The headline news following the end of the window at Tottenham Hotspur has been the saga surrounding Richarlison. What is it with Spurs and their top scorers?
The leading scorer in 2024/25 had been Brennan Johnson, albeit with the Wales winger sold on in January, while Richarlison has been given the cold shoulders, even after leading the way in the scoring charts last season.
Omitted from Roberto De Zerbi‘s Premier League squad, the Brazilian had at one stage looked set to return to Everton as part of the Iliman Ndiaye deal, albeit with the latter man ultimately heading to Manchester City instead.
Alas, the 29-year-old is of no concern right now, ahead of the meeting with Nottingham Forest, with De Zerbi’s primary concern likely to be the make-up of his forward line in the striker’s absence.
What happened in Spurs’ most recent meeting with Nottingham Forest
To say that Spurs owe Forest one would be an understatement, having endured two wretched results against the Tricky Trees last season, both of which ended in a 3-0 loss for the Lilywhites.
In the most recent meeting back in March, Vitor Pereira was the man at the helm for the visitors, while the much-maligned Igor Tudor was steering an undoubtedly sinking ship in the home dugout.
A wretched run of form for Spurs had been somewhat eased by a positive performance and result against Atletico Madrid just a few days earlier, the Champions League offering some welcome respite from domestic action.
It was back to reality against Pereira’s men, with Igor Jesus heading home just before the break, before the hapless Guglielmo Vicario failed to keep out Morgan Gibbs-White’s effort on the hour mark, a cruel blow considering the Englishman had so nearly joined the club last summer.
A late third was added by Taiwo Awoniyi, and that was all she wrote for Tudor, the Croatian departing by ‘mutual consent’ just a week later after just 44 days in charge.
|
Spurs Starting XI vs Forest (22 March) |
|
|---|---|
|
Position |
Player |
|
GK |
Vicario |
|
RB |
Spence |
|
CB |
Danso |
|
CB |
Romero |
|
LB |
Van de Ven |
|
RM |
Porro |
|
CM |
Gray |
|
CM |
Sarr |
|
LM |
Tel |
|
ST |
Solanke |
|
ST |
Richarlison |
De Zerbi, having failed to win the opening two games of this season, will be hoping to avoid a similar fate as his predecessor. To do so, he needs to make changes.
Why Spurs must end Porro experiment vs Forest
If there is any reasoning behind this drab start to the campaign, it is that the former Marseille boss is still trying to bed in a wealth of new forwards, with attacking options having been particularly slim against both Brentford and Newcastle United.
That said, it doesn’t quite explain why De Zerbi felt the need to deploy Pedro Porro as part of the frontline last time out, even while resorting to that tactic in the latter stages of last term.
The Italian did have Mikey Moore in reserve, while one option might have been to shift Omar Marmoush over to the right, with Dominic Solanke through the middle.
Either way, the approach failed, with Porro failing to provide a single key pass, while completing just one of his four attempted crosses, having proven rather ineffective in that right-wing berth.
Let’s face it, that isn’t the best use of the Spaniard’s talent, with the World Cup winner arguably the “best right-back in the world” in his preferred position, in the view of his manager.
Shifting the 26-year-old back to full-back, in place of Archie Gray, may well help to ease Spurs’ early-season defensive woes, with there hopefully now new options to consider on the right flank.
De Zerbi could replace Porro with the new Richarlison
Even with Moore having been shipped out on loan, and with Richarlison exiled by De Zerbi, there does appear to be increased depth in the forward line following a frantic end to the window.
The return of Mohammed Kudus to the matchday squad has also bolstered the options on the right flank, although with the Ghanaian needing to be managed carefully following his spell on the sidelines, Tottenham’s Porro replacement could come in a different form.
Indeed, while he missed the defeat to Newcastle with his own injury issue, the expectation is that new man Savio should be ready to go this time around, having sparkled on debut against Charlton Athletic.
The 22-year-old can operate off the left, as he did regularly for Girona previously, but that Carabao Cup outing showcased what he offers on the right, twice cutting in to both score and register an assist in that thumping 5-1 win.
He’s lightning quick and a supreme dribbler, having even ranked first in the division during his time in LaLiga in terms of total successful dribbles completed across 2023/24.
The biggest concern, however, is as to whether he is worth the investment, perhaps mirroring his compatriot, Richarlison, as another expensive gamble for the north London side.
In Richarlison’s case, eyebrows were raised at the £60m fee dished out to sign him back in 2022, with it fair to say the former Everton man hasn’t lived up to the billing, scoring just 27 league goals in his four full seasons at the club.
Savio, having waited a year to make the move, will share his fellow Brazilian’s eagerness to succeed at N17, but whether he really is the man to make the difference in the final third remains to be seen.
Signed for an initial fee of £75m, rising to £85m, the ex-Manchester City speedster has scored just two goals in 53 Premier League appearances to date, a frustrating figure due to his lack of end product.
Such a price tag too will weigh heavy on his shoulders too, just as it has for Richarlison, with supporters and ENIC likely to expect an immediate return on their investment.
Hopefully, Saturday’s trip to the City Ground will mark the perfect way for Savio to properly hit the ground running on that troublesome right flank.
