Tottenham Hotspur’s miserable run of form continued at Everton and a change of tactics caused problems for one particular player which left some fans frustrated with his performance.
Tottenham suffered a 3-2 defeat at Everton on Sunday afternoon with Ange Postecoglou‘s side having been well and truly the worst of the two sides despite goals from Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison.
Postecoglou has been steadfast with his refusal to adopt any changes to his team strategy and strangely decided that a change of defensive strategy to three at the back failed would be a good idea, something which failed dismally on Merseyside.
Radu Dragusin endured a nightmarish first half for Tottenham before being withdrawn as a result of a head injury.
The Romanian was left requiring medical treatment after his head was bloodied as a result of taking an elbow to the face from Everton goalscorer Dominic Calvert-Lewin on the cusp of the interval.
He failed to appear for the second half, having been replaced by Richarlison to add to the ever-increasing Tottenham injury list which has been a significant problem this season.
This was not the only pain which Dragusin suffered in the match, having been at fault for Everton’s second goal when Iliman Ndiaye stepped easily across the Spurs defender and lashed a shot into the roof of Antonin Kinsky’s net.
Radu Dragusin’s performance against Everton was poor
Taking to Twitter/X some fans were left frustrated by what they saw from the £26.7million signing from Genoa, who despite having experienced regular game time due to the injuries sustained by Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero has not managed to perform at a consistently high level.
SZYComps has seen enough of the defender in a Tottenham shirt, writing: “Hope Dragusin is sold in the summer, can’t bare to watch him play anymore.”
Hope Dragusin is sold in the summer, can’t bare to watch him play anymore.
— 𝑺 (@SZYComps) January 19, 2025
However, among the replies there were actually very few which looked to defend the centre half and also expressed their disappointment,.
Another Spurs fan was not as critical with his assessment, but did admit that he should be moved on: “I think in a normal backline he wouldn’t be as bad. His confidence is probably at an all time low also but if we can make any profit I’d deffo sell.”
Some even suggested that Dragusin simply does not fit in with the style of Postecoglou’s system with his lack of confidence on the ball and inconsistency with his passing making him a questionable signing, with one fan posting: “He is just is not fit for ange’s system at all, I get it Ange has flaws but signing dragusin was so strange from the offset, isn’t confident on the ball, panics under pressure and doesn’t possess any great skill with passing. Another waste of money.”
Another said: “Get behind him, he’s played every single game for the past 20 games.”
He was a wanted man before he arrived in North London with Dragusin having chosen a transfer to Tottenham ahead of Bayern Munich when he left Genoa in January 2024.
Romero and van de Ven are desperately needed back from injury
Having lost both first-choice central defenders within the Tottenham squad in Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven to injury once again during the defeat to Chelsea in early December, fans are counting down the days when both are back fit.
Ange Postecoglou admitted that Romero and van de Ven would be back playing in the next couple of weeks when he spoke at Friday’s press conference.
In the meantime, Postecoglou needs to revert to a back four and hope that Dragusin can improve his performance until it’s time to step aside and provide cover from the bench once again.