Tottenham target Eliaquim Mangala heading to Valencia for medical

Remember those stories that linked Tottenham Hotspur with a loan or permanent transfer move for Manchester City central defender Eliaquim Mangala? Pretty unpopular move, right? Looks like we don’t have to worry so much anymore, as the latest suggests that he’s on his way to Valencia.

This is fine. Mangala was a bit of a tire-fire for City the past couple of seasons, and he was an incredibly expensive purchase option. I wasn’t especially keen on the idea of adding him to the defensive stew that Mauricio Pochettino has cooking, especially since this rumor was originally couched alongside the possibility of Kevin Wimmer departing the club.

Look, I don’t think Mangala’s a terrible player, but this rumor didn’t make a whole lot of sense on a number of different levels, so I’m pretty much fine with Mangala going elsewhere.

Thus far, despite being linked with Mangala and Phil Jones here on deadline day, there aren’t really any indications at all that Spurs are looking to purchase another central defender. I’d expect Spurs to roll with Janby Alderweirtonghen, Wimmer, and Cameron Carter-Vickers. But it’s deadline day, so anything can happen.