Tottenham Hotspur had hoped to see significant progress this season, but so far, there has been no such rapidity. Ange Postecoglou has implemented an exciting and aggressive style of football, but the holes are many.
With five defeats from 11 matches in the Premier League, there’s a lack of backbone about this talented bunch that is costing the fans faith dearly.
The underlying metrics would suggest that Tottenham are one of the most incisive and creative teams in the division, but significant lapses have allowed opponents to take the lead all too often.
The silver lining is that Spurs, who are tenth in the table, have 16 points from 11 top-flight fixtures, which puts the north Londoners within three points of third-placed Chelsea.
1.
Tottenham
10th
23
2.
Man City
2nd
22
2=
Brentford
11th
22
4.
Liverpool
1st
21
4=
Chelsea
3rd
21
Moreover, Postecoglou was hardly hesitant to fix holes last January, signing Radu Dragusin from Genoa for £27m and landing Timo Werner on loan. An impressive deal was also struck in advance for young midfielder Lucas Bergvall, who has earned minutes this year.
There are various issues to address. Let’s take a look at just where Postecoglou and Daniel Levy might opt to strengthen.
1 GK – Guglielmo Vicario
Last summer, Guglielmo Vicario joined Tottenham in a deal initially worth £17m from Italian team Empoli, and he’s yet to miss a minute in the Premier League.
Even so, questions marks linger, namely around the 27-year-old’s ability to deal with set pieces, his aerial command. Still, he’s still an excellent goalkeeper, and won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
2 RB – Pedro Porro
Transfer rumours concerning Pedro Porro have abounded in recent weeks, with Real Madrid particularly keen on the Spaniard if they are unable to entice Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Porro hasn’t quite been at his best this season, though Postecogolou persists in playing him higher up than perhaps he’d like. Even so, the dynamic defender won’t be going anywhere during this season’s midpoint.
3 CB – Cristian Romero
Another to have fallen off a proverbial cliff, Cristian Romero has yet to blend smoothness with fierce aggression, as he has done so well since joining from Atalanta in a £42m transfer back in 2021.
It’s a matter of when, not if, the Argentine will be back at the top of his game though. Spurs must hold onto him with steel-strong fingers.
4 CB – Micky van de Ven
One of the most athletic and awe-inspiring central defenders across Europe, Micky van de Ven has become a prominent name in the Premier League since signing from Wolfsburg last year.
He’s not infallible, but the Dutchman’s pace and power have foiled many a hopeful forward across the past year. Let’s just hope he can soon put his injury woes behind him.
5 LB – Patrick Dorgu
Last season, journalist Hunter Godson said that Destiny Udogie “gets into nearly every team in the world already.” Now, however, the Italian gem, 21, is flattering to deceive.
Branded with a 5/10 match score (by football.london) as Spurs lost to Ipswich, he’s in need of a bounce-back. There are also rumours that he’s fallen out with his Australian manager having also been singled out for criticism by Dimitar Berbatov following Tottenham’s capitulation against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Some competition would be good, and thus, Levy and co must move to sign Patrick Dorgu, who’s been riding the crest of a wave with Lecce and is on the London club’s radar, with Chelsea and Manchester United also interested.
The athletic and versatile defender ranks among the top 3% of positional peers for goals scored per 90, as per FBref, and could add a wonderful dimension to test Udogie for that number one spot.
6 DM – Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Chelsea and Spurs aren’t pals at the best of times and transfer dealings between the two teams are few and far between. It can happen though, as with Jude Soonsup-Bell’s switch to north London in January 2023, having cut his teeth within the Cobham Academy.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall could take that scarcely-trodden path in 2025, with The Daily Briefing revealing that the Chelsea midfielder, who joined from Leicester City for £30m in the summer, is already being pushed toward the exit.
He’s industrious and multi-functional and could be the perfect counterbalancing force behind the tried-and-tested duo that we shall look at next.
7 CM – Dejan Kulusevski
A revelation this season. Dejan Kulusevski is regarded as Tottenham’s most consistent player, and it’s a fair claim at that.
Refashioned into a robust and roaming central midfielder after principally playing as a winger throughout his career, the 24-year-old is so important to the success of Postecoglou’s system.
8 CM – James Maddison
James Maddison has ebbed and flowed down at N17, but none can dispute that this is one of the most talented playmakers in the English top flight.
He brings something to the table that no other Lilywhite can match, and when at the top of his game, the England international saunters into Tottenham’s starting line-up.
9 RW – Takefusa Kubo
Brennan Johnson scored in seven successive matches for club and country earlier this season, but the Welsh winger still has much to learn.
As such, he could do with some more competition on the right flank, especially now that Kulusevski spends time in the centre. Enter Takefusa Kubo.
Spanish sources – via Caught Offside – have revealed that Tottenham have joined Liverpool in the race for the Real Sociedad winger, who is valued at £50m and hailed for his “special talent” by journalist John Bunting.
10 LW – Heung-min Son
Is Heung-min Son starting to show the signs of father time this season? If he is, the club captain is still performing at an elite level, capable of shifting from deadly marksman to all-seeing creator so seamlessly.
Postecoglou has heaped so much praise on his “world-class” talisman, who he also said is the best attacker in the Premier League, and it’s hard to envisage an immediate future without the South Korean at the heart of the project.