Tottenham Hotspur and a handful of other European clubs have reportedly enquired about Newcastle’s Allan Saint-Maximin this summer.
Known for his flair and speed on the flanks, the silky Frenchman has gained many admirers during his time at Newcastle. Saint-Maximin has been linked with moves away from Tyneside ever since his first season with the Magpies, and according to The Athletic, Spurs, Chelsea and a few other European sides showed interest this summer.
Spurs have already been busy this summer, with Richarlison, Djed Spence, Yves Bissouma, Ivan Perisic, Clement Lenglet and Fraser Forster taking their total spending to around £91million. If Spurs were to act on their interest in Saint-Maximin though, it’s reported that the Magpies have slapped a £40million price tag on the winger.
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So, if Spurs were to bring Saint-Maximin to north London this summer, what impact could he have? Will the Frenchman flourish and push the current front three, or will he be a rotation player to Conte?
We 'signed' Allan Saint-Maximin for Spurs ahead of the 2022/23 season
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for Saint-Maximin to join Spurs ahead of the start of the 2022/23 season, using FM22 to run the simulation. As well as signing the Frenchman, we also updated the squad with the newest Spurs signings.
Saint-Maximin automatically became a favourite under Conte and was used extremely regularly in the Spurs squad. Over the course of his first season in north London, Saint-Maximin made 51 appearances, scoring 12 goals and grabbing six assists in all competitions.
The Frenchman started 34 of Spurs' Premier League games as he grabbed nine goals and four assists in that time, his best competition. Saint-Maximin averaged a rating of 7.08 per game, with his Champions League performances dragging that rating down after failing to register one goal or assist in eight games.
When compared to the rest of the forwards at Spurs, Saint-Maximin was the third top scorer, with only Harry Kane (23) and Son Heung-min (18) grabbing more. Dejan Kulusevski played second fiddle for most of the season to the Frenchman, while Richarlison really struggled, making just 14 appearances in the entire season, with just four of them starts and one goal.
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2022 put together an overall best Spurs XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what the Spurs' best XI looked like at the end of the 2022/23 season as predicted by Football Manager 2022:
Full Spurs best XI (3-4-3): Lloris; Romero, Dier, Lenglet; Doherty, Hojbjerg, Bissouma, Reguilon; Saint-Maximin, Kane, Son.
Maybe coming as a bit of a surprise given his electric start to life at Spurs last season, Kulusevski dropped out of Conte's best XI in the simulation, with Saint-Maximin taking his place. There was also no room for the struggling Richarlison, whilst Bissouma and Lenglet were the only other signings to make the best XI as Perisic, Forster and Spence missed out.
Spurs' results from the 2022/23 simulation
Conte's side were extremely disappointing in the Premier League during the 2022/23 season, with Spurs dropping from fourth to seventh, meaning they would feature in the Europa Conference League for the second time in the last three seasons.
The Lilywhites conjured 67 points from the 38 league games - four less than last season and five points away from the top four in the simulation. Kane, Saint-Maximin, Son and Kulusevski combined for a total of 41 league goals during the season, meaning only 18 goals came from elsewhere.
Despite their poor Premier League season, Spurs did manage to find some success in the cup competitions. After years of trying and failing, Conte's side lifted the Carabao Cup trophy.
Kane, Rodrigo Bentancur and Saint-Maximin all got on the scoresheet as Spurs defeated Leicester City 3-1 in the final. Their Champions League campaign came to an end in the Round of 16 as they were defeated 5-1 on aggregate to Paris Saint-Germain, and a 2-1 loss to Man City saw Spurs eliminated from the FA Cup in the quarter-finals.
Overall, the simulation predicts if Saint-Maximin was to sign for Spurs, he could have a great individual impact and help lead Spurs to a long-awaited trophy. But, his arrival may see Richarlison and Kulusevski struggle as they received inconsistent game time.
Do you think Allan Saint-Maximin would be a good fit for Spurs? Let us know in the comments!
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