Who is Tottenham target Johnny Cardoso? The subject of a bizarre potential Spurs switch

Life has moved fast for Johnny Cardoso ever since the United States international midfielder moved to Europe last January.

The 22-year-old joined Real Betis from Brazilian side Internacional during the January transfer window and has so impressed in little over half a season in La Liga that Tottenham Hotspur have already moved to secure a first option on him at a pre-agreed price of €30 million.

It was a savvy move from Spurs who, as part of the negotiations to sell Argentinian playmaker Gio Lo Celso back to the Andalusian club they signed from in 2019, extracted additional value from the deal by obtaining the rights to jump the queue for one of the most interesting and high-potential young players in the Spanish top flight.

Cardoso was born on New Jersey and has represented the USA at under-23 and senior level, but to all intents and purposes he is a Brazilian footballer.

Born to Brazilian parents, the Cardosos moved back to their South American homeland when baby Joao Lucas – nicknamed “Johnny” – was just a few months old.

Cardoso came through the youth academy at Internacional to make his senior debut for the club a few days before his 18th birthday.

He soon became a regular starter at the Beira-Rio, racking up 144 appearances and scoring seven goals for the side from Porto Alegre.

That was enough to attract Betis’ attention, and the club from Seville splashed €6 million to take him to the Estadio Benito Villamarin midway through last season.

Cardoso hit the ground running in La Liga. After making his debut in a 4-2 loss to Barcelona on January 21, he played a full 90 minutes in a 1-0 victory over Mallorca a week later. Over what remained of the campaign, the 22-year-old started 15 of Betis’ 17 fixtures, coming off the bench in the other two.

Despite his impressive displays after his cross-continental switch, anyone expecting Cardoso to showcase the kind of flair, trickery and creativity associated with players who learned their trade in Brazil would have been disappointed.

Instead, he is a player in the mould of the classic Brazilian defensive midfielders – more Dunga than Romario, more Casemiro than Neymar. Strong and athletic at 6ft tall, Cardoso is a fierce competitor who doesn’t swerve a physical challenge in his duties protecting the backline. On the ball, he keeps things relatively simple, with a conservative approach to passing.

Measured against fellow La Liga midfielders last season, Cardoso ranked in the 99th percentile for interceptions per 90 (2.17), the 94th percentile for tackles (3.25), the 93rd percentile for dribblers tackled (1.49).

The ballast the young midfielder adds to the middle of the park will no doubt be the key feature of his game that has attracted Tottenham’s interest. Ange Postecoglou’s side shipped 61 league goals last season. Only Chelsea (63) and Newcastle (62) finished inside the top 11 places with a worse defensive record, while rivals Arsenal (29) conceded fewer than half as many goals as their north-London rivals.

Cardoso’s robustness extends to aerial duels, too. He ranked in the 93rd percentile among La Liga midfielders last season for aerials won per 90 (2.58) and was in the 88th percentile for success rate in aerial duels (60.3 per cent).

The 14-cap rising USMNT star also proved a creative tackler, if such a thing is possible, ranking in the 96th percentile among midfielders in Spain’s top flight last term for defensive actions per 90 that led to a shot (0.20).

“Johnny is a player that interests not only Tottenham, but many other teams, he has a great projection,” Betis president Angelo Haro told Mundo Deportivo.

“In this case, within the Gio operation, they asked us for an option to buy for a value that for us was important and interesting and we gave them that option.”

The Spanish side’s sporting director, Manu Fajardo, sung the young midfielder’s praises, too.

“Johnny’s performance is extraordinary,” he said. “He’s going to bring a lot of joy to Beticismo. Tottenham has a purchase option in amounts that will satisfy Betis if they occur.”

No timescale has been reported regarding when – or, indeed, if – Spurs will trigger their option to sign Cardoso from Betis. And the Premier League club might have indirectly aided his development by selling a creative player of Lo Celso’s calibre to Los Verdiblancos to play alongside the American.

But if Cardoso’s progress continues at its current rate, Tottenham have locked down player who could anchor their midfield for a generation.

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