Hull City Moving for Tottenham's Displaced Left Back

With Tottenham Hotspur in the final stages of signing Ben Davies from Swansea City, the situation of incumbent left back Danny Rose is unsettled. Rose played 1900 minutes last season for Spurs as the team's primary left back, but fan evaluations of his play have been mixed at best. His defensive positioning was the weakest part of his game, and his passing in buildup play probably the next weakest. These are deal-breakers for any club, but especially will not fit with Mauricio Pochettino's system. The signing of Davies likewise suggests that Pochettino, Baldini and Levy consider Rose too poor defensively to be a first-team player.

So Rose is at the likely height of his value. He has two years remaining on his contract and he's heading into a season where he'll be no more than a backup. In this context, interest from Hull City makes a good deal of sense. But the report is from the Mirror, so take it as you will.

Steve Bruce is stepping up his bid to make Tottenham’s Danny Rose his fourth summer signing for Hull. The Tigers boss wants to take his close-season spending spree to £22million by rescuing former England Under-21 international left-back Rose from his White Hart Lane nightmare.

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Rose has two years remaining on his contract at Spurs, but a source revealed: "His future there is looking bleak. At best, he’s going to be a bit-part player, and that’s not what Danny wants at this stage of his career. He needs to be with a club who can give him regular first-team football.

The Mirror has a source! Is this source someone who knows Rose, or who works for Tottenham? The Mirror doesn't bother to tell us. The only implied inside knowledge there is that Danny Rose doesn't want to be a bit-part player, which anyone could have guessed. Everything else that the source reveals is indistinguishable from punditry. Rose's future with a club that just signed a player at his precise position looks bleak? You don't say.

So the writing of the thing makes me skeptical. But selling Rose this summer makes a ton of sense, and Hull City is as reasonable a choice as any for his destination. He might even work a little bit better in a wingback system where an extra center back can cover for his defensive lapses. It's a rumor worth following, though it would be nice if we could get a follow-up from a better paper.