Romelu Lukaku and Kyogo Furuhashi to Spurs?
Both forwards have been linked with a move to North London this summer.
With less than a month until the 2023 Summer Transfer Window closes, clubs across the country are still very active, with teams looking to strengthen as much as possible to enhance their chances of achieving their objectives for the campaign. Spurs are no different, with Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi and Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku both being linked with the Lilywhites.
As of the time of writing, Tottenham Hotspur have signed eight players: James Maddison (Leicester City), Pedro Porro (Sporting CP), Micky Van de Ven (VFL Wolfsburg), Dejan Kulusevski (Juventus), Guglielmo Vicario (Empoli), Alejo Véliz (Rosario Central), Ashley Phillips (Blackburn Rovers) and Manor Solomon (Shakhtar Donetsk).
After successful loan spells last term, Porro and Kulusevski made their stays at THFC permanent.
The latest names to be linked with a move to Spurs off the back of Harry Kane’s departure for Bayern Munich last week are Celtic forward Kyogo Furuhashi and Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku. They have been touted as potential signings to fill the void left by Kane.
Let’s start with Celtic and Japan international forward Kyogo Furuhashi. A report from The Express has linked the Lilywhites with a move for him that could be worth a reported £16 million. If this is the fee that the Bhoys demand, this deal will be very affordable for Tottenham.
He is versatile – he can play upfront or on either wing, often as part of a front three.
Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has worked with Furuhashi before during his time at Celtic. The forward was signed by Postecoglou on 16th July 2021 from Vissel Kobe for a rumoured fee of £4.5 million.
Furuhashi was an instant hit at Celtic, and in his first season at Celtic Park (2021/22) he scored 20 goals in 28 matches in all competitions. His 12 goals in the Scottish Premiership helped his team win the club’s 52nd top-flight title.
In the following season (2022/23), the Japan international was even better, scoring no less than 34 goals in 50 appearances in all competitions. 23 of these goals came in the Scottish Premiership alone, helping Celtic another title win.
Rewinding to 2017, Kyogo joined FC Gifu in his native Japan. After scoring 11 goals in 26 league games, he joined Vissel Kobe on 1st August 2018. His first season at the club saw him score five goals in 13 top-flight matches before following this up with ten goals in 31 league matches in the following season (2019).
The 2020 season saw Furuhashi maintain his clinical form with 12 league goals in 30 games. His final season before joining Celtic was his most prolific, scoring 15 league goals.
Moving on to Romelu Lukaku, he will undoubtedly be well-known to fans of Spurs and the Premier League. After 14 goals in all competitions during his loan spell with Italian Giants Inter Milan last season, the Belgian has returned to parent club Chelsea.
He joined Chelsea from the Nerazzurri on 12th August 2021, with the move reported to be a club record fee for the Blues of £97.5 million. Ahead of the move, Lukaku had scored 24 goals in 36 Serie A matches whilst adding ten assists to boot.
In the 2021/22 season, the Belgium international forward scored 15 goals in all competitions before being sent out on loan for the 2022/23 season. This, of course, was not his first spell with Chelsea.
Starting his career in his native Belgium with Anderlecht, he scored 17 goals in 45 league games in his final full season with the club in 2010/11. Unfortunately for Lukaku, he did not get as many chances to impress after signing for Chelsea, securing a first loan spell with West Bromwich Albion for the 2012/13 season.
While he was with the Baggies, the Belgian was on top form, finding the back of the net 17 times in the Premier League and adding seven assists to boot in 35 appearances in the top flight. After impressing, Everton came calling, and he joined them for a season-long loan spell for the 2013/14 season.
His time on loan with the Toffees was also very prolific, scoring 15 goals and contributing eight assists in 31 matches in the Premier League. Such was his impressive form Everton chose to sign him permanently for a fee reported to be a then-club record of £28 million in July 2014.
The 2014/15 season was Romelu Lukaku’s first as a permanent Everton player, scoring 20 goals in all competitions. The Belgian scored eight goals in 9 UEFA Europa League appearances, making him the tournament’s joint-leading goal scorer for that season’s competition alongside RB Salzburg’s Alan. This did include a perfect hat-trick (header, right foot, left foot) against Switzerland’s Young Boys in the Round of 32.
Lukaku remained in top form in the 2015/16 season, helping Everton to an 11th place finish with 18 goals in 37 Premier League matches. After scoring a remarkable 25 top flight goals in 2016/17, Manchester United came calling with the Red Devils signing the Belgian for an initial £75 million.
He went on to spend two seasons with the Old Trafford club, scoring 28 league goals in all. In his debut season, he was also prolific in the FA Cup and Champions League for United, scoring a combined ten goals.
Following his spell in Manchester, Inter Milan signed him permanently for €80 million – a club record fee for the Nerazzurri. Lukaku made an instant impact with the Italian giants, scoring 23 goals in the Serie A alone in the 2019/20 season.
The 2020/21 season saw the forward an integral part of the Inter team to win the Serie A title, emphatically holding off competition from the likes of rivals AC Milan (2nd), Atalanta (3rd) and Juventus (4th). Lukaku scored 24 goals along the way to winning the Scudetto. His return to Chelsea came after this incredible season for him.
Romelu Lukaku has shown in the past that he can score a plethora of goals for whoever he plays for, and should he sign and return to form, Spurs would have a simply fantastic striker on their hands. As for Kyogo Furuhashi, he has shown that he is prolific, and he would also significantly strengthen Spurs’ frontline.
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