Assessing Mathys Tel’s start to life at Tottenham – is the criticism really fair? | OneFootball

Tottenham signed Mathys Tel at the end of the January transfer window on loan from Bayern Munich, and he has sinc played four times for the club. So what impression has he made so far?

His first outing for Spurs was 45 minutes off the bench in the 4-0 battering at the hands of Liverpool in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final. Difficult conditions for anyone to acclimatise to, and the Frenchman struggled to find his feet.

His debut from the start was in Spurs’ next game, against Aston Villa in the FA Cup. Again, it was a loss, but this time he got himself on the scoresheet, even if it was just a consolation in the 91st minute. But what he showed in this game was a steeliness and a determination to put himself about the pitch, which is what ultimately led to his goal.

Tel featured from the start against Manchester United in the 1-0 win for Ange Postecoglou’s side, and this was perhaps his most positive showing in a Spurs’ shirt. He accrued an XG of 0.72, had three shots on target, and was perhaps a little unlucky not to find the back of the net. He lacked quality in the final finish but caused plenty of problems.

Again, his desire to work for the team, run the channels, and do some of the dirty work stood out. In Postecoglou’s press conference before the game against Ipswich, he highlighted Tel’s hard work and pressing ability as a trait he had been impressed by.

Spurs’ most recent game, the 4-1 win over Ipswich, was probably the 19-year-old’s most disappointing outing. Despite a strong team performance where other attacking players shined, namely Heung-min Son and Brennan Johnson, Tel was anonymous for the most part and ended the game without a shot on target.

He again started as the central striker but struggled to get involved, and it remains to be seen whether the Frenchman’s future lies in a wider position or through the middle.

He was on the end of some criticism from Spurs fans but whilst he will have been hoping to have made a better start, he is still only a teenager, has played four games for the club, and is adapting to a new league, country and system having not played regular football at Bayern Munich.

It seems slightly ridiculous to be critical of a young player so soon after making his move to the club.

In any case, Tel has shown enough after four games to suggest he is an industrious player who with some time and patience, can certainly make an impact.

The criticism is maybe coming from the fact that there is an element of time pressure with this particular signing, and also because of Tottenham’s poor season so far. The six-month loan for Tel is costing Spurs €10 million, and if they want to buy him in the summer, they will have to fork out another €60 million.