After being defeated by Arsenal in the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur‘s interim manager, Igor Tudor, spoke of bad habits that have taken hold of many of the players in this struggling squad.
Old habits die hard, but Spurs have got to kill them quickly, with the 4-1 thrashing by the Gunners only deepening a crisis that has raised genuine concerns over relegation.
It is not so much the lowly league position – as concerning as it is – that is the problem here, but the manner of the side’s limp attempts at putting their issues to rights.
Against Arsenal, they were outworked and outclassed, and years of poor recruitment has led to this critical turning point in Tottenham’s trajectory.
Why Spurs lost to Arsenal
Arsenal are probably the best team in Europe right now, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that Tottenham have become their own worst enemy, capable of inflicting more damage upon themselves than their arch-rivals ever could.
Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold has bemoaned how “unrecognisable they have become“, showing against the Gunners that even a rekindled home support, in full, vociferous voice, could not stop the rot.
It’s rot of the outfit’s own making. Mishandled transfer recruitment in recent years has led to this, with the likes of Radu Dragusin and Xavi Simons among the bright signings of the past few years to have been reduced to mincemeat in the north London derby.
In truth, though, the entirety of Tottenham’s first team have fallen below the standard, and while struggling loanee Randal Kolo Muani scored his first Premier League goal of the season, the frontline continues to flatter to deceive.
You have to question the sales of Heung-min Son and Harry Kane in recent years, neither of whom have been effectively replaced as free-scoring focal points.
Whereas before, big-money flops like Tanguy Ndombele would be criticised as abject outliers, now the sub-par superstars are spread all across the Spurs system.
And while the players on the pitch take the brunt of the criticism, sporting director Johan Lange has to be pulled up for his efforts at improving the squad, with one recent piece of business proving to be a real blunder.
Spurs have found their new Ndombele
Ndombele was signed after Tottenham’s agonising miss in the 2019 Champions League final, identified as a player who could propel Mauricio Pochettino’s project forward.
However, he did anything but that, and Conor Gallagher is in danger of becoming another midfield flop, having only joined the London side from Atletico Madrid in a £35m deal last month.
During his Chelsea days, Gallagher was routinely praised for his energy at the heart of the pitch. Ex-teammate Moises Caicedo even said he was “like a machine“, outworking everyone else.
But he’s been ineffective in the Spurs midfield, unable to provide any creative support for a team currently in a tailspin.
|
Conor Gallagher in the PL |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stats (* per 90) |
23/24 |
25/26 |
|
Matches (starts) |
37 (37) |
6 (6) |
|
Goals |
5 |
0 |
|
Assists |
7 |
1 |
|
Accurate passes* |
92% |
28.2 (82%) |
|
Big chances created |
11 |
0 |
|
Key passes* |
1.4 |
1.2 |
|
Succ. dribbles* |
1.0 (68%) |
0.8 (71%) |
|
Ball recoveries* |
6.3 |
4.8 |
|
Tackles* |
2.3 |
1.7 |
|
Duels (won)* |
5.7 (50%) |
4.8 (47%) |
|
Stats via Sofascore |
||
Gallagher might be a tenacious midfielder, he’s shown that at Spurs, but he’s not yet proved he has the answer to any of the Londoners myriad of problems, actually proving something of a weak link in a system he does not understand.
Tottenham fans thought they had signed an all-action midfielder with an industrious and influential approach, but he has shown little of that so-called talent thus far, only becoming a part of the problem.
A supposed solution, failing to impress? Gallagher might just be the new Ndombele, who arrived at N17 from Lyon for a record £63m figure in 2019 but was lambasted for unwilling efforts, Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher even saying that one display against Burnley was “nothing short of a disgrace“.
The Lewis family’s more ardent supporters, such as they are, would point toward a long effort to sign Gallagher. An approach was made while he was still at Chelsea, but Tottenham couldn’t get it done and he later transferred to Atletico Madrid.
The fact that Rodrigo Bentancur is currently sidelined does emphasise a degree of sense in bringing the Three Lions star to the club, but he’s not a progressive passer, and thus Spurs failed to fix (one of) their most glaring problem during the winter transfer window.
Gallagher cannot be faulted for effort, and in this, he differs from Ndombele, but he’s a high-profile player who doesn’t fit the system, and he’s already looking like wasted money.
Fewer touches & passes than Vicario: Tudor must drop 3/10 Spurs star
Tottenham Hotspur have now lost their four North London Derbies, with Igor Tudor needing to drop this flop ahead of some crucial Premier League games.