Rodrigo Bentancur proved against Manchester United he is ready to step up amid midfield crisis at Tottenham
Tottenham and Ange Postecoglou are in desperate need for a midfielder to step up in North London with so many key players absent.
It looks as if the Australian has finally put his defensive troubles behind him after he was able to name his starting back-four for the first time in over two months against Manchester United.
Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven both returned to the fold in the 2-2 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday 14 January and while neither of the two were perfect that afternoon, Postecoglou and Tottenham supporters will likely put that down to a lack of match sharpness, with the pair’s quality certainly not in question.
Son Heung-min is away at the 2024 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, although Richarlison’s rise to form which has seen the Brazilian score six league goals in his last six matches provides a temporary solution for the absence of the club’s top scorer this season.
It is in midfield where Tottenham are hurting most, with a lack of creativity from the centre of the park their biggest downfall in Manchester.
Postecoglou’s men dominated proceedings, controlling 64 per cent of possession, but that possession only amounted to six shots on target as the visitors lacked the creative flair of a James Maddison or Giovani Lo Celso – who are both currently injured – to unlock United’s backline more consistently.
Pape Matar Sarr and Yves Bissouma are both away at the 2024 African Cup of Nations, and Pierre-Emile Hojberg and Oliver Skipp just weren’t able to provide the same level of quality as Spurs’ first-choice duo, despite their best efforts.
Hojbjerg in particular struggled, playing just one key pass and only winning two of his nine ground duels while also being dribbled past on three separate occasions (Sofascore).
However, Rodrigo Bentancur showed that he is ready for the fight and ready to step up and help solve Postecoglou’s issues in midfield.
It certainly wasn’t the Uruguay international’s best overall display, as he failed to provide an accurate cross into the box from his two attempts, won just three of his eight ground duels and lost both of his aerial duels.
He did complete 84 per cent of his passes and played five accurate long balls forward, but he also failed to complete a key pass and gave possession away 17 times.
Nonetheless, when it mattered most, the 26-year-old stepped up and demonstrated his character 50 seconds into the second half as he netted to get Spurs back on level terms.
It has been a long year for the former Juventus man, a year full of injuries and setbacks, and scoring away at Old Trafford would have felt like a dream come true after the nightmare ordeal he has gone through over the past 12 months.
As seen in the image above, once debutant Timo Werner picked the ball up on the left-hand side of the penalty area, Bentancur made a late run into the box and received a pass from the German.
He showed great composure and feet to take the ball past Jonny Evans with his first and second touches, putting himself in a great position to shoot.
With his third touch of the ball, he lashed a strike past Andre Onana who could only stand and watch as the ball flew past him and into the back of his net.
It was a wonderful goal and a reminder of the attacking quality Bentancur possesses, and the difference that he can make, even when he is not at his best.
It is easy to forget that the Uruguayan has only just returned after two serious injury layoffs, and as Postecoglou pointed out after the match (Tottenham Hotspur Official Website, 15 January), the midfielder shouldn’t even yet be playing.
“Yeah, outstanding. He’s one, with the initial diagnosis, he should still be out, from what we looked at as a recovery time.
“He came to me a couple of weeks ago and said, ‘Look, I want to help, I need to play, I need to help these guys’. He could see we were going through a rough time. It is a testament to his character. He is an outstanding person.”
Nonetheless, Bentancur is on the pitch, and he will certainly be a difference-maker for Tottenham in the second half of the season after hardly being able to feature in the first.
In other Tottenham news, one returning star showed her quality for the club in their 3-2 victory over Sheffield United Women in the Adobe Women’s FA Cup on Sunday 14 January.
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