Almost six years on from their last League Cup final, Spurs find themselves on the way to Wembley once again.
Only Manchester City stand in the way of Tottenham breaking their thirteen-year trophy-less drought.
Although there is no shame in coming short to one of Mourinho’s classic dominant Chelsea teams, the question to raise is this; what happened to the Spurs starting eleven from March 2015 and have we significantly improved since this period of football?
Goalkeeper: Hugo Lloris
Captain and faithful club servant, Hugo Lloris has proven to be one of our best ever players in his position and is arguably only second to the great Pat Jennings. Probably could have left for a bigger club at one point or another but remains an incredible shot-stopper in North London.
Right Back: Kyle Walker
Leaving Spurs for Manchester City in July 2017, Walker left a void at right-back which arguably hasn’t been filled with the same quality in terms of defence and attack. These days, the 30-year-old could be a doubtful starter in the 2021 Cup Final due to Joao Cancelo’s recent run of good form.
Left Centre-Back: Eric Dier
Dier is a bit of a controversial topic for Spurs fans in recent times. Tottenham are third in the table for goals conceded so far this season in the Premier League and Dier is the most involved centre-back in terms of minutes (transfermarkt). However, some still feel that he is a liability and arguably has more to prove to be labelled as a top defensive player for the club.
Right Centre-Back: Jan Vertonghen
Fan favourite Super Jan signed for Benfica in the previous summer transfer window after running down his contract at Tottenham. Vertonghen has recorded 13 appearances for Benfica so far this season with 5 clean sheets as the club find themselves second to league leaders Sporting CP (transfermarkt).
MORE SPURS STORIES
Left Back: Danny Rose
Since Jose Mourinho’s arrival, Danny Rose has fallen out of favour in the first-team squad. Back in 2015 Rose proved himself as a mainstay in the first team and was a key player in Tottenham’s title charge in 2015-16. Currently Rose has attracted interest from Turkish side Trabzonspor.
Central-Midfielder: Nabil Bentaleb
Having recorded a combined 81 Premier League appearances for Tottenham and Newcastle United, Bentaleb currently plays for Bundesliga club Schalke 04. The Algerian midfielder failed to impress for a permanent move in the summer and has since been an irregular player for his current German side.
Central-Midfielder: Ryan Mason
In January 2017, Ryan Mason suffered a fractured skull which would lead to his retirement from professional football. Mason impressed in spells in his younger years but his performances screamed inconsistency at Spurs which eventually led to his move to Hull City. Currently, Mason is a youth team coach at Tottenham.
Central Attacking Midfielder: Christian Eriksen
Undoubtedly the best replacement signing from Bale’s departure, Eriksen scored 69 goals and set up another 89 in 305 games for Spurs (transfermarket). The Danish attacker has failed to make the same mark in the Serie A with Italian giants Inter Milan. Inter boss Antonio Conte is now more than willing to be rid of Eriksen with reports from Sky Italia stating that his agent has been in touch with Spurs.
Right Midfielder: Andros Townsend
Since his departure from the club in 2016, Townsend now finds himself as a regular starter for Crystal Palace. Although the winger shows flashes of brilliance with wonder goals weirdly spaced throughout the season, he is plagued with horrible inconsistency, which stopped him from making his mark at Tottenham.
Left Midfielder: Nacer Chadli
Despite having a more glamorous stint with Tottenham compared to Townsend, Nacer Chadli failed to make the same mark in the Premier League as his national compatriots Vertonghen, Alderweireld and Mousa Dembele. The play-making 31-year-old now resides in Basaksehir where he has continued the Tottenham-esque mediocrity we remember him by.
Striker: Harry Kane
Harry Kane is currently 9th in the all-time Premier League top goalscorers with 155 goals and is arguably a generational favourite to beat Alan Shearer’s record. He is undeniably one of the best ever players to put on a Spurs shirt and has led the club back into the Premier League elite.
I think it goes without saying that our squad has had significant improvements in the past six years. Notable additions to the squad since 2015 include star player Heung-Min Son and, more recently, Tanguy Ndombele and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. Compared to the 2015 League Cup Final, fans will be in high hopes of a long-awaited trophy to add to the cabinet come April.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
