Tottenham Hotspur were criticised for their spending in the summer which saw them cash in on Gareth Bale, but not all of the seven stars were complete wastes of money
A big summer of spending in 2013 saw Tottenham attempt to deal with the loss of Gareth Bale, but within a few months they found themselves changing their manager amid a tough start to the season.
Bale’s move to Real Madrid was a long time coming, increasing the pressure on the London side to spend the money wisely. The turnover of players led to a slow start under Andre Villas-Boas, though, and some members of the septet were already gone within a year or two.
We all know how Bale fared in Spain, with some never truly taking to the Welsh international despite him helping secure a number of big trophies. Spurs might have taken their time to find form under Villas-Boas’ long term successor Mauricio Pochettino, but some of those summer 2013 recruits played their part.
A decade on, how are those players getting on… and how did they fare at Spurs with the benefit of hindsight? Mirror Football has taken a closer look at that ill-fated window.
Etienne Capoue
French midfielder Capoue joined after impressing in France with Toulouse, but never managed to hold down a first-team place in north London. His two seasons brought just 24 league outings, but he was far more successful after making a short move to Watford in 2015.
He was a key part of the squad which reached the FA Cup final in 2019, but wasn’t able to save the Hornets from relegation the following year. After sticking around for the start of the 2020-21 Championship season, he returned to the continent by joining Villarreal, where he remains to this day.
How would you rank the Spurs signings from summer 2013? Have your say in the comments section
His first season in Spain ended with a trophy, as Unai Emery’s side beat Manchester United in the Europa League final. He was named man of the match in the final in Gdansk, and also helped Emery’s team reach the Champions League semis the following season.
Nacer Chadli
Chadli joined the Belgian contingent at Spurs, but didn’t quite have the same longevity as compatriots Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen. There was one hot season, with 11 league goals in Pochettino’s first season, but the London side turned a profit when selling him to West Brom in 2016.
Since leaving the Hawthorns in 2018, the winger has flitted around Europe. After spells in France and Turkey, he returned to Belgium with Westerlo in 2022 – initially on loan and then permanently.
He has played a number of games for the team this season without scoring. Westerlo are out of danger for now, but don’t have a huge gap to the relegation places.
Vlad Chiriches
Romania international Chiriches left his homeland to join Spurs in 2013, and is now back there with FCSB. In the interim, though, he enjoyed a fruitful few years in Italy.
It didn’t work out for him at Spurs, falling down the pecking order after Pochettino added Eric Dier to the squad. He was also a squad player at Napoli, but enjoyed more regular first-team football at Sassuolo before heading back to Bucharest.
Now 34 years of age, Chiriches has 76 senior caps for Romania and played for his country at Euro 2016. He has missed the bulk of the current campaign through injury, though FCSB still sit top without him.
Christian Eriksen
By far the biggest success story of Spurs’ summer 2013 window, Eriksen was also one of the cheapest. The £11m signing from Ajax was a huge player under Pochettino as the London side challenged for titles and reached the 2019 Champions League final.
The Danish international played more than 300 times for Spurs, linking up brilliantly with the likes of Dele Alli and Harry Kane when things were going well. He eventually moved on just a few months after Pochettino’s own exit, joining Inter Milan in January 2020.
These days, Eriksen is back in England with Manchester United, via a spell at Brentford. Away from club football, he is one of Denmark’s all-time top scorers with 40 goals.
Erik Lamela
Lamela was the most expensive of the seven signings, and his £35m price tag left him open to criticism. When he eventually left the club, he did so with a mixed legacy, becoming a cult favourite among some fans.
The free-scoring playmaker Spurs bought from Roma became a more defensive-minded player in north London. He endeared himself to supporters with his work rate, though, while a fantastic rabona goal against Arsenal will live long in the memory.
Lamela left in 2021, joining Spanish side Sevilla, and was part of a Europa League winning squad in 2023. Things have been tougher this season, but he has been among the goals in La Liga.
Paulinho
Brazilian prospect Paulinho looked like a coup when he moved over from South America, but things didn’t work out for him. A particular low moment came in Villas-Boas’ final game, when he was sent off in a heavy defeat against Liverpool.
The former Corinthians star dropped down the pecking order in his second Spurs season, and when the financial might of Guangzhou Evergrande came calling, Spurs decided to cash in. He impressed in the Chinese Super League, though, so much so that he earned a brief stint at Barcelona.
Paulinho returned to China after his time in Catalunya, before a year in Saudi Arabia with Al-Ahli. Now, though, he’s back where he made a name for himself, rejoining Corinthians in 2022, but has struggled with injuries.
Roberto Soldado
Soldado was brought in to help make up the inevitable goal deficit caused by Bale’s exit. He made a reasonable start, but the goals soon dried up for the Spaniard.
The £26m man scored just one league goal in his second season in north London, and Spurs took a big loss when offloading him to Villarreal for £10m. After scoring at least 10 league goals in his six seasons before his move to England, though, he didn’t manage it a single time since.
Soldado kept playing until the age of 38, rounding off his career with Levante. He retired at the end of last season, with just shy of 300 career goals in all competitions – just 16 of those in Spurs colours.
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