Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp has criticised Tottenham Hotspur right back Kieran Trippier for his performance against Manchester City on Monday night.
The England right back, on a reported £40,000-per-week at the club [Source: Spotrac], produced a sub par display as Mauricio Pochettino’s side laboured to a 1-0 defeat against Pep Guardiola’s Premier League champions.
Redknapp was unimpressed with the former Burnley man: “On Monday night, Raheem Sterling on the left wing and Riyad Mahrez on the right worked tirelessly with and without the ball,” he wrote in the Mail.
“The pitch was not in the best condition but those two floated across it. From the moment Sterling first burst past Kieran Trippier, the England full back looked petrified. He [Sterling] used his speed and strength to beat Trippier before cutting back for Mahrez to finish. Guardiola’s wing wizards ran Tottenham ragged.”
OPINION
Redknapp is correct, Trippier simply couldn’t handle Sterling on Monday. It tells you how good Sterling is that his England colleague, who knows him well, couldn’t live with him at Wembley Stadium. Trippier is usually a solid contributor for Spurs on that right hand side but he’s been a bit up and down so far this season. He was beaten too easily by Sterling for Mahrez’s goal and struggled overall to cope with the City man on Spurs’s right hand side. The 28-year-old needs to improve because he’s looked like something of a defensive liability so far this campaign. That’s unlike him because he’s been so consistent for Tottenham in the past but he’s not looked the same post World Cup. Perhaps he’s tired after playing a key role in Russia this summer but he’s certainly not been the same this year. The City game, and his struggles against Sterling, is the latest indication of that.