Aaron Lennon slams Destiny Udogie after incident in Tottenham v Man City
Aaron Lennon was not impressed by what Destiny Udogie did in the first half against Manchester City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs went into half-time 1-0 down in their Premier League clash with Pep Guardiola’s side on Wednesday (26 February).
Ange Postecoglou made a bold call to leave both Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski on the bench against the Premier League champions.
James Maddison, who replaced Kulusevski in the starting lineup, did very little to justify his place in the team as Spurs struggled to compete in the middle of the park against City.
Roy Keane would have no doubt been smiling at home after his latest swipe at Maddison. However, it was Udogie who was on the receiving end of some criticism from former Spurs star Lennon.
Lennon disappointed as Jeremy Doku causes Udogie problems
Erling Haaland opened the scoring for City after 12 minutes in North London. However, while the Norwegian will be credited with the goal, it was Jeremy Doku who deserves the praise.
The Manchester City winger was causing all sorts of problems in the first half and played a delightful ball into the box to assist Haaland’s opener. However, he was helped by some rather lacklustre Spurs defending.
While speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live [via BBC Sport, 26 February, 7:46 pm], Lennon said, “Good goal.
“[Jeremy] Doku has been getting at [Destiny] Udogie. Udogie is giving Doku too much space. Rolled into [Erling] Haaland, and it was a tidy finish.”
| Tottenham 2024/25 | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Destiny Udogie | 24 | 0 | 1 |
Udogie needs time to get back to his best at Tottenham
Udogie has only recently returned from a long-term layoff. Therefore, fans will need to be patient as the young defender looks to regain match fitness and get back to his best.
As a result, while Lennon’s criticism was fair, it is also important to remember the context. Doku is not an easy player for any fullback to play against, as Trent Alexander-Arnold found out in Liverpool’s 2-0 Premier League win over City at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday (23 February).
Therefore, it was always going to be tough for Udogie, and Postecoglou will need to ensure he manages the 22-year-old’s return from injury efficiently and doesn’t ask too much of him too quickly.
Otherwise, it could lead to further injury complications down the line.