Could Ben Davies Convert to Centre-back at Tottenham?

Though the test results remain outstanding, Tottenham are already scrambling to figure how they replace the contributions of star centre-back Jan Vertonghen.

Prior to his injury, the Belgian is once again proving to be a significant factor in Tottenham’s league-best defense. Losing him at such a significant juncture is far from ideal.

Still, Mauricio Pochettino needs to find a solution. He’s ruled out the transfer market as an option, which leaves him with the tools he already has at hand.

When Vertonghen went down at the same stage last season, that solution came in the form of Kevin Wimmer. The Austrian slotted in alongside Toby Alderweireld supremely well through a hectic February and March, but relinquished his position upon Vertonghen’s return.

Under normal circumstances one might expect Wimmer to once again step up, but things have changed.

For one, an injury sustained over the summer kept Wimmer out of contention early in the season. Out of options, Pochettino turned toward Eric Dier as an auxiliary centre-back and thus forced Wimmer down in the depth chart. Tensions understandably simmered upon the 24-year-old’s return to action.

Wimmer managed to work his way back into the fold in subsequent months however, and even served as Vertonghen’s understudy when Tottenham played Aston Villa in the FA Cup last weekend. The bigger issue now is one of tactics.

Last season Wimmer thrived in Pochettino’s once-preferred 4-2-3-1 system featuring just two centre-backs and standard full-backs. Nothing was asked of him beyond what was asked of conventional centre-backs for much of the past few decades.

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Tottenham’s tactical switch of late changes things however. If Wimmer wanted to understudy Vertonghen now he would be expected to serve on the left side of a three centre-back backline.

Vertonghen himself had no problem adjusting for the same reason Dier is thriving on the opposite side of Alderweireld in the middle. Both players have spent significant chunks of their careers playing in full-back roles. Thus, defending in wider areas with nothing but the touchline and another centre-back alongside you are nothing new to either player.

The Austrian lacks such experience. Much of his time spent in football at FC Koln and Tottenham was as a run-of-the-mill centre-back. Even talented players such as himself might struggle to make that switch.

By chance, Pochettino might already have hit upon a solution that does not include Wimmer. With the Austrian not included in the matchday squad on Saturday, it was Ben Davies who was brought in to replace Vertonghen in the 64th minute.

On the surface, this seems distressing. Asking a full-back to cover in place of a centre-back runs the risk of fracturing the whole defensive scheme. Though both full-backs and centre-backs are both nominally defenders, their roles in the modern game differ enough that they are not always interchangeable. Asking Danny Rose to make the same switch, for instance, would be borderline unthinkable.

With Davies, though, Pochettino has a full-back whose primary strength, unlike Rose, is in defense. He knows how to cover his flank well, and thrives in working along the touchline.

In a way, Davies’ lack of centre-back experience is a strength in this 3-4-3 system. The Welsh international can essentially play the game he always plays, including with a bit of license to get forward when in possession. Dier and Vertonghen both proved in recent weeks how valuable that latter trait can be in this system.

Pochettino’s evolving tactics demand and receive a high amount of flexibility from almost all outfield players. No one can be rigidly defined in their roles, especially in defense. Mobility is prized almost above all else. The shape needs to adapt to shifting circumstances, and in that sense Davies is by far the superior option to Wimmer.

Doubters don’t need to look far to see how well this theory works in action. Giorgio Chiellini featured heavily at left-back prior to becoming a wide centre-back in a back three at Juventus. Though Barcelona never properly played in a back three themselves, Carles Puyol’s mobility made Pep Guardiola’s defense tick. He, too, began as a full-back. More recently, César Azpilicueta made a seamless transition from versatile full-back to centre-back in Antonio Conte’s back three at Chelsea.

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These examples are all fine reasons to give Davies a shot at covering for Vertonghen in the short term. Wimmer might indeed be the centre-back of Tottenham’s future, but it seems like too big a risk to field him in a big match like Manchester City.