Jose Mourinho might not have taken a shine to Juan Foyth during their time together at Tottenham Hotspur but, in many ways, the adaptable Argentina international is a manager’s dream.
Foyth has flitted comfortably between right-back and centre-half throughout his young career. And, during a loan spell at Villarreal, the Spurs stopper appears to have added another string to his bow.
22-year-old Foyth was tasked with filling a central midfield void as an injury-hit Villarreal travelled to SD Leioa for a Copa del Rey first round clash on Wednesday night.
And Mourinho himself would have been impressed by the way Foyth stuck to his task diligently, maintaining possession effectively while providing plenty of defensive cover.
“Replacing (Vicente) Iborra or (Francois) Coquelin is complicated because they are two high-level players, but the coach – Unai Emery – explained well what he wanted from me and what I had to do,” Foyth reflected after a comfortable 6-0 win, as reported by El Desmarque.
“With the help of my teammates, everything was easier.”
Former Arsenal, Sevilla and PSG coach Emery was more than happy with the way Foyth stepped up in an unfamiliar role, praising his performance at full-time.
Then again, Tottenham’s £9 million forgotten man was hardly stretched against third-tier opposition.
This weekend’s La Liga clash with an admittedly-struggling Osasuna side should provide a sterner test of Foyth’s versatility, if the South American is picked to start again at El Sadar.
Foyth has played just four minutes of La Liga football so far, with most of his opportunities coming in cup competitions.
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