Gedson Fernandes' January move to Tottenham came out of absolutely nowhere.
In a blink of an eye, it was the Lilywhite faithful who were rushing furiously over to YouTube to type in 'Gedson Fernandes Best Moments' after the Portuguese starlet had reportedly snubbed fierce rivals West Ham in favour of a switch to north London.
And on the surface, it seemed like a bit of a weird move for Spurs.
A box-to-box midfielder wasn't necessarily a glaring long-term need for the club with Moussa Sissoko and Tanguy Ndombele within their ranks, but with the former out injured and the latter struggling in the acclimatisation phase, the move somewhat made sense in the short and medium-term as Gedson signed on an 18-month loan deal with a reported £55m obligation to buy.
The unknown commodity was certainly an intriguing one for Spurs, this was a player who once held the Portuguese record with his hefty £102m release clause at Benfica but had ultimately lost his way under Bruno Lage following a breakthrough campaign in 2018/19 with Rui Vitoria at the helm (until January 2019).
Vitoria's use of a 4-3-3 saw Gedson thrive alongside the defensive-minded Ljubomir Fejsa and end product machine Pizzi. The 21-year-old's function was to provide As Águias with energy and tenacity along with penetration through the second phase with his silky dribbling ability.
But Lage's arrival saw the introduction of a 4-4-2 and the deployment of two ball-winners in the middle of the park in the form of Florentino Luis and, wait for it, Adel Taarabt (?!). After making 22 appearances the season prior, Gedson appeared just seven times - with only two starts - in the Primeira Liga this term before his January move.
A metatarsal injury which ruled him out for the start of the season certainly didn't help his cause either.
But now we're here, four months since Gedson's loan switch and overall, his time at Spurs can be summarised with one simple word: bright.
In his incredibly short sample size of 272 minutes and three starts in all competitions, Gedson has certainly displayed promise. Sure, he was quiet in his first start for the club away at Southampton in the FA Cup as part of a midfield pivot, but he also churned out a fine cameo performance against Norwich (also in the FA Cup).
It was a display full of guile and variation with the ball at his feet. In possession, the 21-year-old can simply glide past opponents with such grace - helped by a nifty burst of acceleration - and use his superb ball-manipulation skills to outfox opponents. His showing against the Canaries also came from an unfamiliar wide midfield role as well, highlighting his versatility.
It was just a shame that his performance in normal and extra-time was overshadowed by a woeful penalty miss in the shootout amid probably the bleakest of nights in Tottenham's dismal season.
But whether it be his innovative flick over Ryan Bertrand in the FA Cup replay against the Saints or a mature display on the right flank in difficult circumstances in the first leg against RB Leipzig, Gedson has shown the Lilywhite faithful why he earned his gargantuan release clause at Benfica.
Despite his slight frame, the speed and physicality of the English game certainly hasn't looked to have caught the Portuguese youth international out at all and overall, there's no reason why he can't play a more important role under Jose Mourinho before the club make a judgement about whether to secure the 21-year-old's services permanently.
Despite Mourinho deploying him out wide in a 4-4-2 (against Leipzig) and 4-2-3-1 (against Norwich), there's no doubting we'll see the best out of Gedson in a 4-3-3.
The midfielder is adept at playing both ahead of and behind the ball, while his wily tackling ability could be useful in the middle of the park - he averages 1.94 tackles per 90 in his senior league career. Not only that but for all his creativity in possession, we also saw against Norwich that he's, well, not exactly prolific in the final third and often struggles to execute the incisive final ball.
From a box-to-box role as opposed to a more advanced attacking midfield position, there'll be less onus on Gedson to produce via goals and assists - he has none since he joined the club - and greater opportunity to show off his useful shooting capability from distance.
For Mourinho to successfully switch to a 4-3-3, however, Spurs will need to search for a functioning defensive midfielder in the next transfer window.
With Eric Dier immobile, Harry Winks struggling against sides who are deadly in attacking transition and Oliver Skipp mightily inexperienced, it's highly unlikely that with the current 'number six' options at his disposal, Mourinho will make a tactical switch before he's allowed to invest the £20 Daniel Levy will inevitably allow him to wreak havoc with.
Anyway, back to Gedson.
For those who watch football through stats, the loan move would seem pretty disastrous thus far, but the eye test suggests it has the potential to be an incredibly astute bit of business on Spurs' behalf.
The talent and confidence he oozes in possession with his low-sock swagger have been clear and the Lilywhite faithful should be excited that they're yet to see him function in his most natural position.
There's a reason why Benfica inserted a release clause topping over £100m into his contract, Gedson was and still is one of Portugal's brightest talents who ultimately didn't see eye-to-eye with Lage as a result of a tactical switch which didn't allow for a profile like Gedson's in central midfield.
Before the end of next season, there's plenty to suggest Spurs will be the beneficiaries of a serious renaissance from the 21-year-old in north London.
Source :
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