Tottenham face a midfield selection dilemma for Newcastle and beyond
Over the course of this season, Ange Postecoglou has fielded 19 different combinations in central midfield.
A lot of that is down to injuries, suspensions and the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), but even in recent weeks, having appeared to have settled again on the early-season three of Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr and James Maddison, Postecoglou has been tweaking with the formula — both in-game and from the start. In Spurs’ last four matches, Postecoglou has substituted all three of his starting central midfielders, while at least two, more often than not three, have gone off in all 10 of the games since Maddison returned to the side.
In recent weeks, Postecoglou opted to start with Bissouma, Sarr and Maddison against Luton Townand Nottingham Forest, swapping in Rodrigo Bentancurfor Sarr, who has been managing a back issue, for the game in between against West Ham.
But on Sunday, sensing the need to freshen things up early, Postecoglou hooked both Bissouma and Sarr at half-time, and on came Pierre-Emile Hojbjergand Bentancur (Spurs also swapped two of their central midfielders at half-time in January’s win over Brentford, Oliver Skippand Bentancur being replaced by Hojbjerg and Brennan Johnson). Hojbjerg and Bentancur were both very impressive, helping to turn the game back in Spurs’ favour in what was ultimately a comfortable 3-1 win.
All of which leaves Postecoglou with a welcome dilemma: who to pick in midfield on Saturday away at Newcastle United?
The first thing to say is that this dilemma really is a very encouraging development. As Postecoglou said after the Forest win of his half-time double change: “It wasn’t anything Biss or Pape did. I just thought, I have the luxury of a strong squad now which I didn’t for the middle part of the year and I thought we needed some energy and legs in the midfield for the second half because I could see Forest were working really hard to maintain their grip on the game.”
He added: “I thought Pierre and Roddy (Bentancur) were outstanding in the energy they brought and the quality they brought in the second half.”
If we add Dejan Kulusevski, who played much of the middle part of the season in midfield, and Giovani Lo Celsoto Hojbjerg and Bentancur then Postecoglou has seven players to pick from for those three midfield spots. And that’s not including Oliver Skipp, who has done little wrong when called upon this season, but currently can’t even make matchday squads.
Maddison is certain to start against Newcastle assuming he’s fit (he’s not been benched for a league game all season) but the other two places appear up for grabs. Though Postecoglou has only not started one of Sarr and Bissouma in the league due to suspensions, injuries or fitness issues. The expectation then is that one of them will start.
Based on the opposition, Sarr would appear especially well-suited to this game. Newcastle’s midfield without Joelinton, and most likely Joe Willock, really struggle against two things: physicality and players who can find spaces in between the lines. Sarr’s dynamism and intelligence should make him perfect for Saturday in that case, and potentially be a nightmare for Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaffand Elliot Anderson. Kulusevski would also be well suited to exploiting the spaces Newcastle’s midfielders leave, but he’s not started in midfield since Maddison’s return and Postecoglou starting them both in a tough away game is unlikely.
That leaves the No 6 position available, which means we can rule out Kulusevski and Lo Celso. Bissouma is the usual pick there, but Bentancur and Hojbjerg have also played that position this season.
The No 6 role is crucial to how Postecoglou’s Tottenhamplay. As the below graphic shows — and this passes the eye test too — Spurs’ way of playing is based on deep build-up and dominating possession — working the ball through the thirds to attack in a far more considered manner than last season.
Looking at the individual player numbers, it’s easy to see why Bissouma is trusted to play as Postecoglou’s No 6. The below graphic from smarterscout, which measures an individual’s ability in specific metrics out of 99 relative to other players in their position, shows how good he is at carrying the ball (carry and dribble volume, 90 out of 99) and keeping it (ball retention ability, 84 out of 99), normally with short passes (link-up play volume, 80 out of 99). He is also defensively very active (disrupting opposition moves, 79 out of 99), the other key element of playing this position — although he has been caught out on occasion in the last few weeks, notably for Luton’s goal in Spurs’ 2-1 win at the end of March.
For a direct comparison, we can also look at the numbers from the minutes played by Bentancur and Hojbjerg as a No 6 this season.
Bentancur has played fewer games in the position so is harder to analyse, but it’s clear from the graphic below that he offers a lot more going forward (as he demonstrated for his assist for Pedro Porroagainst Forest on Sunday). His ball-retention ability though is a lot worse (18 out of 99) than Bissouma’s (84 out of 99) and he’s less effective defensively.
