Tottenham Hotspur and Ange Postecoglou have had something of a fall from grace over the past few weeks, triggered by injuries, suspensions and back-to-back defeats.
They’ll be aiming to get back on track against an Aston Villa side one point and one place behind them in the Premier League table.
Yet Villa have lost just one of their last nine games and beat Spurs home and away last season. Given Spurs currently have 12 players either on the treatment table or suspended, their chances of picking up three points on Sunday seem slim.
Yet there are ways they can get the better of Villa and go on to weather this injury storm long-term.
Release Giovani Lo Celso
Replacing James Maddison with Giovani Lo Celso may sound ridiculous, but it’s currently the best option Spurs have to rediscover some creativity. They managed just two shots on target in their 2-1 defeat to Wolves with a conservative midfield three of Pape Matar Sarr, Yves Bissouma and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, and desperately need a central creative force.
It’s certainly not a like-for-like swap. Maddison had registered three goals and five assists this season alone, while Lo Celso has only managed four goals and six assists in 74 appearances since the start of 2021-22.
But according to FBRef, Lo Celso ranks in the 99th percentile for progressive passes, shot-creating actions and xA (expected assists) per 90 minutes among all attacking midfielders and wingers in the past year. The potential is there.
He spent last season on loan at Villarreal, where he enjoyed two solid stretches as a No 10 in a similar 4-2-3-1 system, either side of a four-month injury absence.
Using Lo Celso in a similar role to Maddison would at least be a more effective way of getting the ball to the likes of Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson than Hojbjerg can provide. Postecoglou has also shown his ability to improve players who appeared otherwise outcast already, and there’s a chance Lo Celso can be the next beneficiary of this.
Of course, there are also the concerns around Lo Celso’s injury record – there’s every chance that even if he finds form in Maddison’s role, he could soon join him in the treatment room. But while his Spurs career certainly hasn’t gone to plan, there is a chance for redemption here.
Trust Eric Dier
From the studio that bought you Harry Maguire’s redemption arc, we now have Eric Dier’s Spurs salvation. Across the 90 minutes of the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea, the Englishman went from not playing a minute for Spurs this season to arguably being their most crucial asset as their only fit centre-back.
For all the meme-ification of Dier and his own confidence issues, he’s still only 29, a 49-cap England international who’s played in a Champions League final.
Once Romero returns from suspension, the pair can form a perfectly solid defensive pairing, albeit with a different dynamic to the Romero-Van de Ven axis. In the Wolves defeat, Dier’s 81 passes were the second most of any player on the pitch, showing he can comfortably fit into a Postecoglou side.
Fans and those within the club need to get behind Dier, to show him that he’s wanted rather than simply needed. He has clearly struggled with his self-esteem at points having been unceremoniously dropped after his key role under Antonio Conte and Cristian Stellini. But if he feels as though he’s supported and in the team on merit, his performances are much more likely to live up to that belief.
Go full Angeball
When injuries hit and form takes a turn, the obvious reflex is often to shut up shop, batten down the hatches and stick 11 men behind the ball. That was Spurs’ biggest issues in the Wolves defeat – they moved away from their natural game and were punished for it.
To weather this storm, they’re going to need to ignore their instincts and remember what got them to the top of the table. Yes, there’s a chance they’ll get blown out of the water on occasion, but that’s not something Postecoglou has ever seemed scared of.
To continue their run near the top of the Premier League, they need to take risks and stick to their principles. Keep pressing high and pushing hard and they’ll pick up more points than they’ll lose.
Improve discipline
Spurs are currently third-bottom of the Premier League’s fair play table, having picked up three red cards already this season, two of them in the Chelsea loss.
Alongside this, Bissouma will miss the Aston Villa game having picked up his fifth yellow card of the season already, following on from his red card against Luton.
This is something that simply cannot be allowed to keep on happening. Romero has now received four red cards since joining the club in 2021, a his three-match suspension post-Chelsea is one of the big reasons the club’s defensive situation is so dire.
Whether through harsher penalties for sending offs and yellow cards, tackling training or a change in defensive ethos, Postecoglou needs to focus on getting his side’s discipline problem under control starting against Villa.
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