Although Brighton are a tough side and often give Tottenham Hotspur trouble, the mentality from this club has to transition towards seeing any game like this where Spurs draw a smaller side as a msised opportunity and nothing more than dropped points. Instead of one point won, it was two points lost for Spurs, who additionally played poorly overall.
Tottenham have mostly played well to start Thomas Frank's first season at the helm, but matches like this one and the awful loss to Bournemouth are reminders that there is still a long way to go before Spurs can even pretend to be Premier League title contenders, largely owing to a lack of star power in the squad.
And no position has the lack of quality been more obvious than on the left wing. Tottenham are just begging for someone to break out and take the mantle from legend Son Heung-min, who left this summer to MLS and has left a gaping void whose chasm is only growing with each game like this one.
Both talented youngsters Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert have failed to take advantage of their opportunities at the position. Frank seems to favor Odobert, who drew the start against Brighton, but he ended up being much worse than Tel, creating and producing literally nothing of statistical or sentimental value against Brighton.
Tottenham should have signed Savinho
Odobert's woeful display, in conjunction with Richarlison's aimless flailing about the pitch, were stark reminders that Tottenham absolutely have to find a starting left winger in the coming January 2026 transfer window.
Tottenham, truthfully, should have signed another winger in addition to Mohammed Kudus, but they badly botched the Savinho scramble and ended up empty-handed. Unless if Randal Kolo Muani can surprisingly emerge as a left wing solution, this has not only become priority No. 1 on the transfer market (it already was), but it has become Spurs No. 1 aim as a club if they want to truly be a power in the Premier League.
Xavi Simons can't be forced to play on the left wing in lieu of a credible option, and both Tel and Odobert are still too raw for the position - and Odobert may not honestly have the profile for the wings. Kudus has been a brilliant, transformative signing for Tottenham, so you can only imagine what he and the team would be capable of if they were to sign a similar level of player in January.