Micky van de Ven and Son Heung-min have been questioned after Tottenham Hotspur were beaten by rivals Chelsea on Thursday night, with one pundit staggered that the club still has not pulled the trigger on Ange Postecoglou.
Tottenham were outplayed and outfought at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea ran out 1-0 winners to pile more misery on Postecoglou. Chelsea hit the post inside the first minute and controlled the game from then on.
Guglielmo Vicario did brilliantly to deny Jadon Sancho shortly before half time, but he could not keep Enzo Fernandez out after the interval. Van De Ven and Destiny Udogie left Fernandez unmarked in the box as he headed home from a Cole Palmer cross.
Moises Caicedo had a stunning volley ruled out for offside, while Spurs were also on the receiving end of a disallowed goal. Pape Sarr won the ball from Caicedo before seeing his effort cannon in off the crossbar, via Robert Sanchez, but he was adjudged to have committed a foul in the build up and was subsequently given a yellow card.
After the match, former Chelsea and England star Gary Cahill said Spurs were ‘dreadful’ and had ‘no game plan’.
Now, Spurs hero Glenn Hoddle has discussed Van De Ven’s positioning for Fernandez’s winning goal.
“His problem is like any defender, he’s attracted to the ball,” the pundit said (via TBR). “I used to say to any defender when it’s acute to you and the ball is in front of you, once the cross is coming in, if you look at the ball for more than two seconds without looking over your shoulder and having a little glance…
“He’s looked at the ball, looked at the ball and looked at the ball, he doesn’t have a clue where the attacker is.”
Son offers ‘nothing’; Postecoglou lucky to be in a job
Ex-Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara has ripped into Son following his latest subdued performance.
“He has done nothing. I’ve been saying it for a while. What I’ve said about him is he’s a squad player,” O’Hara said on talkSPORT.
“For one, he isn’t a captain. He has never been a captain, ever. He’s just not. He’s a player who leads by example and he has done that in the past. But, he isn’t good enough no more.
“He can’t beat a player, he has got no sharpness, he doesn’t go past people, he doesn’t make a difference.
“You see Cole Palmer tonight, he wants to get on it, he wants to make things happen, he’ll take risks with the ball. Son – I’ve been saying it, and I got a load of stick from South Korean fans. That’s the problem, we’ll keep him onside because he brings people through the door.
“But, let me tell you, he isn’t the player for us. He isn’t the player he was.”
O’Hara went on to blast Postecoglou, too.
“Any other manager at Tottenham Hotspur would’ve been sacked, he would’ve been gone,” the outspoken pundit added.
“We’ve lost 16 games. Every team around us has sacked their manager. Every single team has sacked their manager around us. Every one of them. We’re still there with Ange.
“Mate, honestly, I could take over and do a better job. Genuinely. Seriously!”
Postecoglou sack: Possible replacements
TEAMtalk confirmed on March 19 that Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola is a top candidate for the Spurs job, should Postecoglou be axed.
Although, it will be tough to convince Iraola to join given the fact Bournemouth are poised to finish well above Spurs this campaign.
Spurs have also been tipped to hold talks with Xavi following his departure from Barcelona last summer.