Tottenham head into the international break with a 2-0 defeat to Fulham weighing on their minds, marking their 15th Premier League loss and leaving them as low as 14th in the table. With all other competitions out of reach, the Europa League remains their only chance at silverware this season. Following Sunday’s defeat, Tottenham faced criticism, with Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney singling out one player for an incredibly sluggish performance.
Ange Postecoglou is under the threat of being sacked as the negativity around Spurs increasing more day by day. Tottenham fans have been complaining more due the team’s inconsistency.
Reviewing Tottenham’s latest defeat against Fulham, Wayne Rooney singled out Djed Spence for criticism.
Djed Spence showed promise but looks weak at times
Spurs have repeatedly suffered unfortunate results and tend to freeze when under pressure, despite showing flashes of brilliant football. One major problem is their inconsistency in defense.
Watching on, Wayne Rooney started by indicating that he liked Djed Spence’s positioning leading up to Ryan Sessegnon’s second goal but then went on to question Spence’s reasoning as to why he switched off in the first instance, failing to track Sessegnon’s run, thus forcing Ben Davies into marking him rather ineffectively, something that was later punished as the ball went into the back of the net.
The Manchester United legend speaking on BBC Match of the Day, expressed hid disappointment in Spence
“I think on this goal as well, if you look at Djed Spence and his positioning, he’s actually in a good position. Here, Sessegnon is out wide so he knows where he is, he can see him but for some reason, he closes his body off and switches off so he doesn’t see him.”
“So, I think that was a theme all game with Tottenham. There was no reaction to losing the ball, there was no energy, there was no fight, no desire and if the manager has made changes and brought players in to try and fight for the players when they do come into the squad for the Europa League if he’s saying the league is done, they have to do better.”
Ange Postecoglou will be most frustrated that Djed Spence’s error against Fulham resulted from a lack of effort rather than an isolated defensive mistake.
In recent weeks, Postecoglou had already urged Spence to stay committed and continue working hard, emphasising the need for consistency and a strong mentality.
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While Spence has delivered steady performances lately, his place in the team remains uncertain. As Wayne Rooney pointed out, any signs of complacency could cost him his spot if he fails to maintain his intensity. The focus should be 100% at winning the Europa League.