Tottenham’s Ryan Mason is Spurs’ forgotten man

Ryan Mason’s absence due to injury caused many Tottenham fans to forget what a key player he really is

Tottenham defensive midfielder Ryan Mason can be a pretty easy Spurs player to forget. He lacks the physical size or athleticism of many of his Spurs counterparts, but he more than makes up for it with guile and skill.

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I have to confess that when Ryan Mason missed significant time due to injury I started to forget about him I don’t think I’m the only Tottenham fan who would have to plead guilty to that crime. After all, he isn’t the squad’s flashiest player.

Mason proved with his scintillating first half goal versus Fiorentina in yesterday’s crucial Europa League Cup match that he’s too good to be brushed aside. He may not ever develop into a world-class defensive midfielder, but he can absolutely fill a role for Mauricio Pochettino’s squad.

The English midfielder has only managed to make ten appearances on the season for Tottenham due to injury. He was a key figure for Pochettino early in the campaign, but wasn’t really missed when he went out of the lineup. Other midfield options like Eric Dier and Mousa Dembele more than picked up his slack while he was on the sideline.

Yesterday, Mason took advantage of Dembele’s most recent groin injury to remind everyone what he can contribute on the pitch at White Hart Lane. He was arguably the team’s Man of the Match against Fiorentina and played an excellent game even ignoring the obvious benefit of his first half goal. For me, Erik Lamela was slightly more influential, but the point is that Mason was one of the team’s leaders.

Mason posted an excellent Whoscored.com player rating of 7.8 in his 87 minute shift. He exited the pitch to a warm and well-deserved reception from the Spurs faithful. It was a sign that Mason is again, a force to be considered in the Spurs’ double-pivot.

It’s unfair that he was forgotten about in the first place. Yes, injuries are a part of the game, but we shouldn’t be so surprised that the English international has bounced back. After all, he was a very key player for Tottenham as a starter earlier this year.

When you look at Mason’s stats on the season, his overall Whoscored.com rating is misleading. His cumulative player rating is just 6.66, but he carries a rating of over 7.2 when he’s deployed as a starter in the defensive midfield. Quite simply, when he’s afforded an opportunity to start in his natural position, he’s been solidly above average on the season. That’s not bad for Pochettino’s third-choice defensive midfielder.

Mason doesn’t get the job done with overwhelming athleticism, he achieves impressive results on the pitch with his heart, effort and will to succeed. In many ways he is the poster child for what Pochettino has been able to do at Tottenham. He isn’t the most talented player, but his commitment to the system and the effort that the manager demands has transformed him into an above average Premier League player.

I’m going to make a concerted effort to avoid forgetting about players like Mason moving forward. It’s entirely too easy to get caught up in Tottenham’s flashy stars who have big-names and world-class skills. It’s refreshing when we see a player who doesn’t have that kind of magnanimous ability play just as important role for Tottenham.