Tottenham are in talks to bring back a scout who previously worked on the signing of Son Heung-min.
“One person linked with a return to Tottenham has been confirmed to have left Aston Villa,” the Birmingham Mail reported on Monday (April 1).
“Aston Villa’s head of recruitment Rob Mackenzie has left the club, it has been confirmed,” the Birmingham Mail said. Mackenzie joined the club in 2020 as head of recruitment and has been with the club for just over three years. He worked alongside Alberto Benito during the recent restructuring of the club’s staff.”
“Mackenzie has been recognized for his work at several clubs over the past few years. He worked as a scout at Leicester City from 2011 to 2015, where he brought in the likes of Riyad Mahrez and Esteban Cambiasso. He then took on a scouting role at Tottenham before becoming the head scout at Derby County and also worked with the Belgian side before joining Aston Villa in 2020.”
In addition to Mahrez, Mackenzie was also involved in the signing of N’Golo Kante, while Tottenham reportedly pursued the likes of Son Heung-min and Toby Alderweireld.
The media cited Son as one of Mackenzie’s top targets. “While at Tottenham, he was also credited with helping to bring South Korean striker Son Heung-min to the club,” said the Birmingham Mail. Son has improved since Harry Kane’s departure to Bayern Munich,” explaining that Mackenzie was one of the scouts who helped bring Son to Tottenham in the past.
With Mackenzie’s help, Son has developed into a prodigious striker who has left his mark on both Spurs and the Premier League with 153 goals for Tottenham and 111 in the Premier League since joining the club in the 2015/16 season. Considering Son’s £22 million transfer fee, it could be considered one of the best signings in Tottenham’s history.
Mackenzie is reportedly in talks to leave Aston Villa and return to Tottenham. “Tottenham are in advanced talks to sign Mackenzie,” according to British outlet Football Insider.
According to Football Insider, “Tottenham have set their sights on Mackenzie, who is in charge of recruitment, after hiring Johan Lange from Aston Villa as technical director. The club are keen to reunite Lange with Mackenzie, who was in charge of recruitment at Villa.”
With Mackenzie joining Spurs, the club could continue to make progress in recruiting for the future.
While there have been some disappointing signings at Aston Villa, such as Leon Bailey and Bertrand Traore, Lange and Mackenzie have also made some excellent signings, such as Ollie Watkins and Matt Cash.
In particular, Watkins has scored at least 10 goals in the Premier League in each of the last three seasons, and this season he sits third in the Premier League in attacking points with five goals and five assists in 10 league games. Son Heung-min is also fourth in 바카라 the league with eight goals and one assist this season, so it’s a testament to Mackenzie’s acumen that both of his signings are among the top attacking players in the Premier League.
With Tottenham’s rebuilding efforts underway with a new head of recruitment, coupled with their stellar results in the league, it will be interesting to see if Mackenzie can once again bring a top signing like Son Heung-min to the club.