positively about his ex-boss. Cue countless links and suggestions that there is development undergoing to have him captured for our forever increasing midfield.

But hold on a minute...

Poch is meant to be evaluating the squad and Sandro isn't currently available, so will he not wait to see the Brazilian in action before deciding it's best to replace him? The thinking here (because we have all the time in the world to clash our grey matter to oblivion) is that at this precise moment in time Sandro has decent stock value if we seek to sell him. Another season of injuries and that value will diminish, meaning Daniel Levy would potentially consider selling him now and replacing him with someone of equal comparison. This means we'd have to sell him for more than we sign Schneiderlin for (book balancing the priority to uphold our club ethos - the game is about money). This also means Schneiderlin must be considered equal to the bearded dart playing guitar playing mentalist. Is he?

Well no, he isn't. Not in this wee supporters opinion. Sandro at his best is beastly, it's just that he appears as delicately poised as a glass ornament sat around rampaging bulls. Is he prone to injury? Yes, so far. Unlucky perhaps. So financially, the gamble makes Levy edge towards a quick profit whilst making sure we have suitable replacements or promotions in the squad. So the team is also balanced out without losing too much in quality. That's if you believe a more consistently performing player (Morgan) is better than a player superior in ability but playing less games (Sandro) even if he isn't as good at his very best (Morgan). Choke on that one Twitter.

If someone is willing to spend £15M on him then perhaps we should question their rationalising. Are they willing to do so with the belief he is injury prone? I doubt it. But perhaps Italy means less exposure to the rough and tumble of the Prem and they feel they can limit any damage.

If we want to compete, truly compete, we don't sell Sandro. If Schneiderlin is a genuine target (still not sure he is considering how many players Southampton have sold you'd think they'd keep at least one of their better players) then something is afoot. Someone will have to go.

Probably not a secret that in this day and age an agent can tout a player around to gauge interest so if Spurs are listening to offers, nothing has happened because Spurs haven't yet decided. That doesn't mean Sandro isn't listening and biding his time. Maybe he knows he'll always be fighting injuries so why not do it in a place with cultural upgrades to our kingdom.

Back when Sandro first arrived it was almost a universal agreement among us that we'd lose him to the continent at some point. The special relationship here was to aid the acclimatisation of Brazilians to Europe then sell them on. Turns out he was our only signing from Internacional and Sandro has since completely immersed himself in English culture. Do they have darts in Italy?

Ignore the social media antics, to a degree, even ignore the injuries. Let's see what he gives us this season. If it plays out like the last I'm sure Levy will still get a hefty fee for him. Isn't that worth the risk rather than seeing him achieve it away from Spurs? Or is this sentiment over-riding harsh reality? If he retains full fitness then we might have what we've desired for so long. Sandro for a season and not half of one.

As for Schneiderlin. If Poch wants him, sign him, I won't complain if he believes we need strengthening still in those areas (I'd prefer us to look at the flanks - did someone just say Griezmann - and perhaps centre-back roles). But others in that congested midfield will.