EXCLUSIVE
Toby Alderweireld remains unfazed by a lack of transfer activity at Tottenham, claiming retention of key men was more important this summer.
Mauricio Pochettino is yet to show his hand during the current window, with last season’s Premier League runners-up having seen more movement out of the club than into it.
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Kyle Walker has been sold to domestic rivals Manchester City for £50 million, but the likes of Harry Kane and Eric Dier have been retained despite generating plenty of exit talk.
That means Spurs remain a formidable proposition heading into 2017-18, with Alderweireld retaining complete faith in the ability of his team-mates and the plans of his manager.
The Belgium international defender told Goal after a 2-0 friendly victory over Juventus at Wembley: "The most important thing is to keep the team together.
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“We are a very good team, a very young team. We are developing and as a team we can improve more.
“It’s up to us to focus on the pitch, to be better players and a better team. The rest (buying players) is up to the boss."
Having established themselves as title contenders over recent years, Spurs are expected to go well again in the upcoming campaign.
They have positives to take from pre-season, with victory over the reigning Serie A champions and 2017 Champions League finalists setting them up nicely for another shot at English top-flight glory.
Alderweireld added on the aspirations in north London: "We worked very hard in pre-season and now at Wembley it was important to get a good result and performance.
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"It gives us confidence for the next game but we still have to work very hard next week to be ready.
“We need a good start to the Premier League season and then we will see from there."
Spurs will open their campaign away at newly-promoted Newcastle on August 13.