Tottenham: The value of Steven Bergwijn revealed

Steven Bergwijn has been up and coming for years at PSV Eindhoven; being hidden at the second best known Dutch football club did him no favors however.

For José Mourinho, Steven Bergwijn is perhaps the perfect fit; immensely talented, able to play wide on both sides of the pitch as well as centrally in the midfield. Between his technical ability, pace, creativity, work ethic and ambition, there is little to dislike about the Dutchman; Tottenham desperately needed this all to be the case.

With the injury to Harry Kane and departure of Christian Eriksen, firepower was necessary to continue forward in this campaign; Gedson Fernandes was chosen to grow into Eriksen’s place in the midfield. Meanwhile, Bergwijn became the most profound and immediate offensive solution for Tottenham during the January window.

Alongside Lucas Moura, Son Hueng-Min and Dele Allie, Bergwijn’s impact would have to be felt quickly in North London; Tottenham are in the middle of a wild outfit of clubs, all essentially vying for one, perhaps two slots of European Competition. The top three are essentially safe as of today; Chelsea have a better chance of falling than rising towards Leicester City after all.

How would Tottenham perform, with or without Steven Bergwijn, come their match against Manchester City? The Special One versus Pep Guardiola; a matchup the former relishes against the latter tremendously. The answer would lie, in part, with Steven Bergwijn.

Steven Bergwijn: Hero versus City, but just getting started at Tottenham

I have been critical of José Mourinho since his return to the Premier League; to be fair, I was also critical of him at Manchester United as well. Much of my critique is usually centered around a more stagnant type of football, relics of a different era of manager and player; his inability to connect with younger players also struck me as a real issue that I’ve been unsure could be remedied.

Recently however, José Mourinho has proven my criticisms unjust, at least for now. Against Manchester City, the Special One demonstrated his affinity for defensive organization as usual; this has been the most obvious improvement Tottenham has experienced since the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino.

This dense game plan allowed Tottenham the chance for Mourhino’s favorite and most famous tactic, the counterattack. The expulsion of Oleksandr Zinchenko in the 60’, on a counter attacking movement by Harry Winks no less, was a major turning point without question.

When, just minutes later, Lucas Moura volleyed the ball to Steven Bergwijn, one could see no fear or anxiety in his eyes. Although they became big as stars in the sky, they remained full of joy and confidence; Mourinho’s man had scored on his debut, to pull Hotspur ahead of the defending Premier League champions.

While Son Hueng-Min would minutes later to cement the match versus ten man Manchester City, the match belonged to Steven Bergwijn. The greatest thought as it relates to this for both Tottenham and José Mourinho? This is simply the start for Bergwijn in North London; the possibilities only increase from here.

Increasing Possibilities

While the victory against Manchester City has great implications for Tottenham’s ambitions for a top five finish on the league table, the future is much better still. To have at your disposal, any combination of Son Hueng-Min, Harry Kane, Lucas Moura and Steve Bergwijn attacking a defense is luxurious. Having a revitalized Dele Alli as the number ten is still a greater luxury for Mourinho; Tottenham have attacking weapons, in theory, like Manchester United had with the Special One.

If José Mourinho doesn’t smother these talents with overbearing, antiquated football, he has a chance to rewrite these latter stages of a brilliant career. He seems to have grown to understand how to get the best out of is defense without paralyzing his offense, as was demonstrated at Old Trafford. If this innovation of his is merely a flash in the pan, no level of talent will be able to save this club from him; talent wasn’t necessarily the issue at Manchester United, cohesion was, and still is quite frankly.

Steven Bergwin is an immense talent, capable of accommodating the other talent around him, as well as accentuating it. In a perfect scenario, his addition will only lessen the load Harry Kane, Son Hueng-Min and the rest of the offensive talent will have to individually carry. While Kane is injured, it takes pressure off of him to recover so soon, as well as on his teammates to carry that burden by themselves. One only hopes that the Special One does not mangle another special opportunity in England and the Premier League.