Tottenham Hotspur striker Dominic Solanke has come under criticism already from former Spurs player Jamie O'Hara for his poor performance in the League Cup vs Coventry City - with the talkSPORT show host claiming that Solanke may not be worth the £55million plus add-ons fee that they paid Bournemouth this summer after he failed to register a shot at the Ricoh Arena.
Tottenham were lucky to advance through to the last 16 of the League Cup after an abhorrent performance was only rescued by Djed Spence and Brennan Johnson's late goals on a topsy-turvy evening. Solanke especially didn't have a great performance and was substituted on the hour mark - and that has led to O'Hara and Jason Cundy deliberating over his poor showing.
O'Hara: Solanke 'Has To Do More' for Tottenham
The striker came under criticism from the pundit
Speaking on talkSPORT, O'Hara and Cundy discussed Tottenham's lucky escape in the West Midlands - with Solanke coming in for criticism from O'Hara before Cundy came to his aide by stating that he only needs minutes before he starts firing in north London. They said:
“Solanke comes off after 60 minutes again, that’s got to be a talking point. It’s not happening. Come on, for £60 million. I know price tags mean nothing. Like, come on. You have to make something happen for yourself.
"If you are staying on a football pitch for 60 minutes and you don’t have a shot. Surely, you have to look at yourself and go ‘I have got to do more’. I would be demanding the ball anywhere and having a shot from somewhere. He’s a striker and you haven’t had a shot.”
But Cundy responded and chose to be on Solanke's side, stating that the striker just needs time to flourish, adding:
“He needed minutes. That’s probably enough for him. In terms of his performance, nobody played well for Spurs."
Solanke Just Needs Time to Blossom
The striker will eventually click after gelling with the squad
It certainly wasn't a performance for the ages by Solanke. According to Sofascore, he spent an hour on the pitch before being substituted for Son Heung-min - and the England international only attempted two dribbles, with one being successful, made nine passes from a possible 11, didn't have a single shot of note and only won two of his five aerial duels - in which you'd be expected to see so much more against a Championship side.
With 24 touches resulting in him losing the ball eight times, Solanke wasn't at his best and that spread throughout the team, relying on a late equaliser and an even later winner to qualify for the next round of the tournament.
With other strikers of similar price tags such as Kai Havertz, Alexander Isak and of course Erling Haaland all firing this season, it does beg the question as to whether Solanke was worth the transfer fee paid by Tottenham.
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Solanke scored 19 goals for Bournemouth in the Premier League last season.
His credentials from last season's campaign at Bournemouth does give him credit in the bank as to finding his feet in the Tottenham system, as he knows he can produce the goods in the top-flight. And once he does start firing, Solanke could be a huge asset to Aussie boss Ange Postecoglou for months to come.