Why Dembele Is Under Most Pressure for Tottenham Following Win over Asteras
In the end, Tottenham Hotspur did enough to beat Asteras Tripolis in the Europa League on Thursday.
The Premier League outfit pushed their luck in the second half after a strong finish to the first 45 minutes. As head coach Mauricio Pochettino pointed out, via his club's Twitter output, the 2-1 result was the most important thing:
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As was the case with several of his team-mates, for Mousa Dembele the match was his latest opportunity to prove he deserves more playing time for Tottenham. It was one he grasped to an extent, but not so firmly as to remove the pressure currently on the Belgian.
That pressure will be of the decidedly self-imposed variety as he looks to gain a foothold in a campaign which has not got off to the best of starts.
Dembele's late return from the World Cup left him to play catch-up. His first start of the season came in the Europa League at home to Limassol, then after the following international break he started two league games in a row.
The midfielder's strong showing in the 2-2 draw with Sunderland was followed by a similar start that then fell away in the 1-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion. The chance to establish any momentum was then halted by an injury, one that allowed Ryan Mason to come to the fore in his absence, the younger midfielder's eager and energetic displays somewhat overshadowing Dembele's own varying degrees of activity.
Since his return to fitness, Dembele has been used off the bench in the league and, as of Thursday, started Spurs' latest three cup games.
He has been quietly efficient in contributing to wins in the latter. In this week's defeat of Asteras Tripolis, the 27-year-old's first-half performance was up there with his best 45 minutes of the season.
Alongside Benjamin Stambouli in central midfield, he shielded his defence adequately while both sensibly judged when it was whose turn to push forward (or when they were both needed to press on). On one occasion on the 24th minute, they were involved in a fine give-and-go move which was unfortunately wasted when the ball was lost elsewhere.
Stambouli did the running in that example, but Dembele's trademark driving runs were also on show as he looked to force Asteras into places they did not want to be. He linked well with Spurs' attack in the pockets of space subsequently created. From a deeper position he was was also Ben Davies' primary supply source for the left-back's dangerous forays forward.
The Greek side had been rather hesitant during all of this. After the interval, Staikos Vergetis' side came out intent on causing Tottenham problems. That they did—consistently catching out a nervy away defence insufficiently protected by a midfield that had not adapted to the way the game turned.
Spurs' back four did not cover themselves in glory. Jan Vertonghen was too easily shrugged off the ball by Facundo Parra in one Asteras chance, while in another Pablo Mazza hit the post after being granted far too much space out left.
The lack of solidity mentioned by Pochettino (above) was in large part because the midfield lost their sense of discipline. They kept pushing forward at a time when they needed to hold their position and see off the Asteras threat. Spurs did so after the initial post-interval blast from the home side, but then succumbed again late on.
Dembele was not alone culpable in all this, and he was not helped either by being moved around midfield as Pochettino made substitutions. But his own failure to impose himself as the game demanded lent itself to an overall impression he too often shrinks when his team needs him.
As noted earlier, that has been put into sharp perspective by the desire shown by Mason since he has got in the Tottenham team. The 23-year-old has ostensibly taken the Belgium international's place given Etienne Capoue's continued selection in the defensive midfield role.
Mason is not perfect. With him and Dembele high up the pitch, it was the substitute's loose pass from which Asteras created the penalty situation which saw Federico Fazio sent off and Jeronimo Barrales score in the 90th minute. Since he has broke into the team, though, one thing Mason cannot be accused of is disappearing in the way his team-mate is prone to do.
Dembele played 42 and 44 games respectively in Spurs' last two campaigns, over which time he has been utilised from different points in midfield. A more defensive onus has mostly taken hold given he has often asked to protect as much as create. Subsequently, it is only natural Dembele has not been able to use his skill and attacking abilities as much as he and fans might have liked.
Still, for a player of Dembele's obvious talent it can be frustrating he does not grab hold of games more. For the first time in his Spurs career, it is now hurting his own playing prospects (something which may cause problems with Belgium down the line).
With Capoue performing decently but not wholly dominantly, Dembele could get the nod to try and implement his more dynamic defensive-midfield style alongside Mason. Then again, he is likely also facing competition from Stambouli for that role. The Frenchman is still settling in at Spurs, but his own work rate has certainly caught the eye.
So long as he is at White Hart Lane, Dembele remains a heck of an option for Pochettino to call upon. However, that he is not currently someone the head coach cannot afford to do without should be of concern to the player.
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