Opinion: The five Spurs squad players who consistently let us down

In the months leading up to the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino, many will have seen a memorable interview in which he suggested that Spurs needed to undergo a painful rebuild if they were to take their game to the next level (BBC SPORT).

He suggested that: “when you talk about Tottenham, everyone says you have an amazing house, but you need to put in the furniture.”

Evidently, Pochettino was arguing that Spurs needed to remove the deadwood and replace them with new players in order to reach that next level, silverware.

Nearly two years on, it is more blatant than ever that the issue is still prevalent inside Tottenham’s walls. Jose Mourinho saw his side dumped out of the FA cup following a 5-4 defeat to Everton before being outclassed by a rampant Man City side this week.

For Spurs, it has been the same old story. The same names were thrown into the ring and it is hard to provide a defence for the people who constantly perform to a standard that is dragging the club into the mud and piling more misery on fans.

Here we examine the five players who have been letting the club down on a consistent basis at Spurs of late.

Harry Winks – As painful as it is to say, he is just not good enough. Winksy clearly bleeds Spurs and no one can question his passion for the club. However, his cameos this season have been dismal.

Unfortunately, we cannot pretend like it is the first time he has performed below-par. Sideways passes, shaky ball control, and the inability to make a strong tackle limit him massively.

There is a reason why Winks has mainly featured in cup competitions under Mourinho, he is not trusted in the heart of midfield.

Some fans have been calling for Oliver Skipp to be recalled from his loan spell at Norwich. This would allow him to fulfil that role that Winks usually would. At this point, you cannot really blame them.

Davinson Sanchez – You would not have thought it possible when we signed Sanchez from Ajax in 2017 that he would have regressed in his ability.

At the time, the club-record signing (£42 million) excited Spurs fans – 21-years-old, pacey, with the ability to pass forward through the gaps.

In the four years that he has played in London, Sanchez has demonstrated nothing but an ability to make mistakes. He often finds himself wrong-footed and failing to clear the ball in dangerous situations.

As well as this, he seems to be incapable of using his left foot. Constant flashy outside the boot passes alongside ridiculous turns in his own half have led to a consensus amongst some Spurs fans that he is another player that should be nowhere near the starting XI.

Ben Davies – It is incredible to consider that Ben Davies has been at Spurs for nearly seven years. He has never felt like a consistent starting full-back, mostly playing a back-up role to Danny Rose and now Sergio Reguillon.

Despite this, even when called upon, Davies offers nothing going forward, and no tenacity in his defending. He lacks any pace, and the extent of his attacking ability consists of the odd good cross.

Spurs are well known for accumulating numerous injuries each season, so why is it, we have not addressed this issue?

Davies has even tried his luck as part of a back-three. But even with this added protection on either side of him, he still finds himself backtracking and losing his man.

Eric Dier – Consequently, our lack of defensive leaders has caused Mourinho to play Dier at centre-back. The issue here is simple, he is not good enough.

Spurs have conceded 6 goals from set-pieces in the league this season and another six from the penalty spot (Whoscored).

If you were to rewatch these games, you would find that Dier is guilty of losing multiple ariel duels. Often, this has resulted in the concession of a goal.

Continuously, Dier lacks the ability to play a long pass. Especially in comparison to the quality the likes of Alderweireld possess. This puts me at a loss as to why he still continues to play.

Moussa Sissoko – A good servant to the club and a good ball carrier but Sissoko genuinely possesses almost zero quality past the halfway line. Despite often being used as a makeshift wing-back by Mourinho, his poor quality in the final third is evident.

Sissoko appears to lack and finesse when it comes to crossing, shooting, and passing. This evidence demonstrates a blockade to unlocking the flowing, attacking football we are all so desperate to see.

If we are to challenge for anything significant, he is another who must be replaced.

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