Tottenham Hotspur have arguably played more complete games this season, but in terms of the overall result, their 3-1 victory over Coventry was exactly what fans had hoped for after six games without a win to start the season. The improved quality of the squad and Roberto De Zerbi's tactics were finally rewarded with a win, as De Zerbi shifted his team into a back three and played a little bit differently with some of the key absences in the squad, such as the continued lack of Pedro Porro at right back.
Tosin Adarabioyo slotted into the starting 11 for one of the rare times this season, playing as the right center back with Micky van de Ven on the left and Jan Paul van Hecke in the middle. All three of them played reasonably well, Van Hecke included, but the player to soak up the most praise was Adarabioyo, who looked perfectly at home in a back three, just as he has in the past.
Tosin is exceeding expectations
Tottenham playing more back threes will serve Adarabioyo and argaubly the other center backs, including De Zerbi's pet favorite Van Hecke, well, and Tosin has really emerged as one of the surprises of the season for Tottenham. Whether in the Premier League or the League Cup, Tosin is exceeding expectations, and he is both defending well and playing the ball at a high level, with the latter being something both valued by De Zerbi and a quality that was always rated highly in the player; it's the reason why Chelsea signed him.
A lot of people didn't see Tosin Adarabioyo as a legitimate signing for Tottenham and were upset about him replacing Kevin Danso, but not only is it true that he fits what Roberto De Zerbi wants in terms of playing style and tactics a lot better, but he really just looks like a flat out better player - far less limited as an athlete.
Jan Paul van Hecke is safe as a starter, but a lot of Tottenham Hotspur fans have come away even more impressed with Tosin than Van Hecke. A lot of that is probably the differential in expectations which skews things to an easier Tosin evaluation, but Tosin playing this well as a ball playing center back and athletic presence will ensure taht even if Van Hecke is the teacher's pet, he can't get too complacent as a starter either.
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