Matthew Chadder

Mon 11 December 2023 14:10, UK

It is quite scary to think that Tottenham full-backs Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie are just 24 and 21 years old, which leaves them with plenty of time to grow and develop their game.

Both players have been key for Ange Postecoglou so far this season and put in arguably the best performances of their campaigns during the 4-1 win against Newcastle United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday 10 December.

It was Spurs’ first Premier League victory since October and a much-needed three points after a testing few weeks, and it was a win which might not have been possible if it wasn’t for Porro and Udogie’s strong displays.

Full-back is a position which has been revolutionised in recent years, especially since the arrival of Pep Guardiola in English football, and Postecoglou has been putting his own spin on it ever since he landed in north London.

What has made the Australian’s life even easier is the quality of Porro and Udogie and their suitability to play in the way that he asks of them, and never has that been more evident than against Newcastle on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking on BBC’s Match of the Day 2 (10 December) former Manchester City and England right-back Micah Richards chose to start his analysis of the Tottenham game by talking about the performances of the full-back duo, which highlights just how much the pair stood out.

“There were some unbelievable performances but I want to talk about the full-backs, the positions that they were picking up were excellent,” Richards told host Mark Chapman.

“Both of them were outstanding.

The first goal in particular would have delighted Postecoglou as Udogie started and finished off an attack to open the scoring, something which Richards pointed out during his analysis.

“Again, they are in these central areas, and this is where the goal comes from.

“Getting on the ball, as I mentioned that forward run – we know Son Heung-min is good in those one-on-one situations.

“He (Udogie) gets in there and he gets his goal.

It was an all-action display from the Itallian who in addition to his goal was switched on defensively, making two clearances, two tackles, and one interception while not being dribbled past once.

He was also strong in his duels, winning three of his four on the ground and one of the two he contested in the air, while he also completed 91 per cent of his passes, with two of those being key (Sofascore).

Once again Udogie and Porro’s presence in the centre of the park was crucial in the build-up to Spurs’ fourth and final goal of the afternoon.

“For me, the last clip is the best one, you have got the two full-backs in central positions.

“Udogie plays it to Porro and it leads to the penalty, it is just outstanding play.

“When I used to play full-back you would stay in your position, or you go on the overlap. This is underlap but also playing as centre midfielders and being effective while they’re doing it as well. It is incredible to see players with the confidence to do that, and the manager has installed that confidence so quickly, outstanding performance from both of them.”

For Porro, these outstanding performances are quickly becoming a regular occurrence, with the Spaniard rated as the highest-performing defender in the Premier League this season by Sofascore, with an average score of 7.51.

On this occasion, it was an 8.5 match rating for the right-back, who was immense defensively, making three tackles, one interception and one clearance while also managing to avoid being dribbled past, despite coming up against one of the league’s in-form wingers in Anthony Gordon.

Going forward he was just as effective, grabbing an assist in addition to completing 77 per cent of his passes with three of those being key, providing three accurate crosses into the box and creating one big chance. He also troubled the keeper with a few shots of his own, one of which was on target.

If this is how quickly the duo have adapted to life under Postecoglou, it is incredible to think just how strong their performances could become after a few years of learning and developing under the Australian at Hotspur Way.

In other Tottenham news, ex-Spurs scout Bryan King has detailed five things he learned from Spurs’ win over Newcastle.