One of the coups of the transfer window was Tottenham Hotspur’s signing of Swedish wunderkind Lucas Bergvall. With Barcelona looking like favorites for the talented midfielder (seriously, I mentioned in one of my Bat Country pieces that there was no way he was coming here), Spurs swooped in and hijacked the deal, coming to an agreement with Bergvall’s club Djurgardens which would allow him to see out the rest of the season there on loan.
Even though it would have been painful for Djurgardens to lose such a talented player, the experience was apparently a positive one for both clubs as the likelihood of an ongoing “partnership” was discussed at a recent Djurgardens members’ meeting. Alasdair Gold reported a couple of weeks ago (better late than never, huh?) that the club hierarchy went into some detail as to the finer points of the Bergvall sale, and that part of what was discussed was a relationship in which the two clubs could trade and loan youth talent.
If this sounds familiar… it’s because it is eerily familiar to when Spurs announced a few years back (in concert with the sale of Gareth Bale) that they were entering into a “special relationship” with Real Madrid. The idea was that Real Madrid would get first refusal of any players wanting an exit from Spurs, while Tottenham would have first bite at any of the Real Madrid youth or wantaway first teamers, with a couple of friendly fixtures between the clubs also mooted.
Nothing really came from that supposed partnership outside of Spurs getting a club-record payday for Bale, and the “special relationship” became somewhat of a joke amongst fans. It’s unclear whether this time around the Djurgardens partnership was a bargaining tactic on the part of Spurs, but it does seem more likely that Johan Lange views Sweden and the other Nordic states as an untapped talent market – much like other clubs have begun to treat South America. This deal would allow us to get on the front foot on any promising prospects coming through Djurgardens’ doors, and Djurgardens would potentially provide a good landing point for some of Spurs’ loanees.
Until we get more information, however, we’ll have to wait and see what happens in this space. In the meantime, check out Bergvall’s goal in the Swedish cup yesterday which was frankly ridiculous. Real Madrid, you suck. You can’t break up with us, we’re breaking up with you (forget that it happened a few years ago, just let those emotions out). Djurgardens is where my heart is at, and I made this picture to express my feelings: