Former Tottenham scout Mick Brown, who remains very well-connected at the club, identifies a major problem in Spurs’ squad and reveals what he has heard about the club’s January transfer plans.
Spurs’ squad is razor thin
Tottenham’s squad is still extremely thin in some areas, particularly in their defensive line.
That was demonstrated by the fact that Ange Postecoglou had to start both Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven in the Carabao Cup clash against Manchester City on Wednesday, with the Dutchman coming off in the first half with a hamstring injury.
While Radu Dragusin gave an excellent account of himself in the 2-1 win over City, Postecoglou’s men will be in real trouble now if either the Romanian or Cristian Romero pick up an injury.
Mick Brown highlights an area of Spurs concern
Brown confessed that he sees the lack of strength-in-depth as the Lilywhites’ main weakness at the moment and he revealed that the club are currently drafting plans to sign another central defender in the summer.
He told Football Insider: “Tottenham worry me defensively. They fall down at the fundamentals, they’re just not good enough at the back. That’s even with their first-choice team on the pitch.
“Their strength in depth is an issue too because it makes rotation difficult. All the best teams have defensive units that you know you can rely upon every week.
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“Look at Arsenal, for example, the big reason they’ve been able to challenge for the title is because of their defenders. Gabriel and Saliba are so solid at the back, and everybody does their bit.
“Man City as well, everybody talks about their attacking talent and rightly so, but their defence is outstanding with the likes of Dias, Akanji and Gvardiol.
“They’ve got a settled pairing in Romero and Van de Ven, but behind them, they’re short of real quality options and strength in depth. From what I’m hearing, they want to bring in someone who can fill in if those two miss out.”
Micky van de Ven’s latest injury has necessitated new signing
While we are still waiting to hear about the severity of Van de Ven’s injury, it is clear by now that the centre-back has a chronic hamstring issue.