Pundit Paul Merson has hailed Tottenham Hotspur defender Destiny Udogie for proving that his display against Bukayo Saka wasn’t a fluke.
Tottenham’s left back position had become a concern after Danny Rose’s excellence under Mauricio Pochettino.
Both Ryan Sessegnon and Sergio Reguilon failed to live up to the hype and for as solid as Ben Davies is, he didn’t offer a dynamic attacking threat.
Spurs went down a different route in 2022, paying £15million to sign Destiny Udogie from Udinese.
Udogie was loaned straight back to the Italian club to continue his development in the hope that he would be ready to shine in the Premier League come 2023.
That theory has paid off with Udogie excelling for Tottenham, even earning praise from former Arsenal ace Paul Merson…
Tottenham talent Destiny Udogie hailed by Paul Merson
Merson has told Sportskeeda that he thinks Udogie is the most underrated player in the Premier League right now.
The pundit noted that he watched Udogie mark Bukayo Saka out of the game when Tottenham drew 2-2 at Arsenal earlier this season.
That came even after Udogie had been booked, signalling to Merson that the Italian is an ‘absolutely outstanding talent’.
Merson noted that Udogie is the ‘all-round package’ at left back, marrying his attacking qualities with his defensive play.
“I watched him earlier in the season and he got booked after five minutes when he was playing against Bukayo Saka. After that, the Arsenal wideman didn’t have a kick, which was an early indication that he would be a player. I thought it might have been a fluke, but Udogie has gone from strength to strength as the season has progressed – he’s an absolutely outstanding talent,” said Merson.
“There are a lot of full-backs who are good going forward but can’t really defend, but Udogie is an all-round package, making him one of the most exciting players in the world in his position. He’s come back from Udinese and really flourished and is getting all the accolades now, so people might say he’s not really underrated. I just feel like after what he’s done this season, he deserves a mention, so he tops my list,” he added.
Udogie recently signed a new contract at Tottenham and the hope is that he will continue to be a star player for many years to come.
Only 21 and just 17 games into his Premier League career, Udogie is far from the finished product but is already so impressive.
Tottenham appear to have struck an absolute masterstroke with the way in which they signed Udogie.
Waiting until 2023 to strike a deal may have seen Tottenham face increased competition and risk missing out.
Spurs were able to sign Udogie for a decent price and then continue his development in Italy, giving him some continuity before heading to North London.
Many Premier League clubs will now be very jealous of the move for Udogie, with Merson possibly one of them given Arsenal’s recent issues at left back.
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