Ben Davies told he doesn’t have ‘long-term future’ at Tottenham after what happened v Arsenal
Tottenham defender Ben Davies doesn’t have a “long-term future” in North London following his “difficult” outing in the clash with Arsenal, according to Alan Hutton.
The Welshman started in place of Destiny Udogie in Sunday’s (28 April) North London derby defeat to Mikel Arteta’s side but struggled to contain Bukayo Saka who scored his 15th Premier League goal of the season.
Davies received criticism from pundits and supporters alike for his defending as he showed the English International onto his left foot inside the penalty area before ending up in a heap on the floor as the ball rolled into the bottom corner.
While Hutton admitted he had sympathy for the 31-year-old after he was thrown into the fold having not started a game for two months, he did admit he doesn’t expect to see much more of Davies in a Spurs shirt.
“Do I think he’s a replacement for Udogie? Absolutely not,” Hutton told Tottenham News.
“I don’t think he can bring the same qualities that he can which is no disrespect to him, it’s just that Udogie has been outstanding this season and has been rewarded with a long-term contract so it is what it is.
“I feel for him in a way, it has happened to me before where you’ve maybe not been playing and you’re thrown into a huge game against one of the outstanding players in the league and it is always going to be a difficult task and yes he found it difficult.
“Moving forward, is he a backup? Probably, he can play a number of positions which will help him out. I don’t see his long-term future at Tottenham moving forward, I think they have different options.
“But listen, I’m a past defender, I understand how difficult it is to come in and step up to that level. It can be very hard and he did have a difficult day should we say.”
Will Tottenham sell Ben Davies during the summer transfer window under Ange Postecoglou?
As Hutton suggested, it isn’t easy for a player to step into the fold with very little preparation and it only becomes even harder in a fixture as big as the North London derby. But it perhaps showed Davies’ time is running out at Spurs.
Postecoglou demands a lot of his fullbacks both in and out of possession and while the 31-year-old has always been fairly consistent, he lacks the technical ability to impact the game in the final third like Udogie.
Whether or not all parties could agree on a summer exit likely depends on what sort of interest there is in the Welsh international this summer. If a suitable offer arrives, however, it could be best for all parties if the move is completed.
In other Tottenham news, Sergio Regulion wants to “get out” of Spurs this summer despite a new transfer update at Brentford
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