Tottenham Hotspur could only secure a 1-1 draw with West Ham United at the London Stadium this afternoon, with all attention undoubtedly on Thursday night’s Europa League clash.
Wilson Odobert scored his first Premier League goal for the club to open the scoring, but Jarrod Bowen’s effort just 13 minutes later levelled proceedings.
The result leaves Ange Postecoglou’s side in 16th position, a point behind Everton and Manchester United, with all eyes on a potential European showdown with the latter.
Given their lowly league standing, there’s nothing left to play for in the league for the Lilywhites, but such a game does hand Postecoglou the opportunity to assess his first-team squad.
Numerous players failed to deliver in the clash across the capital, with the manager desperately needing to take action during the upcoming summer window.
Spurs’ poor performers against West Ham
Striker Richarlison was handed the responsibility of leading the line for Spurs this afternoon, but struggled with the responsibility at the top end of the pitch.
The Brazilian featured for 68 minutes before being replaced, understandably so, given his tally of just four passes completed – an average of one every 17 minutes.
He wasn’t alone in failing to deliver, with centre-back Ben Davies unable to produce his best showing after being recalled to the starting eleven after being benched last Thursday.
The Welsh international only managed to win 50% of the duels he entered and committed two fouls, leading to a booking after a being ajudged to have brought down Niclas Fullkrug.
Ange will undoubtedly be disappointed once again with his side’s display, potentially looking to cash in on the aforementioned duo and one other starter in the coming months.
The player who Ange needs to sell from Spurs this summer
Given the situation where the club have found themselves in the Premier League throughout 2024/25, it’s no surprise that sales will be needed to correct the dismal campaign.
Such funds can be used to allow for new additions to Ange’s squad, hopefully enabling them to mount a serious push for the top four once again next season.
Countless players face the chop, such as Davies and Richarlison, but another first team member in Yves Bissouma needs to be sold after his failures throughout this year.
The Malian was once seen as an important cog in the midfield department, but has struggled to produce his best performances on a consistent basis – a signal of his decline in North London.
He was one of the players to keep his place from Thursday’s first leg win, but failed to deliver, producing an awful outing as seen in the figures he produced.
During his 90-minute showing, he managed a total of 47 touches, but lost possession on ten separate occasions – resulting in him giving the ball away every 4.7 touches he had.
The 28-year-old also only managed to win one of the three tackles he entered, and came out on top in just 50% of the ground duels he entered in East London.
Minutes played
90
Touches
47
Tackles won
1/3
Ground duels won
3/6 (50%)
Possession lost
10x
Successful dribbles
0/1 (0%)
Fouls committed
1
His dismal performance saw former footballer Adam Alfi label the midfielder as a “pub league player”, with The Standard’s Dom Smith handing him a measly 6/10 match rating – highlighting how poor he was at the London Stadium.
After such a showing, Ange simply can’t afford to start Bissouma in the second leg against Bodo Glimt next week – needing all of his players to be at the top of their game.
The bigger picture must be that the former Brighton ace is sold this summer, handing the manager the funds he requires to catapult the Lilywhites back up the division in 2025/26.
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