Player Watch : Vincent Janssen

[TEESSIDE1]

Regardless of whether we as fans are or are not still prepared to give him a chance to come good (and obviously after a performance like today's, there are going to be fewer and fewer people in the He Could Still Make It camp), the only opinion that really matters is Pochettino's... and sadly for Janssen it's hard not to imagine that his goose is well and truly cooked with Poch after the early substitution today. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if we never saw him on the pitch in a Spurs shirt again; get the feeling that Poch is done with him already.

He's an instinctive striker a bit like Defoe in that he shoots on the spot regardless of whether it's a good idea or not. If it goes in great but if it goes high and wide then they get berated for wasting the opportunity, something you can't afford to do at the top of the EPL.

Defoe has proven himself to be a very good goal scorer but he needs to be the focal point and teams have to play to his strengths. Janssen's problem is that he's surrounded by players whom at this stage are way better than him and his basic skill set doesn't wash in the EPL. This was highlighted early on this season when him and Lamela were 2 on 1 on the edge of the opposition box and anyone with a ounce of common sense would have passed to the unmarked Lamela whom was clean through on goal. But no, Janssen didn't look up despite Lamela screaming for him to pass and put the ball in row Z. I think we let him off as he was eager to score but this approach hasn't changed and it's now becoming clear that he's way out of his depth. Plus, unlike Sunderland (Defoe) we play an attractive brand of football and are a scary opposition for every other team in the EPL... we need players to step in and be able to play this brand of football... Janssen to date hasn't been able to do this and it's been to his and the teams detriment.

 

[Mikegold]

Bad line up for him today, who's gonna set him up? Trippier and that's it and most of our play was down the left
Son is the greediest player we have pretty much, still like him but he likes a goal
Sissoko he's just a battering ram and I like him too but he don't assist or score but he has uses
Idk Jansen is on a hiding to nothing most games
I like a lot of what he gives us and I think given game time he's fine cover for our Harry

Sissoko has 5 assists I think since start of Dec? (Just off the top of my head)

 

[SEANSPURS1975]

Been absolutely useless for us so far. Maybe deserves more time because he is still young, but it certainly doesn't look good. We are basically in the same position as last season. No proper back up or competition for Kane (Son is not a striker!) Maybe after yet another poor performance tonight Pochettino will try and get something done this window...

 

[bomberH]

As poor as he was today, there's a strong possibility he would've played better had Eriksen, Alli, Lamela, Dembele and even Kane been playing alongside him. We hardly created any chances so it's unfair to judge him on this particular performance. But yes, he doesn't look anywhere near sharp enough for this level at the moment. A loan may be an option for next season but not January, unless we buy a top striker, which we probably won't because you don't often get a top signing in January.

How's our luck signing a brilliant Spanish striker with no sell on value who turns out to be incompatible with the PL, then signing a sought after, full international youngster who finished top of the scoring charts in Holland, who also turns out to be not so good here. We're due a superstar. I'm still really hoping he comes good here though. He's quite consistent for Holland and scored over 20 in 4 months last year in the latter half of the Dutch league, so he obviously has something about him, I just hope that something shows itself here soon!

 

[Sid Tottenham]

Sissoko has 5 assists I think since start of Dec? (Just off the top of my head)

Yeah not knocking him at all I like him
Jansens gonna be ok the trouble he/we have is he needs a run in the side to get his game together and that just ain't gonna happen
Imo
When I said he don't assist im going by his career stats and I don't think he's a prodigious assister
Off the top of my head could be wrong

 

[SpursTillIDie1882]

Shearer explained theissue well, pjlling bzack instead of getting in the box

 

[Davo99]

He does look very slow and sluggish though.

 

[cwhite02]

Shearer explained theissue well, pjlling bzack instead of getting in the box

It's what I've thought for a while. He's not missing loads of chances, he's not getting into the positions to score them, that being the problem.

 

[muppetman]

He does look very slow and sluggish though.

You say that but there was a moment where he got into a footrace with one of their defenders and burned him for pace, made it to the ball before it went out for a goal kick and turned it back in.

I think it's a lack of confidence/determination/fitness/something that is making him appear sluggish rather than that he is actually slow.

 

[Ribble]

I feel like someone needs to get him by the shoulders and tell him that he isn't allowed to move down the pitch or face our goal when we have the ball. He's not looking likely to score because he's always going the wrong way! Needs to be playing more in the same style as Kane, then maybe we would actually see him get chances to score rather than the ball bouncing backwards of him.

