What's new

Mousa Dembele – Tottenham’s Irreplaceable Enigma

Japhet

Well-Known Member
Aug 30, 2010
19,232
57,392
I'd give him the longer contract even though there would inevitably be diminishing returns. He's a unique footballer who can't be replaced like for like, and even if you get the odd 20 minutes out of him in a few years time, it's worth that now to keep him in the fold IMO.
 

TottenhamMattSpur

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
10,925
16,007
I'd give him the longer contract even though there would inevitably be diminishing returns. He's a unique footballer who can't be replaced like for like, and even if you get the odd 20 minutes out of him in a few years time, it's worth that now to keep him in the fold IMO.

When you think about it, it's also a reward for services rendered. He's been with us longer than most of our squad. He joined at the same time as Vertonghen in 2012 and has only played in 12 less games in that time. (from wiki and doesn't differentiate sub/full match)

If we gave him a 4 year deal that would take him up to 2022 which would be 10 years - bit like a testimonial really.
 

Japhet

Well-Known Member
Aug 30, 2010
19,232
57,392
When you think about it, it's also a reward for services rendered. He's been with us longer than most of our squad. He joined at the same time as Vertonghen in 2012 and has only played in 12 less games in that time. (from wiki and doesn't differentiate sub/full match)

If we gave him a 4 year deal that would take him up to 2022 which would be 10 years - bit like a testimonial really.


We might be right on the cusp of whether it makes economic sense to sell him. If his contract situation starts to drive the price down I can see it being much more sensible to offer him the longer contract regardless of his ability to see all of it through.
 

Johnny J

Not the Kiwi you need but the one you deserve
Aug 18, 2012
18,124
47,907
That works to his and our benefit a lot of the time though.
Whereas it is good sometimes to play the ball forward quickly, it can cut our own players out of the game as well as the opposition players. Stick it through quickly to Kane who is up top on his own with 3 markers and our nearest player is huffing to get out of our own half and catch up with play?
Or... get hold of the ball, protect it for a few seconds, let Dele and Sonny catch up with Kane, then give the ball to Erikson, who himself is now in the oppo's half of the centre circle, who himself can now play the pass to one of the other 3.

It's what was going so wrong against Fulham IMO, we had lost the ability to keep the ball in the middle of the pitch. Dembele regained control.
Dembele is great at ball retention. But slow build up is exactly what we don't need against teams that park the bus, which is most of them.
 
Top