‘That is the problem’: Glenn Hoddle says Spurs ace is simply being played in the wrong position

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Speaking on his podcast, Glenn Hoddle has claimed that Matt Doherty is being played in the wrong position at Tottenham Hotspur.

The defender was brought in this summer from Wolves, where he played as a wing-back in Nuno Espirito Santo’s patented five-at-the-back system.

However, the Irishman is been playing in more of a flat back four this season, and it’s fair to say that he hasn’t looked as good as he did at Wolves, something Hoddle thinks is down to his position change.

“Well, we saw him play extremely well for Wolves, but when he first went to Tottenham I thought ‘well, they must be playing a back three.’ I think Matt Doherty in a wing-back position, that’s his position. I think he finds it hard in a back four, and I really do feel that that is the problem,” Hoddle said.

“It’s a slight adjustment from a wing-back to a full-back, you have to be on the cover a bit more and you have to defend a bit deeper, and he’s not as advanced as he would have been when he played for Wolves.”

It’s hard to really argue with Hoddle here.

You don’t become a bad player overnight, but Doherty is quite clearly not suited to being a full-back.

It’s no coincidence that he was a Championship player before playing under Nuno at Wolves, and when he was given the chance to play as a wing-back, he showed that he was Premier League quality.

If Mourinho wants to get the best out of Doherty, he may want to change things up a bit.