What is the missing piece for Tottenham?
Tottenham are title contenders based on pure talent but in recent weeks it has become apparent that maybe something is missing. What is it?
Tottenham’s campaign is stuttering at the moment and the question that everyone must be wondering is why?
Is it natural? Was the summer’s lack of recruitment that big a deal? Are the players coming back to earth? Is something missing?
In some part it’s all of those but mainly it’s the missing piece.
Tottenham’s first eleven are nearly perfect when they’re all healthy and playing well together. When the chemistry is flowing and the team is playing downhill they are a nearly perfect football side. But things go wrong over the course of a season.
Often the champions in the league are not the team that played the best football or scored the most goals they are the team that forced the most results, had the fewest injuries and did their best with what they had.
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Tottenham don’t have a backup striker of true value. That’s not to say Llorente isn’t a good player, of course, he is and I personally loved him at Atletico Bilbao. But he isn’t pushing Harry Kane every single day. For example, Liverpool, who Tottenham ceded ground to this summer, have a nearly perfect squad this season.
What makes it that way is the quality they have in-depth particularly at striker. Having Firmino (the most underrated number nine in Europe) backed up by Daniel Sturridge is perfect. Everybody knows that Daniel can find the net, he did against PSG for instance. He’s a fantastic striker when he’s not injured. Can you count on him for 50 matches a season? No, absolutely not. But can you count on him to show his quality a couple times and relieve pressure on Firmino and the rest of the squad in 10 important matches a season while not letting quality dip and also testing people in training the rest of the time? Yes.
That’s what Tottenham are missing. What if all it took was four days off to get Harry Kane back into King-mode? Wouldn’t that be worth it? Absolutely it would be. Tottenham don’t have the option to let Kane rest at the moment because the squad is too thin.
Injuries are decimating Tottenham’s title challenge before they can even get off the ground. Dele Alli is hurt, Kane is tired, Lloris is injured and Llorente is carrying an arm fracture. It’s not good enough. Tottenham are so close and yet in moments like this look so far from the history that they crave.
The club lacks depth. Desperately.