After a tough start to the season that saw them drop points against Leicester City, Arsenal and Newcastle United, there is now an undeniable air of positivity around Tottenham Hotspur.
Ange Postecoglou’s side have turned their fortunes around with four wins on the bounce, and following their emphatic away victory against Manchester United on Sunday, they look ready to take on anyone.
The game saw Brennan Johnson and Dominic Solanke continue their good form in front of goal, although as impressive as the pair have been in the last few weeks, they are being outscored by a former Spurs flop who was sold for a pittance in the summer.
Johnson and Solanke’s impressive form
While the mood around Tottenham is a positive one at the moment, and for a good reason, it certainly wasn’t a couple of weeks ago when Johnson felt he had to deactivate his Instagram account due to the amount of abuse he was receiving from fans over his perceived lack of form.
It wasn’t a nice situation, but where many players would understandably crumple under pressure, the Welshman pushed ahead and has answered his critics on the pitch, scoring in four games on the bounce.
He hasn’t just scored the fourth in a 4-0 thrashing, either; he has scored important goals: the winner against Coventry City, the opener against Qarabağ when the team were down to ten men, and the opener at Old Trafford.
In short, the former Nottingham Forest ace has become one of the club’s most important players over the last fortnight or so and now looks as much, if not more, of a goal threat than the club’s £65m striker, Solanke.
That said, while the former Bournemouth star had a slow start to life in North London this season, failing to score in his first three games, like Johnson, he has found his footing in the last couple of weeks.
The Englishman opened his account with a goal against Brentford, followed that up with another against Qarabağ, and finally against United on Sunday.
Overall, while Johnson and Solanke endured tough starts to the season, they are on fire now, although they are being outscored by a player sold by the club in the summer.
Giovani Lo Celso’s recent form
Yes, the former Spurs flop in question is Giovani Lo Celso, who initially joined the club on loan in the summer of 2019 before completing a permanent move the following summer, which cost the club around £42.3m, including his loan fee.
There was plenty of excitement around the Argentine when he arrived in England, but it would be fair to say that he ultimately underwhelmed in N17.
Indeed, he made just 108 appearances for the club, scoring ten goals, providing eight assists and going on loan to Villarreal for a season and a half between January 2022 and June 2023.
Where Are They Now
Your star player or biggest flop has left the club but what are they doing in the present day? This article is part of Football FanCast’s Where Are They Now series.
After playing just 597 minutes last season, the two-time Copa América winner was finally sold on to former club Real Betis for a fee said to be as low as £8.4m, and since then, he has looked like a player reborn and would be the top goalscorer in Spurs’ squad had he stayed.
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Lo Celso vs Johnson & Solanke in 24/25 |
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|---|---|---|---|
|
Player |
|||
|
Appearances |
5 |
8 |
6 |
|
Minutes |
361′ |
544′ |
505′ |
|
Goals |
5 |
4 |
3 |
|
Assists |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Goal Involvements per Match |
1 |
0.50 |
0.66 |
|
Minutes per Goal Involvement |
72.2′ |
136′ |
126.25′ |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt |
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In just five appearances for Los Verdiblancos, the 28-year-old “leader”, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, has scored five goals, including a brace in his first start for the club against Getafe, and his underlying numbers are just as impressive.
Moreover, according to FBref, which compares players in similar roles across Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, the former Tottenham ace sits in the top 1% of attacking midfielders and wingers for non-penalty goals, attempted passes, progressive passes and tackles, the top 2% for pass completion, the top 3% for shot-creating actions and the top 6% for expected assists, all per 90.
Ultimately, given his lack of impact last season and his uptick in form this year, selling Lo Celso in the summer was probably the right decision for all parties involved. Still, there must be a part of Postecoglou wondering why he couldn’t have shown this goalscoring touch for him.