It is the players- not Mauricio Pochettino– that need to go at Tottenham Hotspur. Players are running down contracts, seemingly no longer committed to the cause, and they are damaging the Argentine’s reputation. Mauricio Pochettino has worked wonders at Tottenham but he can no longer rely on certain players to pull their weight and that needs to be changed in January.
Tottenham’s Slump: Players Not Mauricio Pochettino to Blame for Current Malaise
In 2015, Mauricio Pochettino set about creating a young and vibrant squad at Tottenham Hotspur. Bringing in in his tenure the likes of Eric Dier, Dele Alli, working with Harry Kane. He created a squad that had an average age of just 24; the then youngest in the Premier League. Players that were hungry to take their chance in the big time. And those players flourished and brought Spurs their best Premier League finish in 2016/17. Unbeaten at home and runners up.
Pochettino has been lauded for keeping that team together. Yet in 2019 things are unravelling. The manager is under pressure for the first time in his tenure with some calling for him to go. It is not the manager that needs to change. What is needed is a change in personnel in January on the pitch and an overhaul of the transfer strategy.
Lack of Competiton for Places Has Led to Complacency
Christian Eriksen has played pretty much non stop for Spurs without any challenge for his place. Even if he is in poor form, he has been guaranteed to play. Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen have barely looked over their shoulders for competition for places. Whilst some of this is down to being the best players, it now looks like complacency has set in. That in itself is down to the poor strategy of not freshening the squad in nearly two years until the summer of 2019.
Contract Sagas Not Helpful
Tottenham are no strangers to players downing tools to get moves. Dimitar Berbatov did so to get his move to Manchester United. Spurs have progressed since then and constantly renewed contracts for the best performers. No club can force players to sign new contracts. The issue is that by keeping players who refuse to sign extensions, teams are left with players who know they will get picked because there is no one better to take their place. They know they will leave soon enough. Suddenly there are no consequences to playing badly.
Christian Eriksen, Toby Alderweireld and Danny Rose spent most of the summer linked with big-money moves away from North London. Those moves did not materialise and their performances so far this season have been poor. A squad that was full of cohesion and team spirit looks devoid of confidence, passion and fitness. Ryan Sessegnon and Giovani Lo Celso both came in in the summer but have been out through injuries.
There are poor attitudes and these need moving on before Tottenham find themselves in a fun, blown crisis.
Does Pochettino Take Any of the Blame for Slump?
Whilst players are letting the manager down, Mauricio Pochettino does have to shoulder some of the blame. Since signing youth in 2015, only Harry Winks has progressed from the academy. Oliver Skipp has come in but looks far from being of Premier League quality. Troy Parrott has had injuries but there seems little to suggest the next star is about to be found. One mistake Mauricio Pochettino is making is playing players despite poor form. Youngsters looking on will be thinking if they can’t get in the team now, when will they? Pochettino is seemingly playing players and rewarding them for letting him down. The manager needs to get stronger on this. It sends a message of weakness to others.
The other cause for concern over Pochettino is his change of stance from one game to another, one press conference to another. In the past week he talked about how he didn’t need new players, yet then after the Watford draw said to Sky Sports:
”…they (the club) need to be ready if we need to do something.”
He then said;
”…but I am happy with my squad, I am happy with the players.”
Whilst no one would expect him to openly attack his players, it is odd that he says he is happy with his players. There has been little to be happy with for some time going back to January 2019. In league games since January 1st 2019, Spurs have taken 37 from a possible 72 points. This season they have won just once in seven games in all competitions. So yes, the manager has to take his portion of the blame.
Players Not Mauricio Pochettino Need to Go
Despite questions over Pochettino himself, he has earned the right to turn things around at Tottenham Hotspur. To do so he needs to get back to the Pochettino of 2015. Straight talking and decisive. He is currently contradicting himself at every turn and that has to stop.
The main issue though is having too many players who have simply stopped wanting to play for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Those players, not Mauricio Pochettino, need to go and then Spurs can move on.
Failure to act in January could result in this incredible journey that has taken the club so close to glory once more ending with nothing more than broken dreams.
To dare is to do and now the time has come to dare to go and make changes before it is too late and the so-called ’project’ comes to a shuddering halt.
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