Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has predicted Tottenham won’t “be able to live” with West Ham dangerman Marko Arnautovic in Saturday’s Premier League showdown.
He criticised Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino for fielding the same team every week, whilst remarking on how he does not think that there is any one on the bench who can improve what they already have.
Merson said that when playmaker Christian Eriksen – who has been recovering from an abdomen injury – is not on the pitch, his lack of presence is greatly felt as he is the one player who has the ability to open teams up.
“Tottenham are not playing well and had a lot of players on international duty. I’m not sure they’ll be able to live with Marko Arnautovic,” he wrote in his Daily Star column.
“It’s basically the same team every week for Mauricio Pochettino. I don’t see anyone on the Spurs bench who can come in and make them stronger.
Tottenham have certainly missed having Eriksen around, because as Merson points out, he is the one player in the side who can open teams up. Spurs have definitely not been the best this season, so their fixture with West Ham is not one that they should take for granted. The Hammers are full of confidence after a good run of form bar the last loss to Brighton, so it would not be surprising if they nicked a result at home. Nevertheless, the fact that Eriksen will be available to play against the Irons will no doubt be a massive boost for the team. They have been struggling without him recently, and it is not often that he misses game time through injury. His technical ability may be the difference between the two sides on Saturday, but as Merson pointed out, they will have a hard job in keeping West Ham striker Marko Arnautovic quiet. He is the type of player who can bully defences with his strength, so he is definitely someone that Spurs will have to keep a close eye on.