Well, that probably wasn’t the return from the international break that Tottenham Hotspur fans had been hoping for.
Ange Postecoglou’s side travelled to West London to try and get one over Chelsea in the Premier League last night, but instead of coming out swinging as they have so often, and sometimes to their own detriment, this season, they were utterly dismal.
Granted, it looked like Pape Matar Sarr had equalised in the second half, but he fouled Moises Caicedo in the buildup, and it was chalked off, much to the chagrin of the increasingly under-pressure Australian, who made his feelings clear after the game.
There were incredibly disappointing performances across the pitch for the visitors, but there was one player who might as well have stayed in the dressing room and, as such, has to be dropped ahead of the weekend’s game against Southampton.
Spurs' poor performers
Before getting to the player in question, it’s only fair we go over some of the other starters who let the fans down last night, as, unfortunately, there were quite a few, including Cristian Romero.
The fiery World Cup winner can sometimes be exactly the sort of player you want in an intense derby, but instead of marshalling the backline and making life difficult for the Blues’ attack, he seemed off the pace, overly emotional, and was running back towards goal more often than he should have been and picked up a 5/10 match rating from journalist Alasdair Gold.
However, there is an argument that the Argentine’s defensive partner, Micky van de Ven, had an even worse game at Stamford Bridge.
The former Wolfsburg gem was ironically starting his first league game since the reverse fixture against the Pensioners in December, and whether it was rustiness or something else, he looked even more lost than Romero.
For example, it was his clearance that came off Jackson early in the first half and almost opened the scoring, and then in the second half he was pulled out of position by the striker for Enzo Fernández’s goal and was fully deserving of the 5/10 rating he received from Gold.
At the other end of the pitch, it was another night to forget for the club’s record signing, Dominic Solanke.
The former Bournemouth star did make the right runs at times but simply wasn’t a factor for the vast majority of the game, and while he has to rely on the service of his teammates to an extent, the best strikers in the world will often make their own chances.
However, while the Basingstoke-born poacher was certainly ineffective, another starter was even worse and must be dropped.
The Spurs star who has to be dropped
In reality, you could make a serious argument about any of the aforementioned players being dropped for the weekend, but when it comes down to it, James Maddison put in the most frustratingly dismal display for Spurs last night.
Chalkboard
Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.
The former Leicester City star, who is a part of the club’s leadership group, started in a midfield three with 19-year-old Lucas Bergvall and Rodrigo Bentancur, so while they can certainly help out with attacks, the onus to get the midfield ticking was on him.
Unfortunately, he did not achieve this in the slightest, and instead of pulling the strings and taking advantage of a Chelsea side who had won just four of their ten league games since the turn of the year, he practically disappeared from the encounter.
It might sound harsh, but it’s an opinion shared by Gold, who also awarded the Englishman a 5/10 on the night, writing that even when he did try to make something happen, ‘nothing came off for him.’
Unsurprisingly, his lacklustre showing is reflected in his statistics.
Minutes
81′
Expected Goals
0.05
Goals
0
Expected Assists
0.06
Assists
0
Touches
41
Key Passes
1
Crosses (Accurate)
2 (0)
Shots on Target
0
Duels (Won)
5 (0)
Dribbles
0
Lost Possession
4
Offsides
2
In 81 minutes of inaction, the 28-year-old amassed a paltry combined expected goal and assists figure of just 0.11, failed to score or assist a goal, took 41 touches but played just a single key pass, failed in 100% of his crosses, failed to take a shot on target, didn’t attempt a single dribble, lost the ball four times, lost 100% of his duels and was offside twice.
Ultimately, it was a dreadful performance from the entire Spurs team, but Maddison was particularly disappointing and, therefore, must be dropped from the starting lineup.
Walker repeat: Spurs in real danger of losing incredible £67m "monster"
The brilliant defender would be a massive loss for Spurs.
1 ByJack Salveson HolmesApr 2, 2025