Arguably, Rodrigo Bentancur has been the best player on Tottenham Hotspur this season, and the defensive midfielder has been maybe the one player on the entire Lilywhite side to not have a single poor performance this season, as the other contenders like Jan Paul van Hecke and Micky van de Ven have had a couple of poor matches.
Bentancur has been impressive in the same way that he was at the end of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign when he helped Roberto De Zerbi save the Lilywhites from going down, except he's actually been even better. He has looked more athletic, almost to the level he was before the ACL tear, and he has made a lot more defensive interventions, showing a scrappiness and bite that has been badly missing from Spurs players since Thomas Frank took over last season.
But as great as Bentancur has been, his impressive displays should not stop Tottenham Hotspur from finally playing 85 million pound midfielder Mateus Fernandes in his most natural position at the base of the double pivot alongside Sandro Tonali.
Mateus Fernandes is too good to be out of position
The Portuguese international was balling out at the start of the season, even when Spurs were beyond awful with combined 5-0 defeats to Brentford and Newcastle United. However, his performances have suffered badly in recent weeks, as he was dreary against Everton as the No. 10 and even worse this past weekend against Aston Villa, to the point where Roberto De Zerbi hooked Fernandes off at the half.
Fernandes is too good to be miscast as a No. 10, and with James Maddison set to start again after the international break, it is the former West Ham United man's time to shine in the defensive midfield. And although Rodrigo Bentancur has earned a starting job on merit, the reality is that Spurs have not seen Fernandes as a defensive midfielder yet, so saying Bentancur is better than Fernandes in that spot does not actually make much sense.
Last season, Fernandes was one of the best midfielders in the entire Premier League, which is why Spurs spent 85 million pounds to sign him ahead of the likes of Manchester United and even Real Madrid. Fernandes is worth it and has shown that quality before being exposed in the wrong position. He should be better than Bentancur, and Spurs need to give him a chance to be better by playing him further back next to Tonali. It's time to let Fernandes fly.
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