Hojbjerg, meanwhile, is a lot more likely to play the ball forward than Bissouma (progressive passing of 72 out of 99 compared to 18 out of 99) but is also more prone to losing it, with a ball retention of 48 out of 99, and he’s not as good defensively.
Playing the No 6 role for Postecoglou’s Spurs is a real high-wire act, and there have been times this season when Hojbjerg has looked uncomfortable doing it. Against Manchester Cityin the FA Cuphe very nearly gifted Kevin De Bruynea goal when losing the ball in his own area, and there were some nervy moments against Evertonin February as well. Against Newcastle, the front three of Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnesand Alexander Isakwill try and apply pressure to whoever’s playing No 6, and it’s questionable whether Hojbjerg will be able to withstand that.
Hojbjerg has also tended to be more effective when coming off the bench than starting games this season and so it might make sense to have him as a substitute again. He’s certainly used to that super-sub role, having done it in 24 of his 30 Premier Leagueappearances this season. That tally of 30 league appearances is, incidentally, the most of any Spurs outfielder this season.
As for Bentancur, there’d certainly be no drop-off in quality if it were to be him rather than Bissouma in the No 6 position. And that’s a great position for Postecoglou to be in, knowing that if he needs to tweak things he can do so very easily. And at the risk of undercutting the whole premise of this article, with five subs now and far more scope for in-game changes, the make-up of the starting XI isn’t quite the be-all and end-all it once was.
Having these decisions to make will also be envied hugely by Newcastle, who are still ravaged by injuries — as Spurs were for a chunk of the season.
For Saturday, and they hope for the rest of the season, Tottenham are having selection dilemmas that felt unimaginable not that long ago. But Postecoglou still needs to get them right — Spurs have only had one half-time lead in 2024, and not all opponents can be blown away in the second half like Forest and Luton were in the team’s previous two wins.
https://theathletic.com/5404916/2024/04/11/tottenham-midfield-bentancur-bissouma-hojbjerg/
Tottenham face a midfield selection dilemma for Newcastle and beyond
Over the course of this season, Ange Postecoglou has fielded 19 different combinations in central midfield.
A lot of that is down to injuries, suspensions and the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), but even in recent weeks, having appeared to have settled again on the early-season three of Yves Bissouma, Pape Matar Sarr and James Maddison, Postecoglou has been tweaking with the formula — both in-game and from the start. In Spurs’ last four matches, Postecoglou has substituted all three of his starting central midfielders, while at least two, more often than not three, have gone off in all 10 of the games since Maddison returned to the side.
In recent weeks, Postecoglou opted to start with Bissouma, Sarr and Maddison against Luton Townand Nottingham Forest, swapping in Rodrigo Bentancurfor Sarr, who has been managing a back issue, for the game in between against West Ham.
But on Sunday, sensing the need to freshen things up early, Postecoglou hooked both Bissouma and Sarr at half-time, and on came Pierre-Emile Hojbjergand Bentancur (Spurs also swapped two of their central midfielders at half-time in January’s win over Brentford, Oliver Skippand Bentancur being replaced by Hojbjerg and Brennan Johnson). Hojbjerg and Bentancur were both very impressive, helping to turn the game back in Spurs’ favour in what was ultimately a comfortable 3-1 win.
All of which leaves Postecoglou with a welcome dilemma: who to pick in midfield on Saturday away at Newcastle United?
The first thing to say is that this dilemma really is a very encouraging development. As Postecoglou said after the Forest win of his half-time double change: “It wasn’t anything Biss or Pape did. I just thought, I have the luxury of a strong squad now which I didn’t for the middle part of the year and I thought we needed some energy and legs in the midfield for the second half because I could see Forest were working really hard to maintain their grip on the game.”
He added: “I thought Pierre and Roddy (Bentancur) were outstanding in the energy they brought and the quality they brought in the second half.”
If we add Dejan Kulusevski, who played much of the middle part of the season in midfield, and Giovani Lo Celsoto Hojbjerg and Bentancur then Postecoglou has seven players to pick from for those three midfield spots. And that’s not including Oliver Skipp, who has done little wrong when called upon this season, but currently can’t even make matchday squads.
