Tottenham coach Andre Villas-Boas thinks new signing Lewis Holtby could be “the bargain of the century.” The 22-year-old had been expected to move to White Hart Lane at the end of the season, but a season-ending injury to Sandro forced Spurs to push the deal through earlier. Holtby would have joined from Schalke 04 on a free transfer in the summer, but has instead moved for $2.4 million.

AVB thinks it’s a fantastic piece of business. "Is he the bargain of the century? I think so because it's difficult to find a young player who is running his contract down and we faced tough competition," he told the Daily Star. "He's recognized as an exceptional young talent and we have high expectations of the player.”

The Portuguese compared Holtby to former Spurs playmaker Rafael van der Vaart. “Because of his creativity you can compare him to Rafa - to a certain extent anyway because Rafa was a greatly experienced player when he joined and Lewis has all his career ahead of him. He will fill the No.10 position, although he can play on the right or the left and he has also played in a holding role." AVB confirmed that Holtby could make his debut against Norwich City tonight.