Ange Postecoglou admits giving Mathys Tel some rest when Dominic Solanke returns from his injury problem
Tottenham Hotspur have had a disappointing season, with Ange Postecoglou’s side still slumped all the way down in 13th place in the Premier League table.
The Australian tactician has endured a tough second year in North London, dealing with several injuries, suspensions and off-field issues. One of the mitigating factors behind the team’s underwhelming performances and results is the unprecedented injury situation.
However, the injury problems are starting to ease up with Ange Postecoglou having welcomed as many as five players back in the 1-0 win over Manchester United last month. A big credit to the club chiefs for backing Postecoglou with three new signings in the January transfer window. One of those new faces to arrive at White Hart Lane was Mathys Tel.
Having arrived on loan from Bayern Munich on transfer deadline day, Mathys Tel made his Spurs debut off the bench against Liverpool in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals. A couple of days later, he was thrown straight into the deep end against Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round. The Frenchman scored a diving header which turned out to be a mere consolation as the Lilywhites lost 2-1 to Villa and were dumped out of the FA Cup.
On Wednesday against Manchester City, Tel played his fifth game for Tottenham. Overall, he has clocked 375 minutes in a Spurs shirt thus far. After the 1-0 defeat to Man City, Postecoglou admitted that he would now be very keen to hand a break to the teenage forward. He added Tel might get a rest once Dominic Solanke is fit to feature again, with the club-record acquisition’s return from injury imminent.
“Yeah, absolutely, Dom and Richy, and look, Mathys is working really hard but we are asking him to do a massive job for us at this level,” Postecoglou told Football London.
“He is probably one that did need a rest because he has come in and played every game. It will be good to get Dom back in there.
“When he was playing for us, he was hard to stop. You can see the benefit of them having Erling in their side, so hopefully, Dom is not too far away.”
Indeed, Tel has played non-stop football since arriving at Spurs from Bayern last month. He has operated on the left and centrally as a No.9, scoring just once thus far. While he is extremely talented and left Bayern to enjoy regular minutes, it has to be noted that the French youth international is only 19 and his game time needs to be managed carefully.
Fortunately, Big Ange now has options to select from and rotate his squad a bit more than the last few months. Also, Solanke is not far away from returning, which should be great news for the fans as well. The Englishman’s availability during the crucial phase of games will allow Tel to get some much-needed breather.
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Solanke’s presence up top has been a big miss, affecting Big Ange’s side tactically. Having him back in the squad could make a huge difference, not only in terms of goals and fluidity in attacking moves but also allowing the Australian gaffer to rest some of the players that have played relentlessly since the last month.
