Millwall manager Neil Harris reiterated his desire to sign Japhet Tanganga on a permanent basis after an impressive six-month loan.
Japhet Tanganga was attracting massive interest from Serie A sides this time last year, and many expected him to move to one of those clubs abroad. However, those links came to nothing, as the versatile defender ended up joining German side Augsburg on a season-long loan deal.
He might have wanted to prove a point to his suitors with some consistent performances at Augsburg, but a knee injury before the campaign began more or less summed up his time there. Tanganga would never play for the German side until his return midway through January, as he would then go on to join Millwall on another loan deal.
It’s here at the Championship side that Tanganga found his rhythm, playing in all but one of his 19 games while at Millwall, and starting 17 of those fixtures as a central defender. He has certainly impressed with his output, and manager Neil Harris was left impressed by his application in games.
Tanganga will depart Spurs later this month when his contract expires, and Milwall are expected to sign him permanently on a free transfer. However, the Milwall boss expressed some concerns with transfers of this sort, although his comments on TBR did reiterate the desire to bring the 25-year-old Tottenham player to the Championship side.
Harris said, “It’s really important that everybody understands, not just Neil Harris and his team-mates, but the whole football club is a big fan of Japhet Tanganga. I think I have made that clear in previous articles – I would love to work with him. Japhet is a player who will be in demand over this transfer window.”
“As a football club, sometimes, we can only push as far when we go through a process which is involving individuals, agents and football clubs.“
“It’s safe to say that we have pushed hard to see if Japhet is a possibility for us in this window. Where I am hugely respectful as well is that there is a lot that goes into signing a player, it’s not just involving money between clubs and agents, it becomes a lot of different scenarios.”
“Family becomes a huge one. When players have options to be abroad, maybe, they have to speak to them as well. There are moments in players’ careers which are hugely pivotal. “We’re massively respectful at the early part of June, not just with Japh, but with other players as well – things have to be aligned.“
“Of course we like Japhet, but there are lots of aspects that go into signing a player.”
One perceived problem would be around his wage, as Millwall are unlikely to match what the 25-year-old Tottenham player used to earn in North London. Tanganga might have to take a massive cut in his wages to rejoin Milwall, although there’s another big issue before he could sign on a free transfer.
Tanganga might be hoping that some of the Premier League sides might have taken notice of his talents and performances in the Championship and could wait for some offers to arrive. However, so far, none of the top-flight clubs have shown an interest, although his availability on a Bosman deal might turn some heads.
Even if some top-of-the-table Championship sides come in with an interest, it might be bad news for Milwall, which hopes to sign the 25-year-old. Hence, there are complications ahead of this free transfer, although Harris is hopeful Tanganga will leave behind all the speculation and join them in the coming period.
