Tottenham midfield in disarray after Leicester City debacle
Tottenham’s midfield was horrible against Leicester
Mauricio Pochettino slammed Tottenham’s “lack of fight” in the aftermath of Spurs 2-1 defeat at Leicester City yesterday. He was speaking, in particular to the shameful performance of his midfield against the Foxes.
Many Spurs fans will point to the club’s lack of finishing as the reason for the disappointing defeat, but more blame should be assigned to Tottenham stars in the middle of the pitch. Specifically, Mousa Dembele, Christian Eriksen, Eric Dier and Moussa Sissoko all should be fearing their place in the squad moving forward.
Dier was a joke
The worst offender of this group was clearly Dier. He started the match as a central defender but was quickly moved into the midfield as Pochettino abandoned his original formation. If Pochettino had any reasonable midfield options on the bench then Dier would have been hauled off in disgrace.
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It’s hard to really point to anything the Englishman did well in the match. He gave the ball away over and over with his careless passing. His lackadaisical play was directly responsible for giving the ball away for Riyad Mahrez’s crucial goal late in the first half.
Unfortunately, Dier is probably safe until Harry Winks or Victor Wanyama return to the squad. Spurs fans need to hope Winks gets well very soon.
Eriksen needs a rest
Christian Eriksen is one of the most talented players in the Tottenham squad. Just ask Ireland fans how good he can be on his day.
Sadly, yesterday was not his day. He ran all over the pitch, but got absolutely nothing accomplished for his squad. Additionally, his unwillingness to really challenge Leicester for the ball in the middle of the field really put his squad at a disadvantage.
Eriksen would benefit from a match or two on the bench. He’ll rediscover his top form, but it doesn’t look as if it’s going to happen while trying to play through his slump.
Sissoko’s time may be done
Fans absolutely decimated the Frenchman on social media which I thought was a little unfair. He wasn’t a shining light during his time on the pitch, but he also wasn’t nearly as poor as many fans seemed to think.
With that being said, his best matches seem to be average. That isn’t good enough for consistent inclusion in Pochettino’s squad. The return of Erik Lamela may lead to his ultimate sale in January or next summer.
Dembele just lacks dynamism
It’s been painful for Mousa Dembele to play this season and equally as painful to watch him labor on the pitch. It’s clear the end is coming for the talented Belgian.
Dembele is still capable of holding the ball up in the middle of the park, but he just isn’t dynamic enough to be included as a starter in this squad. He held the ball up well enough against Leicester’s pressure, but I’d challenge you to think of a single important contribution he made during the match. If you have to think that much about what he did well, it’s a pretty good sign he played a very average match.
What does it all mean?
The frequency of matches in the Holiday period will allow Pochettino to heavily rotate his lineups. Expect to see some different midfield options coming over the next several weeks.
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The eventual return of Winks and Wanyama will certainly help, but Spurs still need to find the right personnel balance to maximize their midfield’s effectiveness moving forward.