Tottenham's shock £20m link to Leeds United's Daniel…

Tottenham's shock £20m link to Leeds United's Daniel James pokes holes in Gary Neville's Man Utd transfer verdict

It wouldn't be a transfer window without Daniel James been the subject of interest from new suitors.

Ever since his move from Swansea City to Manchester United in the summer of 2019, James has been making headlines and causing chatter on social media.

Two years at United - arguably the biggest club in the world despite their recent travails - saw James embark upon a rollercoaster ride perpetuated with peaks and troughs. As United suffered, so too did James' reputation and standing among the fanbase, so much so that when he left Old Trafford for Leeds United in 2021, his departure was greeted with indifference and in some cases genuine happiness.

It was a sorry state of affairs, given he made an instant impact with the Red Devils and always gave 100 per cent for the cause. His time with Leeds so far has been successful enough. The Whites were longtime admirers of the winger all the way to his Swansea days, with Marcelo Bielsa creating a dossier on the Wales star.

Under the Argentine and latter new boss Jesse Marsch, James has been used to good effect on the flanks, making the most of his lightning speed. The false nine experiment hasn't always worked but you always know what you are going to get from the 24-year-old - a good shift.

This week's links to Champions League-chasing Tottenham were a bit of a shock, granted. Our colleagues at football.london have reported James is a name being considered as a potential replacement for Bryan Gil, who could yet depart on loan before the end of the summer, adding Spurs have not yet shown any signs of pressing ahead with any approach.

If James were to swap Elland Road for the Tottenham Stadium he would face a battle akin to what he faced at United for game-time on a regular basis. Spurs boast Harry Kane, Heung-Min Son, Dejan Kulusevski, Richarlison and Lucas Moura as options in their front three. Is James displacing any of those? You'd find it hard to argue he would.

But the fact the Londoners have listed him as a transfer consideration speaks volumes of his talent and profile. Gary Neville, speaking on Monday Night Football a few weeks ago, dissected United's signings from the past 10 years. He placed James among 24 'red' transfers made during that period - harsh considering the amount they spent on him and the endeavour he always showed in a United shirt.

"Seventy-five percent of those signings are in red, they’ve not worked, 20 per cent are an amber and only four (or) five percent of signings, we think, have worked," Neville said. "That is a horror story from a recruitment point of view. However, there’s a call for blaming the players and we’ve blamed the players over the years. I was excited about a lot of those signings as many people were, even last year with Varane, Sancho, Ronaldo.

"Di Maria came and we all went ooh he’ll be a good signing, we did it on Monday Night Football at Leicester when he went through midfield. But it’s become a graveyard for football players this football club where football players are now considering to even come to the club, they can’t get players in. I have to say where I got away from the players is that when a school is underperforming for years they get put under special measures by government and the kids don’t get blamed - that’s where Man United are. They’re in special measures and you can’t blame the kids anymore."

James' time at United was worthy of more respect and Tottenham's interest in the winger pokes holes in Neville's verdict. James was a victim of circumstance at Old Trafford - a young player in a crisis club. He may not end up at Spurs this summer but the fact a title contender is said to be keen on his signature says a great deal about him.

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