Tottenham can’t give Serge Aurier time to adjust
By Ryan Wrenn
If the first month of Tottenham’s Premier League season provided any lesson, it’s that another option at right-back is desperately needed.
Prior to the summer transfer window’s deadline day, Tottenham appeared to content to rely on Kieran Trippier and Kyle Walker-Peters in that role.
Despite an encouraging season opener from the latter, Mauricio Pochettino quickly turned to Trippier in the following matches against Chelsea and Burnley.
Both Trippier’s lack of defensive acumen and Pochettino attempts to mitigate that issue proved disastrous for Spurs however. Accommodating Trippier made for a disjointed effort against Chelsea, while Burnley’s stoppage time equalizer came in no small part due to Trippier’s inability to get goalside of his mark.
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Spurs clearly recognized this gaping hole in their gameplan, and moved to sign Serge Aurier from Paris Saint Germain on deadline day. The transfer is not without its risks, but all else being equal the Ivory Coast international represents an immediate upgrade to the right of Spurs’ defense.
The club might hesitate to deploy Aurier in this Saturday’s trip to Everton however. Aurier is coming off a limited pre-season, and did not feature in any of PSG’s four opening fixtures of the new season. All that, combined with the fact that he will only just be getting back from a World Cup qualifier in the Ivory Coast, might be enough for him to be limited to the bench.
With another lackluster August behind them though, Spurs should use every advantage at their disposal to see past Everton on Saturday. Trippier is a potential liability, and Walker-Peters might not fair so well against a team that isn’t Newcastle. They need Aurier to start adapting now.
His fee might not suggest as much — thanks in large part to his unfortunate reputation — but Aurier has the potential to be a world class right-back. He’s proven himself in both France’s Ligue 1 and the Champions League. There should be little doubt that he can sustain that level in the Premier League.
Even if he can’t just yet, Spurs have every incentive to get him adapted to his new environs as quickly as possible. A road trip to Everton is about league average when it comes to difficulty. Spurs couldn’t ask for a better live fire exercise.
Next: Tottenham continue to lack options due to injury
With every point precious even this early in the season and injuries already limiting his options, Pochettino cannot afford to leave his best weapons unused on Saturday.