Maddison is certain to start against Newcastle assuming he’s fit (he’s not been benched for a league game all season) but the other two places appear up for grabs. Though Postecoglou has only not started one of Sarr and Bissouma in the league due to suspensions, injuries or fitness issues. The expectation then is that one of them will start.
Based on the opposition, Sarr would appear especially well-suited to this game. Newcastle’s midfield without Joelinton, and most likely Joe Willock, really struggle against two things: physicality and players who can find spaces in between the lines. Sarr’s dynamism and intelligence should make him perfect for Saturday in that case, and potentially be a nightmare for Bruno Guimaraes, Sean Longstaffand Elliot Anderson. Kulusevski would also be well suited to exploiting the spaces Newcastle’s midfielders leave, but he’s not started in midfield since Maddison’s return and Postecoglou starting them both in a tough away game is unlikely.
That leaves the No 6 position available, which means we can rule out Kulusevski and Lo Celso. Bissouma is the usual pick there, but Bentancur and Hojbjerg have also played that position this season.
The No 6 role is crucial to how Postecoglou’s Tottenhamplay. As the below graphic shows — and this passes the eye test too — Spurs’ way of playing is based on deep build-up and dominating possession — working the ball through the thirds to attack in a far more considered manner than last season.
Looking at the individual player numbers, it’s easy to see why Bissouma is trusted to play as Postecoglou’s No 6. The below graphic from smarterscout, which measures an individual’s ability in specific metrics out of 99 relative to other players in their position, shows how good he is at carrying the ball (carry and dribble volume, 90 out of 99) and keeping it (ball retention ability, 84 out of 99), normally with short passes (link-up play volume, 80 out of 99). He is also defensively very active (disrupting opposition moves, 79 out of 99), the other key element of playing this position — although he has been caught out on occasion in the last few weeks, notably for Luton’s goal in Spurs’ 2-1 win at the end of March.
For a direct comparison, we can also look at the numbers from the minutes played by Bentancur and Hojbjerg as a No 6 this season.
Bentancur has played fewer games in the position so is harder to analyse, but it’s clear from the graphic below that he offers a lot more going forward (as he demonstrated for his assist for Pedro Porroagainst Forest on Sunday). His ball-retention ability though is a lot worse (18 out of 99) than Bissouma’s (84 out of 99) and he’s less effective defensively.
Hojbjerg, meanwhile, is a lot more likely to play the ball forward than Bissouma (progressive passing of 72 out of 99 compared to 18 out of 99) but is also more prone to losing it, with a ball retention of 48 out of 99, and he’s not as good defensively.
Playing the No 6 role for Postecoglou’s Spurs is a real high-wire act, and there have been times this season when Hojbjerg has looked uncomfortable doing it. Against Manchester Cityin the FA Cuphe very nearly gifted Kevin De Bruynea goal when losing the ball in his own area, and there were some nervy moments against Evertonin February as well. Against Newcastle, the front three of Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnesand Alexander Isakwill try and apply pressure to whoever’s playing No 6, and it’s questionable whether Hojbjerg will be able to withstand that.
Hojbjerg has also tended to be more effective when coming off the bench than starting games this season and so it might make sense to have him as a substitute again. He’s certainly used to that super-sub role, having done it in 24 of his 30 Premier Leagueappearances this season. That tally of 30 league appearances is, incidentally, the most of any Spurs outfielder this season.
As for Bentancur, there’d certainly be no drop-off in quality if it were to be him rather than Bissouma in the No 6 position. And that’s a great position for Postecoglou to be in, knowing that if he needs to tweak things he can do so very easily. And at the risk of undercutting the whole premise of this article, with five subs now and far more scope for in-game changes, the make-up of the starting XI isn’t quite the be-all and end-all it once was.
Having these decisions to make will also be envied hugely by Newcastle, who are still ravaged by injuries — as Spurs were for a chunk of the season.
For Saturday, and they hope for the rest of the season, Tottenham are having selection dilemmas that felt unimaginable not that long ago. But Postecoglou still needs to get them right — Spurs have only had one half-time lead in 2024, and not all opponents can be blown away in the second half like Forest and Luton were in the team’s previous two wins.
https://theathletic.com/5404916/2024/04/11/tottenham-midfield-bentancur-bissouma-hojbjerg/