Ange must now fire Bissouma and unleash Tottenham’s ‘monster’ star

After destroying Manchester City 4-0 at the Etihad a couple of weeks ago, there was a general expectation that Tottenham Hotspur would have a good run and move up the Premier League table.

Unfortunately, that couldn’t have been further from the truth.

Instead, Ange Postecoglou’s side drew their next few games before losing 1-0 to Bournemouth and wasting a two-goal lead to lose 4-3 at home to Chelsea.

There were poor performances all over the pitch for the hosts during Sunday’s derby defeat, but one player arguably stood out for all the wrong reasons and simply has to be dropped for tonight’s must-win Europa League match against the Rangers.

The Spurs star who should be left aside

So while the likes of Pape Matar Sarr, Son Heung-min and Pedro Porro had games to forget on Sunday, the worst offender was undoubtedly Yves Bissouma.

The former Brighton & Hove Albion star produced one of his worst performances in a Spurs shirt to date, contributing nothing in attack or defense and, worse still, actively contributing to his team’s total capitulation.

For example, in the second half, with the score 2-1, the Malian international made the decision of “brain death”, as Jamie Carragher put itto eliminate Moisés Caicedo in the area, giving away a penalty and completely changing the course of the game.

The incident led to him receiving his fifth yellow card of the league campaign and he will now miss the game against Southampton at the weekend. However, based on his performance against the West Londoners, Postecoglou may not have picked him anyway.

As expected, the football.london site Alasdair Gold gave it only a 3/10 full-time and criticized him for being “poor in possession” and simply “dumb”.

Overall, it was the kind of display that should keep you out of tonight’s game, especially as the atmosphere will be incredibly intense inside Ibrox.

The Spurs player will replace Bissouma

Now, there are several players Posetcoglou could start in Bissouma’s place tonight, from the more offensive-minded James Maddison to the inexperienced Lucas Bergvall.

However, for a match that will be as important and intense as this one, they have to start Rodrigo Bentancur.

The Uruguayan international remains, without a doubt, one of the club’s best midfielders.

Furthermore, as he is currently eligible to play in European competitions, his inclusion in place of the Malian ace is a no-brainer.

Able to help at times in defense and attack, we can better understand how brilliant the 27-year-old “monster” is, as Nicknamed by Statman Dave.It’s really looking at their underlying numbers.

For example, according to FBrefThe Nueva Helvecia-born titan is in the top 1% of Premier League midfielders for interceptions, top 4% for passes attempted, top 7% for progressive passes, top 10% for passes completed, 12% top in total shots and top 20% in non-penalty goals and aerial duels won, all by 90.

Furthermore, with 67 international matches with Uruguay under his belt and an impressive array of titles from his time with JuventusHe won’t weaken or make silly mistakes because of the hostile atmosphere Rangers fans are sure to create before the ball is even kicked.

Ultimately, Bissouma simply has to be removed for tonight, and while there are other options to replace him, the tenacity and confidence that Bentancur brings to the team make him the obvious candidate.