Tottenham: With Son out, why Saturday Bryan Gil’s chance to shine?

Expect Bryan to be fouled a lot on Saturday

Maybe one of the biggest questions facing Bryan Gil coming in the Premier League is going to be his ability to handle the physicality of the English game. At just 20-years-old and less than 70kg (150 lbs), Bryan is not exactly a big man. Further, his desire to dribble on the ball and his craftiness with the ball leads to him being fouled a lot.

Last season, Bryan was fouled 1.86 times per 90 minutes, which was again more than Son who was fouled 1.56 times per 90. Add in who Tottenham is playing, Crystal Palace, who are averaging 13 fouls per match so far this season – Tottenham is below 9 for comparison – and we should expect to see several dead ball opportunities created by Bryan on the left or even in the box.

Bryan is likely to be facing Joel Ward, who averages nearly 2 fouls per match, and Joachim Anderson who fouls at least once per match himself. Neither Ward nor Anderson is known for being fleet of foot and Bryan should be able to leverage that to Tottenham’s advantage.

While we are not saying Bryan is going to be the man of the match on Saturday, Kane will with his goals, we do expect Bryan to make a big impact on both ends of the pitch in his first big opportunity with the club.