The forward players Spurs have signed since Ange took over is worrying. Veliz, Solomon, Werner and Johnson.
Matteo Moretto says that Veliz has joined Espanyol on loan Just a thought, maybe let the clubs announce things first...?
Veliz made sense if you look at Ange's tactics at Celtic, as Plan B was rain in crosses for a target man - though with Perisic out of action that tactic basically got retired, while Johnson and Werner both make a lot of sense given Ange's tactics rely on low crosses fired across the face of goal and they're both bloody good at those and we do benefit from it Solomon is the only one which doesn't make tactical sense, given he's a speedy winger who cuts inside which doesn't fit Ange's tactics as that's the space FBs occupy - which makes him look more like a Stambouli-type signing who we bought cheap (or free in his case) looking to flip him for a tidy profit in a year or two
I’ve no issue with the type of player they are, I mean more the fact they’re just not very good. Brennan Johnson could come good but for the money paid it baffled me at the time and sometimes I see him and feel despair at what he does.
Johnson was our joint-highest creator with 10 assists last season (tied with Sonny) - though his goal tally certainly needs work given he was a our joint-fourth scorer...tied with Romero, on 5 That being said, he outstripped James Maddison on both, and given Maddison was supposed to be the creative hub who chipped in with goals, that needs addressing more than naything else
Yeah I’m mixed on him, sometimes I can see why the club signed him (although the money was silly) but then I see him do stuff that makes me think he’s brain dead. Maddison is one I’ve never liked or rated so not particularly surprised to see him go through a dry spell, although I can see why he was signed last year. I’ve said before though, if Spurs are to kick on then he would be nothing more than a back up option
Maddison is so weird: he definitely would have improved us two years ago, which is why Conte passing on him was so bizarre, as we needed connective tissue between midfield and attack especially after Bentancur got injured Last season was so weird, though: you'd think he'd be a useful catalyst in the system, and he seemed to be in the early stretch of games before Chelsea ****ed everything up (as per...) and he tailed off horribly in the second half of the season, yet instead it was the wide players who tended to handle the creative work with Sonny, Johnson and Porro being most reliable Creativity through the middle definitely needs to improve going forward, though Bergvall looks to be a step in the right direction
I have my doubts about Maddison and like KH, never really rated him as a top quality player (he isn't fit to clean Eriksen's boots, for example). But in his defence, he didn't benefit from the overall collapse in The System in the second half of the season. Once teams worked out how to shepherd our wide men and keep the FBs pushed back, they quickly realised that we weren't capable of controlling the midfield, no matter what combo of CMs we used there, and from that point on Maddison's job became almost impossible as we weren't seeing much possession and certainly no control in the territory he prefers to work in. It got even worse after Richarlison got injured again. Our central channels from Micky through to the opposition goal were non-existent and the most they impacted a game was probably Bentancur assaulting a chair. So, while Maddison definitely isn't cut from the same cloth as Eriksen, one of the reasons the latter did so well was that he had the likes of Dembele and Wanyama behind him controlling the midfield.
I think Maddison is (or rather can be) excellent but needs a platform or he drifts out of games. I like him as a footballer but he’s a bit of a different fit to what Ange had at Celtic, more of a 10 than one of those twin 8s, that’s what makes Bergvall so interesting as an alternative as he’s stylistically more of the latter. Spiritually Maddison is an Ange player through and through which I love but he can disappear when the system breaks down. He’s got those moments of magic in him to win a game anyway but like Son, unless you get the ball to him in a dangerous area then it doesn’t matter.
The thing is that teams were choking the middle first, as Bissouma's disappearance after the early games coincided with closing down the passing lanes so he'd wind up slowing down our play by reverting to his more usual conservative passing (i.e. sideways or backwards) which is when the wide players took up the creative duties It's the transition between defence and attack that's long been an issue for us, pretty much since Dembele fell apart, but it's fascinating in a bizarre way to see how the issue derails a season depending on different coaches - most obviously under Conte when our passing structures started going from one wing through the midfield to the other wing and back again once his tactics being sussed out and lack of flexibility in addressing this created a monster
I'm hearing rumours that we're exploring the option of a cash + player deal for Solanke, with some suggestions saying we're not willing to pay out more than £50m but would include a player in the deal to make up the difference to his release clause (reportedly £65m). I don't think he's worth £50m on its own, let alone that plus a player, but I wonder if there are legs to this rumour and if we might be seeing one of Skipp/Reguilon/Lo Celso/Solomon heading to the south coast as part of the deal?
There is the possibility that he can be educated to raise his game (he is still young) , but I expect the club to be brutal if/when the time of patience is passed.
