Back to square one for Tottenham Hotspur.
If Ange Postecoglou ever wanted to know what Tottenham was all about, well, he got his answer loud and clear against Newcastle United on Saturday.
Spurs went into that match sitting fourth in the Premier League table, with a game in hand, and in with a chance of moving clear of fifth-placed Aston Villa.
On paper, going to St James’ Park is pretty difficult, and it wasn’t so long ago that they were finishing in the Champions League places themselves.
But a lot has changed for Newcastle since then, including Eddie Howe being forced to play a depleted team because of injuries, with Jacob Murphy at right-back.
Despite that, Tottenham were smashed 4-0, with not a single player from the away side able to hold their head up high in a respectable way.
Whilst many concentrated on the defensive errors during the game, Alan Shearer was pretty critical of Timo Werner.
The former Chelsea man is on loan at the club from RB Leipzig, but he endured a game for forget in front of goal.
The Premier League’s all-time leading goalscorer suggested that Werner’s finishing in front of goal was ‘really poor’, but was also keen to point out that it has been ‘for a long time’ now, as he told Premier League Productions (13/04/24 at 1:25 pm).
Newcastle United 4-0 Tottenham Hotspur
“He has a long time to look at that, it has come in from a long way to adjust your body to head it or volley it,” said Shearer about Werner’s volley ballooning over the bar at 0-0.
“Yet, when the ball comes in, he isn’t ready at all. That’s the two chances he had. He had to hit the target at least. That’s no surprise because his finishing is really poor and it has been for a long time.”
Should Tottenham sign Timo Werner in the summer?
A decision will need to be made on Werner’s future sooner than later and you feel you know the answer.
From the fans’ perspective, many would probably opt against signing the £165k-a-week star.
Spurs fans know how Daniel Levy operates. If he puts money on the table for the German, then there will be little left for another attacker.
And you could argue that, come the summer transfer window, that out-and-out striker is needed by Spurs.
At the end of the day, they still haven’t replaced Harry Kane, even if they have scored freely without his services this season.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