 

[SpursDave88]

Bad line up for him today, who's gonna set him up? Trippier and that's it and most of our play was down the left
Son is the greediest player we have pretty much, still like him but he likes a goal
Sissoko he's just a battering ram and I like him too but he don't assist or score but he has uses
Idk Jansen is on a hiding to nothing most games
I like a lot of what he gives us and I think given game time he's fine cover for our Harry

I'm sorry, not sure how you can blame the other players, when we score goals for fun without him in the side and got two today after he went off. The common denominator is we score goals when he does't play but we don't score goals when he plays.

 

[StartingPrice]

What I saw from Janssen against Villa was a player who I think even his biggest detractors would admit has played better against better clubs (even if he hasn't scored), and looked totally dreadful today. Generally, early in the season the comments were often that he played well, linked up well, got some good assists, but isn't scoring and that is his main job. Today he never even looked remotely like scoring - and Villa are pretty modest opposition these days - and the rest of his play was poor too.

I see a lot of folk are quoting Shearer, but I think I'd disagree with him - at least partially. I don't think Janssen is consciously trying to avoid the penalty area. It looked to me more like he was constantly moving towards the ball in a desperate need to try to do something. Unfortunately, by doing that he is actually getting away from the positions where he might do something. But the bottom dollar is that his confidence looks totally shot now, whereas as it didn't earlier in the season.

that's not my crew...we wear pointy peasant hats!

 

[Sid Tottenham]

I'm sorry, not sure how you can blame the other players, when we score goals for fun without him in the side and got two today after he went off. The common denominator is we score goals when he does't play but we don't score goals when he plays.

Ok I'm not blaming other players
We scored when we took off a defender (Toby) and replaced him with a forward (GKN) I said the line up wasn't great for him personally, I think I stand by that.
If you disagree that's fine just an opinion

 

[DanielJohnCosta]

Ok I'm not blaming other players
We scored when we took off a defender (Toby) and replaced him with a forward (GKN) I said the line up wasn't great for him personally, I think I stand by that.
If you disagree that's fine just an opinion

regardless of the line up playing to his benefit, not being to technically dribble the ball, play with his feet is a player issue

 

[TottenhamMattSpur]

Loan him to a premiership club for the rest of this season. Someone that'll play him every week.
He looks like he needs to play 90 minutes every week.

 

[SpursDave88]

I can't see any other club in this league wanting him. He is one of the least competent footballers I have seen in a Spurs shirt and that is really saying something since I've been a season ticket holder since '99. He literally seems to have no ability whatsoever.

 

[Sid Tottenham]

Yeah was probably the worst I've seen him 1st half tbh, he was awful, but then who was good?
He started the 2nd ok and then got hooked idk, we won meh
I feel for the guy I think there's a player there,
again I could be wrong

 

[Ossie85]

Loan him to a premiership club for the rest of this season. Someone that'll play him every week.
He looks like he needs to play 90 minutes every week.

No club in the premier would play Janssen 90 minutes every week.

It would have to be the championship, and I still have some doubts on whether he would start

 

[bat-chain]

I feel it is important also to remember that at different times over the last 5 years I have read Spurs fans saying/typing the following:

Kyle Walker is brainless
Danny Rose is awful
Vertonghen was roasted for a time pre Pochettino
Dier will never be any good as a holding midfielder
Dembele is not what's required, slow, holds on to the ball
Shouldn't bother with Alli from league onewhen we have player x.
Wanyama is not required (I was a big exponent of this one myself, thought he was a real poor player)
Lamela won't make it in the PL
Kane is championship level at best
I had somewhat given up on Son as had a few others
Sissoko, another player turning it round after a poor spell

We can go a bit further to Bale or just the other week when Pochettino was getting stick from a few.

It doesn't look good for VJ but but no one can say for certain anything yet, history shows us that.

 

[Ossie85]

I don't want to be that guy who told you so but I got absolutely slammed when I decided to download some matches of this lad when we were interested in him to see who he was. He was dog shite back then regardless of his record it was obvious who he was and the red flags were so obvious. Not saying i'm the greatest scout in the world but it was so obvious I don't understand how our scouting report could not have seen the player he was, he may come good but honestly I don't see how he has the quality to ever succeed here

Yeah, me too.
But since we signed him, I hoped he would come good. But I am quickly losing faith
I wanted Michy though, who hasn't done so well at chelsea either, so who knows