‘Too laid back’ – Alasdair Gold compares current Spurs star to Dimitar Berbatov

Alasdair Gold has likened Rodrigo Bentancur’s languid style on the ball to that of former Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov.

Bentancur has hit the ground running at Spurs since his deadline day move from Juventus in January, having already established himself as a regular starter in Antonio Conte’s midfield.

The Uruguayan’s absence was certainly felt during Tottenham’s FA Cup defeat against Middlesbrough last week and he made a major difference to the side when he returned to the starting eleven against Everton.

The 24-year-old seems much better equipped to handle the ball in tight areas compared to the other central midfield options that Conte has at his disposal.

Gold has now opined that Bentancur is almost too laid back in possession at times and suggested that it could come back to bite him.

However, the journalist did speak in glowing terms about the calmness that the former Juve man brings to the Tottenham midfield.

Gold said on his YouTube channel: “Rodrigo Bentancur, again bang, straight into that midfield. And just so calm, he’s got a bit of a Berbatov way about him, he’s very laid back. Too laid back at times for a midfielder.

“Striker you can maybe get away with but for a midfielder, there are occasions where he might bring the ball out of defence and play a very… laid-back pass which gets cut out.

“Some people in Italy (were) criticising that, it was something that he would get cut out maybe once or twice a match for.

“That’s something he’s going to probably going to learn quite quickly, in the Premier League it’s even faster and you can’t get away with that too much. But on the whole, I think he does exude this calmness that he brings to the midfield.”

Spurs Web Opinion

I certainly get where Gold is coming from in his comparison of Bentacur’s languid style of play to Berbatov.

However, the Uruguayan’s apparent languidness seems to help put off opponents when he decides to drop a shoulder and travel with the ball.

The 24-year-old will only get better as he gets used to the demands of the Premier League and Conte’s system.

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