An important signing that sends a message, both to our rivals and to our own supporters.
I think angst has been building for awhile if this place is any barometer to judge by. A fear that we had started to drift a bit, that there was penny pinching afoot as the usual suspects did their usual thing and spent their way out of trouble.
That Spurs "forced out hand" is a bit irrelevant, as we clearly wanted to bag him in the summer; but I guess in the transfer market there are no certainties, so I'm certainly glad we got our man now rather than waiting six months. And it goes to show that the board were also prepared to move now, and act when it was deemed necessary.
I don't think this signals any outgoings this month, unless there are already agreements in place. Since strength in depth is important, there's no sale we can make now that we can't make after season's end, if there truly is a pressing need to balance the books. However there seems to be money available, and this transfer should reassure our players and supporters that the club retains high ambitions.
Even a squad like ours, with top players hitting their peak, needs new blood and a refresh every now and again. So this is a great move all round. It's great to see everyone so enthused.