Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly eyeing a summer move for Club Luzern’s rising star Ardon Jashari, as Ange Postecoglou continues his search for a midfielder who can thrive in his system. Spurs have faced consistent struggles this season in assembling a reliable midfield capable of executing Postecoglou’s high-intensity style, making the 22-year-old Swiss international an attractive target to bolster their midfield quality and depth.
Club chairman Daniel Levy, known for identifying emerging talents and developing them into standout performers, appears to be following a familiar blueprint with Jashari. Levy’s recent successes include the captures of Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert, both signed last summer and already proving their worth at Hotspur Way. Jashari, with his potential and technical ability, could become Tottenham’s next shrewd investment, continuing Levy’s strategy of uncovering hidden gems.
The need for Jashari
Throughout his campaign, Ange Postecoglou has struggled to find consistency in midfield, prompting Tottenham’s pursuit of a dynamic presence capable of combining technical skill with tactical intelligence. Enter the 22-year-old Swiss international, who can be the ideal solution to Postecoglou’s midfield dilemma.
Since his move to Tottenham, Yves Bissouma has notably regressed in several key areas, including positioning, timing of tackles, and general movement. His declining performance in these aspects has left Spurs increasingly vulnerable, further highlighting the necessity of fresh blood capable of reducing errors and stabilizing the midfield.
Ardon Jashari to Tottenham? Why Levy might be looking at the right midfielder
Before diving into the skill set that Jashari possesses, Belgian football legend Steven Defour described the Swiss midfielder as “the best player in our league and perhaps one of the best of the last ten years.”
The 22-year-old possesses this tactical intelligence that allows him to pull strings from the base of the midfield, and then he possesses this relentless energy and composure with the ball that allows him to not only pick passes but also break opponents’ lines of pressing. And that’s not it; looking at him from a defensive perspective, the Switzerland international possesses this ability to regain possession and the understanding of recycling possession, which makes him a potential threat even without the ball.
If we look at his defensive numbers, he averages 5.9 balls recovered and 1.6 tackles per game in the Belgian Pro League this season (via. Sofa Score), which shows his capacity to disrupt opposition transitions with his aggression and anticipation of the passes being very much like what we are used to seeing from someone like Edson Alvarez at West Ham. His relentless defensive presence disrupts opposition attacks effectively, mirroring the proactive style that Tottenham require, making him a comparable figure to what Ange Postecoglou seeks in his system.
Then if we do a simple comparison of progressive passing, Jashari has that composure under opponents’ pressure and frequently so while driving the ball forward, while Bissouma has been struggling under pressure. Looking at this from a tactical point of view, he can be played as a sole pivot as well as in a double pivot, which provides Ange with this tactical versatility in the games.
We have seen a lot of times that the possession is lost in the midfield while building up, and Jashari’s ability to retain the ball under pressure helps Tottenham in these situations. Then if we look at his positional discipline, he is very much capable of shielding the backline from quick transitions, which can give the likes of Cristian Romero or Micky van de Ven that additional time and space to sort out the backline.
Tottenham are not alone…
His ability to operate at the base of the midfield and also pull those passing strings is exactly why Aston Villa are looking to secure his signature. Unai Emery has always had a liking for players who can operate from the base and play roles in multiple facets of the game, and the 22-year-old will be given lots of responsibility on and off the ball.
And Ange, just like Emery, likes the fast nature of football, but the Australian head coach does use his base midfield players a bit differently than the Spaniard, but he could very well do with someone like Jashari in his roster.
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It is to be seen where Levy looks, but if he were to look in the Belgian league for the aforementioned Swiss international, the 63-year-old may just be looking at the right place…
