By Ewah Chika.
As Tottenham fans jubilated following the announcement that Kenyan captain and former Southampton anchorman Victor Wanyama is the latest addition to Mauricio Porchettino's young and vibrant side, Southampton fans will feel hard done by the player's decision to move on after the club
rejected his transfer request last season. Wanyama signed a new four year deal at Tottenham after the London club paid £11 million for his services to Southampton with one year to run in his contract in Saint Mary's.
Upon signing for Tottenham the Kenyan had this to say, " If we (Tottenham) can win the Premier League, that would be my dream. That's my target to win the Premier League or any trophy with the club.
"Watching my brother (McDonald Mariga) win the Champions League with Inter in 2010 was really good. It was always in my head, that one day I wanted to achieve what he achieved." Tottenham surely know what they will get from the former Celtic midfielder who alongside Manchester United's Morgan Schneiderlin made Southampton one of the most difficult teams to beat in the Premier League. Wanyama is an imposing physical player who uses his physique to his advantage winning the ball, aerial duels and his ability to tackle . At the modest price of £11 million, Wanyama came as a bargain to an already improved Spurs team which is in sharp contrast to the the £26 million spent on Roberto Soldado in 2012.
At 25, Wanyama is not even at his peak and is expected to fit perfectly into an energetic, high-pressing and young team like Spurs, he will most likely sit back and try to repossess the ball from the opponents as quickly as possible and at the same time shielding the back four. Last season, Wanyama won 46% of his aerial duels, completing 1099 passes with a pass accuracy of 82% of which 78% were forward passes. It is yet unclear if he will partner an attack minded Moussa Dembele or defence minded Erik Deir who is more defensive but good in long distant shots, but what is sure is that one of Ryan Mason or Benteleb who are academy products of the club will be sold this summer as they both will further see their game time limited even worse than last season where Dembele and Dier were first choice players in a 4-2-3-1 formation. The Kenyan also scored one goal and created 15 chances in 30 appearances and his style will favour both Danny Rose and Kyle Walker who will both bump forward from the flanks putting more pressure on the defence of opponents as the Kenyan sits deep to break down counter-attacks.
One area that will worry Porchettino is the midfielders indiscipline which has been a source of concern to Southampton fans after he was sent off thrice last season . This will further complicate issues for a team who have been accused of lacking discipline and being emotionally unstable last season which saw them display such shameless acts against Chelsea (away) and Arsenal (home) with the likes of Moussa Dembele and Dele Alli suspended for Indisciplined. Therefore, if this flaw is curbed then one should expect a more direct , high-pressing Spurs team next season as Porchettino aims to win the elusive Premier League crown for the North London club.
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