Micah Richards and Gary Lineker analyse Mathys Tel in Tottenham Hotspur’s loss to Aston Villa
Mathys Tel’s move from Bayern Munich to Tottenham reflected trust in potential. The loan move in January eventually became permanent over the summer with high expectations, but the 19-year-old French striker is yet to prove that he’s worth the investment.
Tel’s integration into the Premier League has proven uneven, marked by modest output amid positional experimentation. In the current season, Tel has featured in six Premier League matches, starting three and accumulating 237 minutes. His contribution stands at one goal and zero assists.
With an expected goals (xG) value of just 0.2, he has underperformed in chance creation as well. His solitary strike arrived in a 2-1 away victory over Leeds United, where he converted from close range. Across 28 total appearances since his arrival, Tel has netted four goals, often deployed as a central striker or left winger. His shooting efficiency remains low, with only one shot on target from four attempts this term, alongside limited progressive carries and passes, which means he has not really been a worthwhile attacker this whole time.
Telling Tales
Speaking of his performance against Aston Villa, the duo of Gary Lineker and Micah Richards, in their The Rest is Football podcast, spoke about Tel’s inability to make the correct runs from central positions. They also spoke about how beating the offside trap of a Villa side that plays a high line should not be as tough for someone as pacy as Tel.
“I preferred him, perhaps, on the left-hand side when I’m seeing him play there. But yeah, he wasn’t making the natural runs of a striker that understands how to beat an offside trap, which is not that difficult when a team plays that high line with no pressure on the ball.”
“Yeah, exactly that. I echo your thoughts as well. I like him better off the left.”
Earning his third league start as lone centre-forward, he registered zero shots on target and completed merely five accurate passes. Aston Villa’s high line made obvious Tel’s inexperience in timing runs to go past the offside trap, which eventually contributed towards Spurs’ failure to capitalise on decent build-up play. Absolutely not what you expect from a starting striker for a club, even half as big as Spurs.
The broader attacking player crisis is also as real as it can get. Dominic Solanke sees himself sidelined since August following a 2-0 win over Manchester City, while Dejan Kulusevski recovers from patella surgery sustained before last season’s Europa League final. Such absences have forced manager Thomas Frank to improvise, exposing Tel prematurely to central demands which clearly seem beyond his current capabilities.
But with all of this going on, it becomes very easy to forget that he’s merely 19. There’s still a long way to go, but he’s got to show up daily and make sure that the gaffer does not start losing confidence in the player.
