Tottenham expert believes Thomas Frank has one of best players anywhere in Premier League
Tottenham is home to several players who are or have the potential to be world-class.
Thomas Frank seems to be building a strong competitive side this season.
Spurs’ win over West Ham made it three wins in four in the Premier League. Meanwhile, Lucas Bergvall’s performance in the UEFA Champions League for Tottenham meant that the Dane ended his first game in the competition as a manager with a win.
However, individual brilliance continues to play a role in this developing Tottenham side, and the Lilywhites may be a recipient of one of the best the Premier League has to offer.
This article includes exclusive comments from Lilywhite Rose owner John Wenham.
Destiny Udogie hailed as one of the Premier League’s best
Destiny Udogie returned for Tottenham in their 1-0 win over Villarreal in the Champions League.
The fullback had previously been sidelined with an injury, with Djed Spence’s recent Tottenham performances proving doubters wrong.
But as good as Spence has been, Tottenham expert and Lilywhite Rose owner John Wenham – speaking exclusively to Tottenham News – believes Udogie is still better than him and most of the left-backs in the Premier League.
“I still think Udogie is a little bit better than Spence when he is fully fit in firing,” Wenham said.
“The fullback that we saw linked with Manchester City earlier in the summer, if you remember, that’s the level he can be, in my opinion. I think Udogie’s first season was absolutely phenomenal at Tottenham, and he was rewarded by becoming Italy’s left back.
“He’s had a couple of injuries since, but I think when you get him back to full form, he’s one of the best left-backs in the Premier League. And I think he’s the best left back for Italy as well.
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How do Djed Spence and Destiny Udogie compare?
If going by the eye test alone, Udogie seems to be more complete out of the two. The Italian can defend well and is also excellent going forward.
However, data from last season indicates that Spence edges Udogie attacking-wise. The recently capped England international recorded 91 progressive carries per 90 to Udogie’s 84.6 per game.
Meanwhile, Spence had 40.9 per 90 in progressive passes while Udogie recorded a woeful 17.5 per game. Despite this, the Italian had him beat in both defensive duels and possession won.
But while the data indicates that Spence is the better attacking fullback, his partnership with Xavi Simons demonstrates a hesitancy to overlap on the wing. This is something Udogie has done consistently while at Spurs.
As a result, it will be interesting to see if the scales tip in Udogie’s favour now that he has returned to the fold.
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