The Tottenham Hotspur ace didn’t have his best game against Manchester City on Saturday.
Tony Cascarino criticised Harry Winks’ display for Tottenham against Manchester City on Saturday, when writing his column for the Times, suggesting that the midfielder made his side’s job against the champions even harder than it already was.
Winks, 23, has been a revelation for Spurs since bursting onto the scene a couple of years ago, and he was a vitally important player for them last season, making 41 appearances in all competitions for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
The England international was far from his best for Tottenham against City at the weekend, however, and he was replaced in the 56th minute by Lucas Moura.
And Cascarino criticised Spurs midfielder Winks for his failure to contribute to the ‘ugly side of the game’, when writing his regular column for the Times:
“It is very difficult playing against Manchester City and even harder when you have a midfielder that cannot do the ugly side of the game well. Harry Winks could not keep track of Kevin De Bruyne on Saturday. It is fine getting on the ball, looking forward and finding a pass, but the problem is the game has evolved and being good without the ball is a big part of successful teams now.
He went on to say:
“If Winks cannot do that, he won’t become a regular for Tottenham Hotspur. He was substituted on Saturday — not because he gave the ball away but because he was chasing shadows.”
Cascarino’s comments do seem to be a little harsh in truth. It is a fair comment that Winks quite simply couldn’t deal with Kevin De Bruyne, but when the Belgian is on, there are not too many players who can cope with him.
The 23-year-old Tottenham man is a truly great midfielder, and he has an exciting future ahead of him. Saturday’s clash with City, however, will be a real learning curve for him.
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