Tottenham Hotspur are in a bit of a pickle.
Last season, Ange Postecoglou's side finished 17th in the Premier League, but the gap between them and the drop zone was so great that relegation was never really on the cards.
That's all changed now. Spurs are 16th in the standings with 11 games left, and in-form West Ham United are fighting tooth and nail to escape from the bottom three, just one defeat from six and trailing Igor Tudor's side by only four points.
The club need to make a change, and there is no time to waste. In defence, Spurs are porous, and while Cristian Romero still has two matches of suspension to serve, Tudor must seriously consider dropping Radu Dragusin.
Why Spurs need to part with Radu Dragusin
Dragusin, 24, has suffered in the two years he has been at Tottenham. The Romanian international joined from Genoa for a £27m fee midway through Postecoglou's first season, welcomed to combat an injury crisis across the rearguard.
However, he struggled for form before rupturing his ACL against Elfsborg one year ago - that kept him out until the final days of December.
Tottenham's Radu Dragusin
Culpable for a number of mistakes since reentering the fray, Dragusin isn't doing the basics correctly. Furthermore, he's only won 33% of his ground duels across six Premier League matches this season. Not the largest sample size, but equally, a shocking success rate for a centre-back in a team battling against relegation.
Twice the top-knotted defender has made a direct error leading to a goal, and it's for this reason that Tudor might want to drop him, especially when Romero returns and Kevin Danso is back from injury.
Premier League 25/26 - Most Errors Leading to Goal
Club
Aston Villa
Tottenham
Fulham
Wolves
Burnley
Indeed, Spurs are one of the most error-prone sides in the Premier League, and Dragusin has hardly eased that concern since being drafted in.
Some would argue that Dragusin is being scapegoated. After all, Spurs' backline has been shorn of depth, and those further up the field have flattered to deceive too.
Cherki-Dragusin-Spurs-Man-City
There's one star, in fact, who has entered the fray at a similar time as Dragusin, and he may even be operating at a lower level right now.
Spurs star is already making Dragusin look good
In January, Tottenham had a whole host of problems that they needed to overcome. However, key issues were not addressed, and Conor Gallagher was the statement signing, joining from Atletico Madrid for a £35m fee.
Gallagher-Spurs
Gallagher is a workhorse with a wealth of experience in the Premier League and out in Spain. Moreover, he is a 22-cap England international.
Hailed as being "like a machine" in midfield by former Chelsea teammate Moises Caicedo, Gallagher has showcased that strength down N17, recovering 4.8 balls per game. However, he's yet to create a big chance, and despite this, has lost the ball 10.5 times per match.
A ball recovery is defined by the number of loose balls recovered by a player.
He wins duels and zips about, but there's been a distinct lack of creative quality from the 25-year-old thus far in 2026, and it's proving a problem in the centre of the park, especially with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski still sidelined through injury.
While Dragusin has been something of a problem of late, Gallagher is unable to fulfil the duties he has been designated since the start of the calendar year, and with Pedro Porro returning from injury, the exciting Archie Gray may be preferable in the middle of the park.
Dragusin is struggling, but Gallagher is a seasoned Premier League star who was signed to turn things around for Tottenham. However, his lack of quality and confidence on the ball right now is startling, and Tudor is going to have to make a tough choice soon if he wants to pick the perfect team to finally make headway in the table.
Conor Gallagher for Tottenham
Currently, Gallagher hasn't clicked into the Spurs system, and if Tudor wants to persist with his three-man backline, he might want to make the bold call to drop the January recruit.
Tottenham need more variation in the centre of the park, and Gallagher looks a little stale, yet to offer the creative solution that the club so desperately needed when they headed into the winter transfer window.
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