3 Tottenham players that should be left out of the starting XI

Sunday's North London derby was yet another day of frustration for Spurs, who have made their worst start to a season in a decade - stark contrast to the start made at the beginning of last season.

There are three changes in particular that Ange must make to improve the current trajectory. Sidenote - this does not include the midweek game against Coventry City, where other factors will be considered. This is starting from the game against Brentford next weekend.

3 Tottenham players that should be left out of the starting XI

The first player to come out is Rodrigo Bentancur. Ange might have no choice with the ban looming over his head - but this should be a conscious decision. This one feels like the harshest of the three, and in fairness - is more about who would come in, than Bentancur himself.

Bentancur is not a natural defensive midfielder and was left on an island out there against Arsenal. Pape Matar Sarr did not do anything, in particular, to be dropped, and gives Spurs serious legs and ground-eating ability that is required for Ange's style of play. Sarr and Archie Gray are deserving of a chance as the two most combative midfielders in the side.

The second player to come out is James Maddison. He was very poor against Arsenal, for the second game in a row. Despite an assist against Leicester City and a good general performance against Everton, he seems to have fallen to his level in the second half of last season. Whilst these are only two poor games, his quality towards the end of last season has lowered his credit in the bank.

The midfielder is not the worst player in the side, but his coming out of the team allows Kulusevski to play in central areas, where he is clearly more effective than he is out wide, whilst also allowing the aforementioned Sarr and Gray to hold the midfield down.

The third and final player that needs to come out of the side is Brennan Johnson. The Welsh winger is the worst performing out of the three mentioned players - but in the position with the least depth. As touched on above, Kulusevski is much better inside and Wilson Odobert is still a raw, unknown quantity at this level. Richarlison has played off the right in his career but is still battling an injury.

To conclude, despite his youthfulness, it is worth trying Odobert there for the time being. Whilst the Frenchman is going to have difficult games at his age, and the end product will not always be there, at the very least he gives Spurs some much-needed 1v1 threat. There was absolutely zero around against Arsenal, who knew they could sit back and let the game be played in front of them.

The number of times Johnson tried to take on Jurrien Timber just to see his pass/cross/shot blocked was infuriating and showed alarming signs of being one-dimensional.

Whilst the Coventry City game is a different task, and the likes of Dragusin should come in for the clearly jaded Romero, it could be a perfect time to get Sarr, Gray, and Odobert's sharpness up ahead of the league games that they will hopefully be starting.

Ideal XI for Brentford: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van De Ven, Udogie; Sarr, Gray; Odobert, Kulusevski, Son; Solanke.