Credit: Imago

Daniel Davis

Thu 23 April 2026 11:10, UK

Dominic Solanke is staying positive, even with Tottenham Hotspur on the brink of oblivion.

“When we are all together, I think we can fly,” was his optimistic verdict after leading Spurs’ fightback against Manchester City back in February. Solanke had indeed taken flight, scoring an inventive, jaw-dropping scorpion kick that left Gianluigi Donnarumma pawing at thin air.

Before then, he hadn’t netted a single Premier League goal all season, with his brace in 17 breathless minutes belatedly opening his account. However, any expectations that he would use this moment of magic as a springboard quickly fizzled out, as did Spurs’ campaign.

Solanke has long been accused of only performing in fleeting moments, but with the club teetering on the cusp of dropping into the Championship, what they need more than anything is consistency. It remains to be seen whether he will be able to offer that.

Tottenham next travel to Wolves in a must-win match on Saturday afternoon, and Solanke is expected to start again despite failing to score under Roberto De Zerbi.

Tottenham can’t rely on Dominic Solanke

Solanke remains extremely well-liked in the dressing room and was just as popular at Bournemouth, too. He is admired for his bright and amiable personality, which he has successfully maintained despite the pressure that came with his £65million switch to Spurs.

He had been Tottenham’s club-record signing and was therefore unable to escape the spotlight. Luckily, he caught the eye under Ange Postecoglou in his debut campaign, scoring 16 goals in total and playing his part in the Europa League success.

This term has proved much more difficult, though. Ankle surgery in August restricted him to a watching brief for much of Thomas Frank’s tenure. Spurs were woefully blunt in his absence, while James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski were also recovering from injury.

Solanke will be lucky to start against Wolves, but he offers plenty to the frontline. He is just as adept at dropping deep and feeding through his team-mates as he is turning and sprinting directly at the heart of opponents. This, though, is where Spurs’ headache lies.

They are desperate for more goals – and lots of them.

The 28-year-old quickly won over supporters with his willingness to hassle defenders and force turnovers. He is, however, in his prime and the goals – the driving force behind the big-money swoop for him – are not exactly flowing.

This will concern De Zerbi. The Italian would also have every right to be scratching his chin at the sheer bemusement of it all. Solanke possesses an all-round skillset that should make him a natural poacher, but he has netted just once in his last nine matches.

Tottenham need him to step up if they are to stave off relegation.

This season, Solanke has scored three goals in his 14 Premier League appearances to date. There are caveats, of course. His ankle procedure in September ruled him out of a total of 33 matches for club and country, and he required time as he built his match sharpness back up.

What De Zerbi must now decide is whether Solanke’s strengths outweigh his drawbacks.

In the top-flight, he has taken just 20 shots on goal, 55 per cent of which have been on target. This points to both a wider creativity issue at Spurs, but also the frontman’s individual flaws. The statistics suggest that he is not arriving in dangerous positions at the right time.

His pass accuracy of 73.5 per cent demonstrates that he is working well in tandem with his team-mates, but his tally of six chances created raises a big issue: is it really worth him dropping deep and not attacking the posts? His recent performances would suggest not.

There are numerous positives. His 48 per cent dribble success places him in the 75th percentile in comparison to other Premier League strikers – an impressive achievement. On the flip side, his 30.5 per cent aerial duel success needs drastic improvement.

Spurs have big striker problem

This is not to say that Solanke is solely to blame for Spurs’ profligacy.

It could be argued, in fact, that all of Tottenham’s striking options have major question marks hanging over their heads. Richarlison has blown hot and cold too frequently, while Randal Kolo Muani has been poor and will leave regardless at the end of the campaign.

Mathys Tel is understandably frustrated with his limited opportunities, but when he has played, he hasn’t hinted that he can solve the club’s scoring problems.

It’s clear, then, that a refresh is required. The only problem is that this will depend on the league they will be playing in next season, making their final matches all the more crucial.