Jay Bothroyd has aimed scathing criticism at Timo Werner, opining that the Tottenham star is one of the poorest technically across the Premier League.
Werner has undoubtedly been a very useful addition for Tottenham, with the pacy wide man making some key contributions since his loan move from RB Leipzig in January.
However, the forward continues to have issues with his chance conversion, being guilty of missing some straight-forward chances, which was a clear pattern during his time at Chelsea as well.
That was the case once again at St James’ Park as the 28-year-old fluffed his line on a couple of occasions early in the game and the away side were made to pay dearly for his missed chances, with Newcastle running out 4-0 winners.
Timo Werner comes in for scathing criticism
Bothroyd opined that the problem comes down to Werner’s lack of technique, suggesting that the wide man is only effective because of his pace and athleticism.
The former Wolves star told The Optus Sport Football Podcast: “I can’t help, but I have to be critical of Timo Werner. I’m sorry, he misses so many good chances. And those chances that he missed, they can change games.
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“Technically, he’s one of the worst players in the Premier League. I’m going to say that, because I honestly believe that. He doesn’t cross the ball well, he hits it as hard as he can across the face of the goal all the time. He never picks anybody out. His finishing is poor. His passing’s poor.
“And yes, you can say that he’s effective. But then I’m saying, okay, he’s an athlete. In this day and age, I look at him and I say he’s effective because of his athleticism. As he gets older and he loses that athleticism, how effective is he going to be then?”
Spurs Web Opinion
I do not think the problem with Werner is his technique as his first touch, his crossing and ball striking are decent. The problem with him is a lack of composure.
He simply lacks the ice-cold mentality that good strikers have in front of goal and often rushes things and gets his feet mixed up.
A classic example was how he decided to inexplicable go for a volley at St James’ Park to meet Brennan Johnson’s cross rather than just head the ball onto Son’s path.
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