Tottenham Hotspur managed to start their Premier League season on a high after grinding out a 2-1 victory against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park yesterday. However, the lack of any incoming transfers this summer would be a major concern for some Spurs supporters.
Most teams need to freshen things up to keep their players motivated for the new campaign, but Spurs have failed to do so time and again. So will it harm their chances in the long run or will it pay dividends to keep the faith in the same bunch of players for another season? Let’s take a look into every area of Mauricio Pochettino’s squad and determine whether they are good enough to challenge for the Premier League this season.
Goalkeepers
Spurs have a World Cup-winning goalkeeper in their squad in Hugo Lloris, who can be considered as one of the best shot-stoppers in Europe. Pochettino also has Michel Vorm to rely upon as a back-up to the Frenchman.
It is clear that the North London giants have one of the best goalkeeping-duos in the English top-flight so they can compete with the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City in this department.
Defenders
Spurs have the added depth of having two players in every defensive position which makes them one of the best defensive sides in the top tier of England. Both Serge Aurier and Kieran Trippier are fighting it out for a right-back berth while Danny Rose and Ben Davies are competing for a start in the left-back position.
Tottenham also have some world-class centre-halves in their ranks such as Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld, and Davinson Sanchez. However, their fourth-choice central defender is Juan Foyth who is relatively inexperienced at the top level. Hence, Spurs might be a little short in defence when compared to City who have five world-class centre-backs in their squad.
Midfielders
The North Londoners may not have added to their squad this summer, but they managed to retain Mousa Dembele which would give them a significant boost in the new campaign. Spurs are well-stocked at the centre of the park with Eric Dier, Dembele, Christian Eriksen, Victor Wanyama, Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko all vying for a place in Pochettino’s first XI.
The likes of Dele Alli, Erik Lamela, Lucas Moura, Heung Min-Son and Josh Onomah can play down the wide areas or in the number 10 position but they still need an out-and-out winger to compete with teams like Manchester City and Liverpool who have a plethora of wide attacking talents.
Forwards
Spurs have one of the best strikers in world football in Harry Kane, who is set to lead the lines at White Hart Lane. However, his back-ups, Vincent Janssen and Fernando Llorente, are not good enough to fill the English forward’s shoes in his absence. Hence, Pochettino needs to pray that Kane would have an injury and suspension-free season if his side is to compete for the Premier League.
Liverpool, Man United and Man City have more depth up top which makes their squads slightly better than Tottenham’s going into the new season.
To summarise, we have determined that Spurs need to have a lot of luck and hope that their rivals falter quite often if they are to mount a realistic title challenge in this campaign. Their back five is as good as anyone else, but the fact that Pochettino does not have a natural world-class winger and a worthy back-up to Harry Kane may come back to haunt him later in the season.
