Tottenham Hotspur suffered a second consecutive Premier League defeat on Sunday, narrowly losing at home to Arsenal in the North London derby, a result that has prompted ESPN's Steve Nichol to question the signing of Dominic Solanke.
A towering header from Gabriel Magalhaes mid-way through the second half was enough to see Arsenal claim all three points in a largely comfortable 1-0 derby victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. An uninspiring performance from the home side has seen Ange Postecoglou's side lamented in the media, with tensions boiling over in the aftermath of the game, as the Aussie gave a heated post-match interview.
The result leaves Spurs with just four points after four games, their worst start to a Premier League season since 2015. Solanke, who signed for the Lillywhites in a £65 million deal from Bournemouth in the summer, drew another blank in his second appearance for his new club, delivering a display that has drawn criticism.
Nicol: Solanke Signing a Gamble
The striker scored 21 goals last season
Joining Bournemouth from Liverpool in January 2019 for a purported fee of £19 million, Solanke settled on the south coast, eventually finding his goal-scoring feet in the Championship during the 2020/21 season. A prolific campaign last year for the Cherries, in which he netted 19 times in the league, saw the former Chelsea striker complete a blockbuster switch to North London, becoming Postecoglou's marquee acquisition of the summer.
Identified as the man to provide the Australian head coach's side with a focal point, allowing Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski to play off him, Solanke arrived with high expectations. This calibre of signing is supposedly meant to be the catalyst for a concerted top four push, but thus far the 27-year-old hasn't made any meaningful impact, failing to register a goal contribution in his first two games in a white shirt.
Speaking on ESPN FC after the game, ex-Liverpool player and now pundit Nicol expressed concern over the addition of Solanke to Postecoglou's ensemble:
"I mean, think about it, right. City go and sign Erling Haaland and Spurs sign, no disrespect, Dominic Solanke.
"It doesn't sound good, but you know, you know the point I'm making? Do you really think Dominic Solanke is going to score like 20 goals a season for Tottenham? I mean, it's more of a wish list, isn't it?
"I mean, the truth is, he scored a lot of goals last season for the first time, and all of a sudden, now he's playing for Spurs, and he's expected, not to be Harry Kane, but he's expected to be the goalscorer.
"I mean, you can't expect to be in the top four if you're taking a gamble with your centre-forward, because that's what this is. This is a gamble."
Vicario Keeps 'Being Exposed'
The Spurs goalkeeper struggled with Arsenal's corners
Another Tottenham player that has come under fire for his display against Arsenal is goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario. The shot-stopper was all at sea when Gabriel headed home from Bukayo Saka's corner, a theme that emerged from the match, with the Italian struggling persistently from set-piece situations.
Pundit Micah Richards has slammed Spurs' failure to protect the goalkeeper from his weaknesses, while criticising the number one for continually 'being exposed' in these scenarios. Vicario ultimately only conceded once during the game, but looked uneasy when attempting to command his box as the Gunners' repeatedly piled pressure on the Spurs penalty area.