Tottenham Hotspur left winger Mathys Tel is one of the most talented prospects in the Premier League, and when he shows his flashes of brililance, Spurs fans can picture him being a long term solution on the left wing, capable of flirting with 20 goals in a league season one day.
But when he plays like he has these last two weeks against Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest, he does not even look like he belongs in the English top flight, least of all as a starter for a team that dreams of finishing in one of the Champions League places.
Tel had a disastrous outing again vs. Nottingham Forest, turning possession over frequently while failing to create real chances for his teammates. It seems like every time the ball comes to his feet, he loses possession, and the decisions he is making on the ball are appalling. When a starting winger performs this badly, it hamstrings an entire attack and makes it exceedingly difficult to progress the ball and create meaningful chances.
Savio can help Tottenham a lot more than Mathys Tel
While Tottenham Hotspur and Roberto De Zerbi should not be giving up on Mathys Tel after a couple of bad games, especially when he played so well in the preseason that he was the team's best overall player, it is a sign that it is time to back off of him.
Tottenham are getting a fully fit Savio and Mohammed Kudus soon, and the former, in particular, is going to be crucial to Spurs. On talent level, Savio should be the new face of the attack, and as a dribbler and creator out wide, he bring a lot more to the table to help the entire attack than Tel does.
When a player as young as Tel shows great quality in the preseason, especially as a creator with two brilliant assists for Mikey Moore in his final friendly performance against Hoffenheim in the German top flight, and then plays this badly in the Premier League season, that speaks to a confidence issue.
We've been talking a lot about Tel these days - and it's pretty much all been negative. That's another sign that De Zerbi has to step in and protect Tel. His options off the bench are going to be limited with Mykhaylo Mudryk now out for several weeks, but Tel coming off the bench and even starting games in the League Cup is more than fine. Spurs don't need to freeze him out, but De Zerbi does need to pull him back and work with him closely.
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