Often in football, there is a flashpoint in the build-up to a managerial sacking, the culmination of a long sequence of poor results.
For Ange Postecoglou and Tottenham Hotspur, winning the Europa League proved to be the straw that broke the camel’s back. The Australian coach had ended Spurs’ endless search for silverware, but he also laboured to a 17th-place Premier League finish.
Daniel Levy, now gone himself, felt the manager’s position was untenable and that a fresh start was needed. Whichever side of the fence you sit on, there’s no denying the rationale of the thought process, with Thomas Frank making a promising start to his tenure.
The signings made in recent months carry with them the promise of sustainable and positive football. Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons are testaments to that, with both wide attackers settling nicely down N17.
Kudus & Simons are standouts for Spurs
Tottenham signed Kudus from West Ham United for £55m in June. Some signing, prising him from rivals just like that. And the Ghanaian winger is repaying the faith on the field, having enjoyed a rip-roaring start to life under Frank’s wing.
His final product leaves something to be desired, but the 24-year-old’s pace and energy and directness do not. A maverick, Sofascore record that he has averaged 2.2 key passes and won 7.8 duels per game in the Premier League this season, playing down the right. Kudus has yet to score, but he has three assists.
Likewise, Simons, 22, is yet to break his duck, but then the Dutchman is only four games into his Lilywhites career and has started once in the Premier League. More of a ball-playing creator than his peer, Simons has been described as a “game-changer” by talent scout Jacek Kulig.
Looking at his past two terms in the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig, it’s rather clear Frank has unearthed a gem, landing him for £51m despite the vested attention of Chelsea.
Matches (starts)
32 (32)
25 (25)
Goals
8
10
Assists
11
7
Shots (on target)*
2.5 (1.0)
2.0 (0.9)
Touches*
62.6
68.0
Pass completion
82%
83%
Big chances created
14
12
Key passes*
2.5
2.0
Dribbles*
2.6
1.3
Ball recoveries*
5.2
5.1
Tackles + interceptions*
1.4
1.6
Duels won*
6.3
5.4
These rising stars are shaping Tottenham’s future, but they have yet to hit their stride. This bodes well, but it’s also curious to note that a former Spurs flop is outperforming the pair of them.
Indeed, Ivan Perisic is still producing creative performances.
Ivan Perisic's season in numbers
Tottenham signed Perisic on a free transfer after the 2021/22 season, with the Croatian’s contract with Inter Milan having expired. He was 33 and viewed as a utility buy, a squad deepener.
One goal was all he had to show for that maiden year in the English game, but Perisic proved himself to be a creative force of sublime quality, racking up 12 assists.
Antonio Valle of ESPN marvelled at the quiet jackpot addition, saying, “Perisic, that extremely constant player who is not talked about enough.”
Certainly, the veteran provided a steady supply line through to the forwards, only starting 23 times in the top flight that year but creating 11 big chances and averaging 1.4 key passes per game, as per Sofascore.
However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for the versatile star, with journalist James Maw claiming before the player’s ACL that he would be “remembered as a massive waste of money”.
Indeed, it’s worth noting that he took home quite the pretty penny in north London, earning a living of £195k per week.
However, he played an important part and started strongly in 2023/24 under Postecoglou’s guidance, before suffering that devastating knee injury and before being loaned to Hadjuk Split in January, where he recuperated before his contract expired at the end of the campaign.
Whether it was a mistake to release a player well into their 30s while recovering from a brutal knee injury is open to debate, but there’s no question that Perisic’s Tottenham career is a rueful one, with it all potentially turning out differently had he avoided that disaster.
After all, Perisic has bounced back despite now at the ripe old footballing age of 36. In the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven, he has already scored a goal and placed six assists this season, thus proving his potency is very much intact and ahead of Simons’, albeit with the two in different spheres.
In fact, given that Postecoglou’s Spurs ship sank after an emphatic start, it’s not out of the question to think that Perisic’s leadership and experience could have helped things along, had he only been fit.
Simons operates with a similar skill on the ball and a wand of a delivery that is akin to the experienced star. At least now, Spurs have a similar player who can step up and deliver.
Perisic’s time at Tottenham was turbulent, but we can’t forget the quality of his playmaking during that first term. Had injury not struck him down, it all could have been so different.