Harry Winks continues to confound Tottenham with his inconsistency

Tottenham can’t figure out what to do with Harry Winks. One match he looks like a world-class midfielder, the next he looks like a Championship regular.

In a perfect world, Tottenham would pencil Harry Winks in as their starting No. 8 for the present and future. If he played every match for Spurs like he did for England against Kosovo they could do that without hesitation. Unfortunately, his inconsist play has his career stuck in neutral.

The simple truth is that Mauricio Pochetitno and his coaching staff don’t really know what to do with the 23-year-old midfielder. That’s why he’s fallen slightly out of favour at Tottenham in recent weeks. He’s still managed to start nine Premier League matches on the campaign, but he’s been left out of the club’s starting XI for several high-profile matches recently.

At his best, Winks is a stylish midfielder who can run the game with his crisp passing. That’s exactly what he did for England against Kosovo. He was delighted to score his first international goal, but that’s never going to define his game. Instead, it was the way he kept the ball moving that really powered his stellar performance.

At this worst, he’s a player who can frequently be accurately accused of passing the ball sideways with little purpose. When he does that, his lack of size and athleticism really become apparent. He works hard to shield his back line but he just doesn’t have the athletic gifts to combat elite Premier League attackers. He openly admits his preference to play as a No. 8, but his size looks much more like a No. 10. Unfortunately for Winks, he lacks the attacking verve to play a more advanced role.

Add it all up and it likely means that Winks is best suited to be a squad player for Tottenham. He has the quality to start against quite a few sides in the league, but he’s not someone Pochettino can really rely on to play against sides like Liverpool or Manchester City. At some point that might tempt Winks to look elsewhere for more regular playing time. He’ll be a useful cog for Spurs until that day comes.

Everyone associated at Tottenham needs to come to grips with the reality that Winks isn’t a star. He also isn’t an overmatched midfielder who can’t help the club under any circumstances. As usual, the truth about the young Englishman’s game lies somewhere between both extreme labels.