Do Tottenham need to give their under utilised duo more chances?
Tottenham’s Vincent Janssen in action
Previous inconsistent performances for Newcastle indicate Moussa Sissoko’s struggles at Tottenham would suggest there is a very limited upside for the midfielder.
When it comes to teammates Vincent Janssen and Georges-Kevin N’Koudou, it is a different story.
The pair are both 22-years-old, and have only scratched the surface of what they are capable of in their career.
Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino is a tough boss to please, and has shown a ruthless nature at the club which has so far served him well.
This has seen him send Benjamin Stambouli and Clinton N’Jie packing after less than a year at the club, a warning to others who don’t succeed.
Yet with regard to Janssen and N’Koudou, he is making it too easy for them to fail.
Instead of getting substantial game time, Janssen is being given five minutes off the bench here and there, instead of 30 minutes, let alone a start.
N’Koudou has not played 90 minutes since signing for Spurs, with his highest total of minutes in a Premier League game coming in at 17 minutes in the 2-1 loss to Chelsea last November.
Obviously he must earn his opportunities, but sooner or later Pochettino needs to give the pair a fair chance.
This does not mean playing them with the second string in a cup competition, but instead mixing them in with the first team from the start.
Otherwise when they eventually get sold, and asked why it did not work out at Tottenham, they have a ready made and valid excuse that they did not get the playing time to show what they can do.
Instead of helping them succeed, the lack of playing time is increasing the pressure on the pair, hampering their confidence, and making it far too easy to fail.
The risk is, having reached March with the stakes higher than ever, it may already be too late for Pochettino to change course.
Tottenham’s Georges-Kevin Nkoudou on the substitutes bench
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