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Who Is This £15million La Liga Midfielder That Could Become Tottenham’s First Signing Of The Summer? Here’s Everything You Need To Know

Pape Cheikh Diop

Scout Report – Pape Cheikh Diop

Tottenham Hotspur may finally be close to completing their first transfer of the summer as reports from the Sun claim that the North Londoners are on the verge of striking a deal for Celta Vigo midfielder Pape Cheikh Diop.

The 20-year old was actively pursued by French club Olympique Lyon as well, but the report claims that Tottenham are likely to seal the deal soon for the midfielder who is valued at £15million.

With a transfer to the Lilywhites looming on the horizon, we take a closer look at who Pape Cheikh Diop is and what he will be able to offer to the North London outfit.

Footballing Background 

Born in Dakar, Senegal, on 8 August, 1997, Pape Cheikh Diop Gueye moved to Spain at the age of 14 and had short stints with Internacional de La Amistad and Montaneros CF, before joining the Celta Vigo youth setup in 2013.  

After one season with the Celta Juvenil A side, he was fast-tracked into the reserves squad in the 2014-15 season where he made only three appearances, scoring once. The subsequent season, he broke into the senior team, making his debut on 12 December 2015, in a 1-0 win against Espanyol and went on to make 8 first-team appearances that season, while also playing 18 times for the reserves.

Last season though, he became a full member of the first-team and made 19 appearances in all competition for Celta, scoring once in the process. His performances saw him earn a new long-term contract which runs until 2021, in February earlier this year.

Diop has represented the Spain national team at the U-18 and the U-19 levels. He was a part of the Spain U-19 squad that won the UEFA European U-19 Championships in 2015.

Style Of Play 

A central midfielder by trade, Diop has been used as an out and out No.6 on a few occasions and in an advanced attacking midfield role as well.

The 20-year old is a tough-tackling all action midfielder who is strong in his challenges and uses his body well to shield the ball from the opponents. Strong, athletic and powerful, Diop has the energy levels to perform in a box-to-box role and can also sit deep and dictate the game with his very good range of distribution. He also has the ability to drive forward with the ball with pace and power every now and then.

But owing to his tenacious nature, the Spain youth international does tend to give away a number of fouls in his half of the pitch.  

What Does The Future Hold? 

Diop signed a new deal with Celta only recently, which would leave the last season’s Europa League semi-finalists in a very strong negotiating position. But with Tottenham working hard on closing out a deal, a move to a club of their stature and the promise of Champions League football may well get him to take the leap.

He certainly has the ability to cut it out in the Premier League and his skillset seems very much suitable to the English way of playing. The 20-year old has shown enough potential for Tottenham to make a move. If he joins the North Londoners, he will give a tough competition to Harry Winks for a place in the squad.