Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou should hand Giovani Lo Celso an opportunity v Brighton
It appears that for some reason, amid his unprecedented midfield shortage, Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has turned to academy graduate Oliver Skipp.
The 23-year-old was handed his first start since August during the 2-1 win against Everton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday 23 December.
While Postecoglou’s side did claim all three points, it was one of the worst attacking performances of the Australian’s reign in north London so far, with the visitors registering more shots and shots on target than their hosts.
Postecoglou has quickly won over supporters at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for his attractive brand of football which often sees his team dominate the ball and create more chances than their opponents.
However, against Sean Dyche’s side, while they did have 61 per cent possession, they only managed 13 shots compared to Everton’s 18, with six of those shots on target compared to the Toffees’ eight.
It was therefore a rather flat performance going forward compared to their usual standards. In their previous home win against Newcastle United, a 4-1 victory on 10 December, they managed 23 shots with 12 of those on target, and were much more fluid going forward.
One key reason for that was the different personnel in midfield, with Yves Bissouma starting alongside Pape Matar Sarr and Dejan Kulusevski against the Magpies, while Skipp took the Mali international’s place against Everton.
Although Skipp was relatively solid overall, completing 92 per cent of his passes, winning four of his five ground duels and making two tackles, he offered very little going forward, playing zero key passes, providing zero accurate crosses into the box and failing to have a shot at goal (Sofascore). He also lost possession on seven occasions, giving Everton the opportunity to launch attacks.
With this in mind, if Postecoglou wants to see more from his team going forward against Brighton when he takes his side to the Amex Stadium on Thursday 28 December, he would be wise to make a change in the middle of the park.
Yves Bissouma is currently serving a four-match suspension after being sent off for the second time this season in the 2-0 win at Nottingham Forest on Friday 15 December, meaning he is unavailable for selection.
Instead, Postecoglou should reintroduce Giovani Lo Celso, who will offer much more going forward than Skipp.
During his most recent Premier League start in the 2-1 home defeat against West Ham on 7 December, the midfielder completed 90 per cent of his passes with three of those being key, won all five of his ground duels (100%) and four fouls for his side, while also hitting the woodwork.
With his side 1-0 up, Lo Celso had a great chance to double Spurs’ lead. As seen in the image above, the Argentina international was able to pick up a dangerous position on the edge of the box as the ball came towards him.
He took it down well and steadied himself to take a shot as three West Ham players closed him down.
Despite being under pressure, Lo Celso was able to get his shot away and trouble Lukasz Fabianski, who was forced to push the ball away from danger.
Although nothing came of the opportunity, it is the perfect example of the type of creative threat Lo Celso can offer when he is on the pitch.
It was a shot on target, which is more than Skipp offered going forward against Everton, and if Postecoglou wants to create more goalscoring opportunities against the Seagulls, he should start Lo Celso in midfield alongside both Sarr and Kulusevski.
In other Tottenham news, the club must take advantage with a 97 per cent Brighton ace set to miss out when the two sides meet.