Tottenham's £100m transfer mistake made clear as Omar Marmoush solution shot down before Aston Villa

Tottenham Hotspur made a grave mistake by not spending £90m or £100m on a world-class striker during the summer transfer window, a former Spurs defender has exclusively told Sports Mole.

The Lilywhites head into Saturday lunchtime's showdown with Aston Villa having failed to score in any of their four Premier League matches so far this season, only the second time such a streak has occurred in the current era.

The only previous team who failed to score in their first four Premier League games of a single season was Crystal Palace in 2017-18, although the Eagles wound up in a respectable 11th place after sacking Frank de Boer early doors.

Tottenham did at least manage a consolation in their midweek loss to Liverpool in the EFL Cup, as Conor Gallagher nodded home from close range, but Roberto De Zerbi's men are suffering in the absence of Richarlison.

The wantaway striker was Spurs' top scorer in all tournaments last season with 12 goals, and Alan Hutton believes that Tottenham made a mistake by not breaking their transfer record on a top-drawer number nine.

"I have thought for a couple of seasons now that Spurs really need an out-and-out goalscorer," Hutton said. "They did well to strengthen in the summer with the likes of Tonali, Fernandes, Van Hecke and Savio, but there’s still an obvious piece missing.

"With the Richarlison situation and Solanke’s lack of availability, they’re really in need of a goalscorer and I think they should have gone and spent £90m or £100m on one in the summer, but they chose to spend that money elsewhere.

"[Omar] Marmoush is a good loan signing, but even he only scored three Premier League goals for Manchester City last season, so he’s not going to be the guy to score you 20-plus goals in a season, which is what Spurs need."

Marmoush did register 15 goals and 10 assists in just 17 Bundesliga matches for Eintracht Frankfurt in 2024-25, but the 27-year-old has started each of Tottenham's three top-flight games this term without success.

Meanwhile, Dominic Solanke - Spurs' previous record signing at £65m - is yet to reach double figures in a single Premier League season for Tottenham, netting nine in 2024-25 and scoring a mere three last term.

Regardless of how much money Tottenham had to spend in the 2026 summer window, attracting the elite of the elite with no European football was always going to be an extremely tall order.

Julian Alvarez's desire to leave Atletico Madrid was well-documented, but the Argentine's yearning for Barcelona and Arsenal's own interest meant that Tottenham could never have been considered serious contenders.

However, Tottenham were credited with a serious interest in Galatasaray's Victor Osimhen, responsible for 65 goals in 78 games for the Turkish giants after scoring 76 goals in 133 appearances for Napoli.

Brentford talisman Igor Thiago - second only to Erling Haaland in the 2025-26 Premier League Golden Boot race - was also linked with a switch, but the Brazilian is yet to find the back of the net in the current campaign.

Tottenham apparently considered a £65m approach for Osimhen, but a move for the Nigeria international never got off the ground, and Spurs are now living to regret their glaring transfer mistake.

Alan Hutton was speaking to Sports Mole on behalf of NetBet Sport.

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