Tottenham do need a player like Ross Barkley
Sometime last summer, loads of Tottenham fans decided that Spurs don’t need to sign Ross Barkley. Supposedly, Mauricio Pochettino possessed too much talent in the midfield to add the English international. The first half of this season has made it quite clear that simply isn’t true.
Now, as the January transfer window prepares to open, Barkley has again arisen as a prime target for Pochettino and company. Of course, signing him won’t be easy. Antonio Conte and Chelsea also want to add him to their squad in an effort to solidify their place towards the top of the Premier League table.
It’s a battle that Pochettino needs to win. The Argentine gaffer simply doesn’t have enough quality options in the centre of the pitch. In part, serious injuries to Victor Wanyama, Toby Alderweireld and Mousa Dembele have contributed to Tottenham’s lack of punch in the midfield. In truth, those injuries only exacerbated a problem that will plague Pochettino’s squad moving forward.
Dembele is obviously not someone the club can count on moving forward. Expecting him to be a full-time starter moving forward is a recipe for disaster. Anything he gives Spurs moving forward should be considered a bonus.
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That leaves Wanyama, Eric Dier and Harry Winks as the only real options to play in Pochettino’s double-pivot. Wanyama and Dier are the best two players in that group currently. Winks has played outstanding football at times this season, but his lack of physical size simply makes him overmatched against some opponents. The recent debacle against Manchester City laid that reality bare.
That means Pochettino would need to start Wanyama and Dier together. That isn’t an ideal pairing. Both players do their best work in the defensive half of the pitch. Both are very good at what they do, but neither is a tremendous offensive force.
That’s precisely where Barkley can slot into Pochettino’s starting XI. He is the ideal star to play next to one of those defensive-minded stars. He’s capable of making a key tackle too, but his real value lies in his ability to move the ball forward. Barkley’s ability to pick out a brilliant forward pass or carry the ball past defenders himself would give Tottenham’s attack an entirely new dimension.
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Tottenham currently struggle mightily when teams “park the bus” against them. Pochettino’s squad have dropped a significant number of points struggling to take games out of the muck and mire this season. Adding an offensive force in the defensive midfield could be the perfect solution to Spurs’ biggest weakness. That’s why Ross Barkley isn’t a want for Spurs, he’s a need.