Imminent Tottenham-Gallagher transfer shows Spurs have not learnt from their mistakes

Tottenham Hotspur will land midfielder Conor Gallagher this January ahead of Premier League rivals Aston Villa, according to David Ornstein .

He is expected to fly to England on Tuesday to undergo medicals and finalise details of a long-term contract before joining Spurs .

Tottenham have been after Gallagher’s signature for some time, but it never quite happened.

However, with the England international struggling for game time at Atletico Madrid, the opportunity presented itself and the North Londoners piped Aston Villa to his signature.

The 25-year-old box-to-box midfielder brings energy and dynamism to the engine room.

He will replace Rodrigo Bentancur, who is poised to miss a significant chunk of the campaign.

On paper, Gallagher has the experience, ability, and quality to be a top addition, but the club could be pouring €40 million down the drain.

Gallagher is all action and intensity, but Spurs already have legs in midfield. What they lack is control.

Pairing him with Joao Palhinha , a destroyer who treats the ball like a hot potato, risks turning the centre of the pitch into a transitional mess.

Instead of dictating tempo, Tottenham would once again be chasing it, relying on chaos rather than structure to impose themselves on games.

This is a familiar mistake. Spurs keep collecting midfielders who run, press and tackle, yet none who can slow a match down, receive under pressure and knit phases together.

Thomas Frank’s roster needs a foil to Palhinha, a deep-lying playmaker capable of pulling the strings, not another vertical runner.

Think Mousa Dembele at his press-resistant and composed best. The engine room is crying out for a player able to tilt games with subtlety rather than volume.

Gallagher is not a bad player. In isolation, he is helpful and effective. But he is the wrong profile for this squad, at this moment.

Tottenham are once again confusing energy with control, and it is laughable that they still have not learned the lesson.