Three reasons you knew Tottenham was in trouble prior to semifinal kickoff

2. Matt Doherty playing on the left side

This requires almost no explanation. The Irishman has endured more than his fair share of difficulties when he plays in his natural, comfortable right-sided role. He has played on the left side at Tottenham before, albeit briefly, but that didn’t go so well either.

Doherty’s left foot is about as bad as a professional footballer’s left foot can be. He is so utterly right-foot dominant that anyone defending him has no illusions of where the Irishman is headed.

And that’s toward the centre of the pitch. He is ill-equipped to take defenders on at the best of times with his dominant foot, so asking him to do it on his peg leg is as cruel as it is laughable. One would presume Sergio Reguilon, like Dier, was impacted by Covid-19, as he was also left completely off the team sheet.

It offered sobering insight, with Ryan Sessegnon also out due to injury, as to the palpable lack of options Conte has at his disposal, and will hopefully impress upon Daniel Levy the urgency of bringing in suitable replacements.