Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld was bizarrely left out of the North London derby.
Mauricio Pochettino dropping Toby Alderweireld for the North London derby may be a decision which ends up prompting the Belgian to quit the club.
Alderweireld’s future at Spurs was already finely balanced, with the defender refusing to sign a new contract so far.
In the summer he made clear he was unhappy at being dropped at the end of last season, with The Sun reporting Alderweireld said it was ‘unjustified’.
He has since been reintegrated into the Tottenham team, but being axed for the huge clash with Arsenal will make Alderweireld question everything.
This is what happened with Kyle Walker. The right-back’s decision to quit Spurs was sped up when he was dropped for the 2017 FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea.
Walker moved to Manchester City a few weeks later and hasn’t looked back.
Pochettino attempted to make it a changing of the guard moment this weekend, with Juan Foyth selected in Alderweireld’s place. It didn’t work.
The transfer window is just one month away, and the sharks will now be circling.
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