Bryan Gil is a name that most Spurs fans only knew from FIFA or Football Manager as a player with “future star” potential until news broke about his transfer.
Then came the YouTube showreels of his very tidy feet and dribbling ability, and there is clearly a player with a lot of raw ability.
There is a real buzz of excitement around his arrival, and what he might be able to bring to Tottenham, especially after he was officially announced today.
However, as much as I am as excited as anyone about signing Gil, I believe he needs to be given time to settle and adapt and we, as a fanbase, need to afford him some time to do that and not EXPECT miracles from day one.
Here are four reasons why:
No Pre-Season:
Gil is over in Tokyo representing Spain in the Olympic Games. As great as it is that he is out there gaining experience, it means he is coming to us off the back of a busy summer and is missing pretty much all of pre-season, where Nuno is busy setting up his tactics and strategy for the upcoming campaign.
He is also missing the vital fitness work Nuno is making a feature of his Tottenham team, as I think he has a desire to be one of the fittest teams and it’s unlikely Gil will be getting that intensity with his national team.
He’s only 20:
Yes, some players breakthrough into first teams at 18 or 19, but at 20 he is still a very young player. He appears to be fearless in one on one situations, but he will come up against a different calibre of defender in the Premier League and will need to do a bit of bulking up, as well as learning some new tricks to keep these defenders on their toes.
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He plays predominantly in Son’s position
Like Son, he can play on the right side, but the majority of his professional experience has been based on the left-hand side of attack.
Son has just signed his new contract and is a mainstay, so Gil will need to play second fiddle with opportunities in Europe and cups, or learn to play more often on the right or in the centre, which will take time as his trademark move is to shift beyond a defender on the outside to get a cross in. His diversity will be a long term benefit, however.
No Premier League Experience
This doesn’t need much explaining – we have seen time and again, players CAN take time to adapt to this league due to the physical demands – a certain Heung-Min had an uninspiring first season before he blossomed, but that is history!
Final thoughts:
There is no doubt this is an excellent signing for Spurs, as he is one of Spain’s top young talents and I am certain he will be deemed a success. I just think it won’t be immediate.
It’s important we as a fanbase give him the time and patience to progress and improve, like we tend to do with our youth players breaking through.
I can’t wait to see him in action though! COYS!
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