Man the arguments in here are pretty silly.
I think it is CLEAR that Holtby is an AVERAGE player. His pressing and through balls are perhaps above average but the rest of his game is not. He is very limited, loses the ball or gives up possession often, is prone to mistakes, is prone to frantic runs with no purpose and his game can turn sloppy at any given moment.
Spurs only payed 1.5 or 2 million for him. While he did only have 6 months or whatever left on his contract, this price still reflects his ability level and his value to the rest of the football world.
There were hardly any other suitors for him, another part of the reason we got him for 1.5 mil.
Right now at most he would be worth around 6m pounds I would say, and that is giving him a huge wiggle room where I don't really know if you could sell him for more than 5.
He has looked completely average in preseason and his game does not look to have progressed much at all. Even against Chicago, he played a completely average and dull game. His pass for goal was a pretty standard play. It didn't ooze creativity or anything, nor does Holtby.
It is very evident the Spurs don't really have too much stock in him and it definitely seems as if he will be surplus to requirements. I believe they are shopping him around and hoping to use him as a makeweight in a transfer. If they can't do that I definitely believe he will be loaned.
He really does not have a big place on this team. He would likely be one of the last subs used in PL games if he even makes the bench for them. I could see him getting some game time in the EL or Cup games, but I think those chances would be limited.
We have many players who are more creative than Holtby. The only thing we will miss is his energy and pressing. But I think those are two traits which are fairly easy to replace with a better quality player who can also add more.
I think anyone who believes Holtby is a crucial part of this team is in for a rude awakening.
