'No disrespect': ESPN pundit says £90k-a-week Tottenham player is a 'gamble' for Ange Postecoglou
09/17/2024 03:45 PM
Tottenham Hotspur have been left reeling in wake of their second defeat in four Premier League games, and against their arch-rivals too.
Spurs went into the North London derby with high hopes, considering they were playing at home and Arsenal had several key players out.
However, the Gunners did enough to get the better of Tottenham, with Gabriel Magalhaes scoring the winner from Bukayo Saka’s corner.
A number of Spurs players received criticism for their efforts on the day, including goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, whose positioning was questioned.
Now, ESPN pundit Steve Nicol has spoken about another Tottenham player who he felt didn’t make much of an impact.
Steve Nicol deems Dominic Solanke a ‘gamble’ for Tottenham
The player in question is Dominic Solanke, who is yet to get on the scoresheet for Spurs since his summer move from Bournemouth.
Nicol questioned whether the £65million man could really get at least 20 goals this season for Tottenham and described him as a “gamble”.
"Manchester City go sign Erling Haaland and Spurs sign – no disrespect – Dominic Solanke,” began Nicol.
After Nicol’s fellow pundits poked fun at him for his comment, he continued: “It doesn't sound good but you know the point I am making.
"So, do you really think Dominic Solanke is going to score like 20 goals a season for Tottenham? I mean it is more of a wishlist, isn't it?
“I mean, the truth is he scored a lot of goals last season for the first time and all of a sudden now he's playing for Spurs and he is expected – not to be Harry Kane but he's expected to be the goal-scorer.
"You can't expect Spurs to be in the top four if you are taking a gamble on the centre-forward because that is what it is. It is a gamble."
Classic case of pundits getting on big-money signing’s back
As clear as night follows day, a big-money signing finds himself with pundits criticising him even though he hasn’t exactly done anything wrong.
Solanke’s debut was a case of him finding his feet at his new club, for whom he hasn’t had a pre-season.
Then, injury ruled the £90,000-a-week ace out of the following two games. Obviously that’s out of his control.
Solanke then recovered and started in the North London derby, where he wasn’t bad by any means.
Alasdair Gold said of Solanke on football.london: ‘Worked hard from the start and caused problems.
‘Had an early shot blocked. Sent a looping header just past the left-hand post before the half-hour mark.
‘Won the ball back early in the second half and had a header deflected wide.
‘Worked tirelessly and was a strong mobile focal point for Tottenham but the service in to him needs to be better.’
It’s rare for a player to come in and immediately exceed expectations at a new club, particularly one that is still a work in progress.
It may have been the case for Haaland, but he was registering staggering goal tallies for years and went to a club full of world-class players.
This won’t always be the norm, so in Solanke’s case, it’s best to be patient, and surely it won’t be long until he gets off the mark at N17.
