Timo Werner has admitted that scoring goals is no longer the sole focus of his game, especially when playing wide left as he did for Tottenham against Manchester United.
The German international joined Spurs on a 6-month loan last week and was thrust straight into the starting XI due to Tottenham’s shortage of players at the moment.
Werner made an instant impact with his pace off the left, claiming an assist for Rodrigo Bentancur’s all-important equaliser at the start of the second half, earning Spurs a point at Old Trafford.
Speaking to the Evening Standard about his time at Chelsea, Werner claimed there was always criticism of his goalscoring record but he is now mature enough to know there is a lot more to his game.
The former Chelsea forward revealed that a conversation with Ange Postecoglou on the phone was all it took to convince him that Tottenham was the right club for him to join.
Timo Werner says he is more than a goalscorer
He said: “There was always criticism of my game [at Chelsea]. At the beginning, I also started like I did [at Old Trafford], from the left side.
“I think a lot of people wanted to see me scoring more goals, but at Spurs, with the tactics we have and the way the manager wants me to play, I can bring a lot to the group with my assists and maybe [by] not being the main man who scores — to make deep runs to create space for the others and, like yesterday, to create an assist.
“Maybe sometimes it’s not about the fans or the manager. Sometimes it’s about you. You look at your stats and think, ‘I wanted to score more goals’.
“I think now I’m a bit older, I see how important assists and deep runs are for the team. I also want to score goals, but it’s not the main part of my game anymore. I can bring so much more, especially in this kind of tactic, for the group.”
On Postecoglou, he added: “When I spoke to the manager [Postecoglou], I wanted to be part of this group, I wanted to be part of playing for this manager, these tactics. That was the biggest reason for coming to Spurs. I’m very pleased with my game. It was a very good debut.”
Spurs Web Opinion:
I have a feeling that Postecoglou is going to unlock something in Timo Werner over the coming months, whether that be as a starter or as an impact sub. There is something to be said about a player being in a supportive environment that does wonders for their form on the pitch.
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