OPINION
Mauricio Pochettino admitted on Thursday that Harry Winks was struggling to get back to his best after his recent injury, and this admission shows the mammoth task the midfielder now faces.
The Spurs manager shared that all of his coaching staff were aiming to get Winks playing to the level he was before his ankle injury, and revealed that the midfielder wasn’t in the best frame of mind over his recent performances.
“Of course he’s (Winks) not in his best mood,” said Pochettino, as quoted by Football.London.
“But it’s sure that with the help of the whole coaching staff, we’re going to help him to achieve again the same level, how he felt before the problem.
“It’s not only confidence, it’s because he feels something in his ankle that he cannot express himself in the way that he can.”
Winks made 16 Premier League appearances this campaign before being ruled out with an ankle injury, and is yet to feature in the league since being passed fit, even though he’s been available since early February.
The central midfielder has been impressive for Spurs in recent times, due to his ability to hold on to the ball and his knack for playing others in to the game.
Winks has featured in three FA Cup fixtures since returning to the side, and he has looked lost in his outings.
The 22-year-old doesn’t seem capable of reaching his max level and even though his ankle injury didn’t keep him on the sidelines for long, it seems to have made him regress as a player.
Pochettino’s admission shows that the manager agrees but with time running out and the stakes as high as ever for Tottenham, it’s impossible to see how Winks is going to be able to get a run of games to help him.
The midfielder clearly needs to play consistently in order to get back to where he was, but with the way he is playing, Spurs can’t risk playing him in games as it could cost them.
Pochettino’s side can’t afford to drop points in the league as the race to finish in the top-four is intense, and he can’t be risked in the semi-final or final of the FA Cup, because that’s Spurs’ only chance of silverware this season.
This means Winks faces a mammoth task in order to not only get back to his best, but prove his ability to Pochettino once again, as he will have limited chances to feature before the end of the season.