Spurs can sign Johnson upgrade with January swoop for £60m “machine”

Ange Postecoglou has been in the Tottenham Hotspur dugout for around a year and a half now, and it would be fair to say he’s made quite an impact.

It’s true that the team are still suffering from the same problems with consistency that they were under the previous managers, but as most fans will likely attest, they are now playing some of the most entertaining football in the country.

Moreover, when they are good, they are really good, as exemplified by the demolitions of Manchester City and Manchester United this season.

Lastly, the Australian has welcomed a whole host of new faces to the club since taking the job, and while some have been unmitigated successes like Micky van de Ven, others still divide opinion, such as Brennan Johnson, who could soon face some new competition.

The curious case of Brennan Johnson

Spurs paid Nottingham Forest around £47.5m for Johnson’s services in September of last year, and it would be fair to say he endured a slow start to life in the capital.

In his first 12 league games before Christmas Day, the Welsh winger scored just a single goal and provided three assists, leading to questions over his suitability to play for the club.

However, his form improved in the second half of the campaign, and by the final whistle of the final game, he’d racked up a reasonable enough haul of five goals and ten assists in 34 appearances.

Unfortunately for the 23-year-old, this season began in the same way and following an underwhelming display at home to Arsenal in September, he had to deactivate his Instagram account due to the abuse he was receiving from fans.

However, the Nottingham-born dynamo bounced back in incredible fashion, scoring a late winner against Coventry City and then going on a brilliant run that saw him score six goals in six games.

As things stand, he’s scored ten and provided two assists in 24 appearances across all competitions.

Now, this is an undeniably impressive return from the winger, but there are still some question marks over his long-term future at the club, as he’s failed to score in his last four appearances.

Moreover, when the team are struggling in games like they were against Bournemouth and Rangers, he can look bereft of ideas, so it hasn’t been surprising to see the team linked with someone who could be the perfect upgrade on Johnson.

The Premier League star who could replace Brennan Johnson

So, to get straight to the point, the star in question is Brentford ace Bryan Mbeumo, who was supposedly a player of interest for Tottenham in the summer, according to a report from The Boot Room earlier this month.

The story claims that the Bees valued their star attacker at around £50m at the time, although a report from Football Insider claimed the West Londoners would demand a fee in excess of £60m for the player next month.

Now, if Levy and Co were able to get this deal over the line, it could spell the end for Johnson as a starter.

For example, despite playing in a side most would consider to be weaker than Spurs, the Brentford “machine,” as dubbed by football producer Michael Johnston, has also scored ten goals and provided two assists, although he has done so from just 18 appearances.

This means he averages a goal involvement every 1.5 games, whereas the Welsh international averages a goal involvement every other game for the North Londoners.

Moreover, when we take a look under the hood and compare their underlying numbers from the league this season, it is once again the 25-year-old who emerges victorious.

For example, the “incredible” Avallon-born star, as dubbed by Brentford boss Thomas Frank, comes out on top in the majority of metrics, such as non-penalty goals plus assists, progressive, key and live passes, goals per shot on target and shot and goal-creating actions, all per 90.

Ultimately, Johnson has certainly shown some glimpses of real quality since moving to North London, but when comparing their raw output and underlying numbers, it’s evident that Mbeumo is the superior winger.

Therefore, Levy and Co should do what they can to bring the Cameroonian star to N17 as soon as possible.