WE DON’T NEED ANOTHER HERO
PEP FACING PRICE HIKE ON MENDY Eriksen confident of big season without splashing cash
TOTTENHAM IN THE USA
MANCHESTER CITY are paying a £12million premium on Benjamin Mendy after caving in to Monaco’s £52m demand for the defender. City rated Mendy (below) at £40m at the start of the summer – £5m adrift of the French champions’ valuation – but the asking price has risen dramatically.
City’s £50m for Kyle Walker prompted Monaco to revise their price. Etihad bosses have been in a position of weakness after allowing full-backs Pablo Zabaleta, Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna to leave.
They had to pay Tottenham what they demanded for Walker – and their need for Mendy increased when Pep Guardiola revealed Alex Kolarov can join Roma.
And the Danish midfield star has pointed to the disastrous Spurs spending spree triggered by Gareth Bale’s £85million exit to Real Madrid in 2013 as evidence that money can’t buy success.
Tottenham spent the cash from Bale (right) on seven stars – including Eriksen – but could only finish sixth the following season.
Spurs fans are getting anxious at a lack of signings – but Eriksen, 25, reckons it’s an English obsession to spend huge money in the summer transfer window trying to chase success.
The Dane insisted: “I don’t think you need to spend to win anything. It’s just a matter of how you see a team, how the players are.
“Only Kyle Walker (inset, top) has left from our team and we know what we did last season so I can’t see why we shouldn’t be able to do hopefully even better than last season. Of course it might be different, but hopefully we will.
“It’s an English thing isn’t it? It’s an English thing where you have to spend money to win, apparently – but also I read something from our gaffer where he said our club are just different compared to other clubs, in that we don’t spend as much as them.
“When I came, there were seven new players at the same time and you saw how that ended.
“Now, the last few seasons we haven’t bought as many players and it’s changed around. Of course you have to have a philosophy, a plan and it looks like we have one.
“Maybe we are unique in that but also we as a team are very young and everyone has a long contract so no-one has to go away – they are happy where they are. Our belief is strong and I think everyone felt that last season – that we were on the right road. But Chelsea were just winning all those games 1-0.” Eriksen believes an influx of new faces could be more of a hindrance than a help and added: “We have the feeling that something special is on the way. “Everyone knows we have been very close the last two seasons so I think in that time something has been brewing. “This is now the third season with the manager. “We can become even better than we were. It’s the same lads trying to become better and help each other – and that’s easier when you have known your team-mate from day one. “If you buy a lot of players everyone needs to know what is going on straight away and be a bit lucky.
“We are lucky at Spurs at the moment. Everybody knows what’s going on and what needs to be done.
“Hopefully we can turn it around from last season and keep that same feeling as well, but we need to be in a good shape straight away.
“Last season we had a few draws in the first few games and although we managed to turn it around, by that time Chelsea were already ahead.”
They’ll also need to do it at Wembley with White Hart Lane being rebuilt.
Eriksen (right) added: “I hope Wembley will never be an excuse if we miss the chance to be champions.
“We have played some very good games there, but didn’t get the results.”