England's next No.9? Why Dominic Solanke looks set to go from strength to strength at Tottenham

Few Premier League players are enjoying as impressive a start to the new season as much as Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke. The 27-year-old striker became the London club’s record signing in the summer, when he made the move from Bournemouth for €64.3 million and despite the heavy weight of expectations that come with such a historic move, the towering striker has undoubtedly lived up to expectations. Not only has Solanke bagged an impressive four goals and assists in his first seven games, but he has already received his first England call up in seven years, ahead of his nation’s clashes with Greece and Finland in the Nations League.

"He was really close to being in the last squad but got injured just before selection,” said England interim manager Lee Carlsey, after confirming Solanke’s inclusion in his latest squad. "He did so well at Bournemouth and now he's taken that form into Spurs. He's got a lot of really good attributes that I really like." While England have remarkable strength in depth in midfield, Solanke will be up against just two players for the striker position in Bayern Munich forward Harry Kane and Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins. And considering that Kane will be 32 next summer, Carsley is clearly looking to the future and the prospect of Solanke leading the line for his country. But to do that, he’ll have to continue his solid form for Tottenham this season.

Why Solanke is the perfect fit for Tottenham

Although Solanke certainly has the frame of a classic No.9 and thrives as a penalty-box striker when tasked to do so, his strength undoubtedly lies in his ability to bring other forward players into the game with clever link-up play in and around the opposing box. The English talent showcased his more direct style of playing as a striker last season with Bournemouth, when he bagged 21 goals and just four assists, but prior to that Solanke has shown on multiple occasions an ability to set up goals for team mates. For example, in the season prior to the last one, Solanke bagged seven assists in 33 league games. And while his form in the English Championship was primarily focused around scoring goals (44) he also enjoyed an equally impressive tally of 18 assists in 86 league games. And it’s this extra string to Solanke’s bow that undoubtedly attracted Tottenham to his talent in the summer.

"There’s no secret we love to press and he’s got a great work ethic and he scores goals,” said Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou in late August when asked about Solanke joining the club. “He is a presence and scores different types of goals. I think the way we play suits him and I really liked where he was in his career. I am a big one on understanding the person, the person's motivation and he was obviously an outstanding young player. He got to some big clubs, but it never worked out for him and it’s what you do in that scenario.” Which undoubtedly explains why the Tottenham boss has not only stuck Solanke up front but also begun rebuilding his team around the new striker this season.

As Postecoglou noted, Solanke first came through the youth ranks of Chelsea, before making a move to Liverpool in 2017 at the age of 20. The Anfield club never seemed like the right fit for the young talent, which ultimately led to him making a €21.2m move to Bournemouth two years later, which is where Solanke finally found his feet and became the striker that he is today. But when we couple that start to his career with his big-money move to Tottenham and a long-awaited call up for England, it certainly feels like Solanke’s career is diverging into this one moment; he has the big club, he has the England cap and now he has the opportunity to prove himself at the highest level. And in many ways this season at Tottenham could be the making of the striker and prove to be the most important one of his career.