Tottenham Hotspur are starting to play better football under Roberto De Zerbi, but the final score line has not quite reflected any of that thus far. Aside from two measly 0-0 draws with Nottingham Forest and Everton, Spurs have been poor in all their other games and are coming off a tough 3-2 loss to Aston Villa.
New signing Sandro Tonali has been a bit of a flop in the early going, and while he has not played poorly, Spurs are yet to see the full gamut of what the 100 million pound transfer from Newcastle United can do. And against a struggling Manchester United that has serious question marks in midfield yet to be answered, the Italian international has a prime opportunity to show the Spurs faithful what he can do.
One of Tottenham's biggest problems right now has been their lack of chance creation. The injury to James Maddison has not helped matters at all, as Spurs are already reeling without young creators Xavi Simons and Wilson Odobert available. So the missing Maddison has prevented Spurs from having a player who can pull the strings and create clear cut chances for the Lilywhites.
Tottenham signed Sandro Tonali to create
But the thing is, even though Tonali is more of a 6/8 player in the midfield, Spurs signed him for so much money because there is an expectation that he can create chances. If you look at the best midfield generals in the recent Premier League, guys like Declan Rice and Rodri, they were also capable assist providers.
Tottenham Hotspur have gotten nothing from Sandro Tonali in terms of tangible chance creation, and now that's something that he can provide against a Manchester United side that was seriously thinking about signing him from Newcastle United last year.
When Spurs face Man United on Saturday in the return of the Premier League after the September and October international break, Tonali is going to be a key factor for the Lilywhites, and his ability to step up higher up the pitch, pull the strings, and deliver better passes for the likes of Savio, Omar Marmoush, and even Dominic Solanke to generate shooting opportunities will be critical to Spurs success.
The Lilywhites need Tonali to be more aggressive in taking up positiosn centrally in the final third where he can make those game-breaking passes or to even be more adventerous with his passing from deep to send Marmoush, Savio, and the others through.
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