OPINION
Many things were revealed for Tottenham in their exuberant 1-1 draw with Barcelona on Tuesday night, and one of the most glaring was that midfielder Harry Winks needs to be one of the first names on the teamsheet going forward.
The stalemate at the Nou Camp ensured Spurs’ passage through to the Champions League knock-out stages, and Winks was one of the key men in securing the famous result.
His involvement for Mauricio Pochettino’s side has been a bit hit and miss this season, though, and that’s something the Argentine needs to put right moving forward.
Winks is too good to be starting one game and then relegated to the bench for the next – he needs to be a permanent fixture in this Tottenham eleven.
His passing and his ability to dictate the terms of a game from the middle of the park is something that Spurs don’t have in their other midfield players.
He demonstrated that against Barcelona in an electric display. He made a couple of missteps early on, but soon righted the ship and put his stamp on the game.
The Catalans couldn’t get the ball off him. His use of possession was spot on and it made it difficult for Barcelona to build on their early lead.
He is always an option in midfield for Spurs and that is invaluable. Pochettino’s team like to be on the ball and be on the front foot, and so they need someone like Winks to operate in the ‘quarterback’ role, spraying passes around and starting attacks from deep.
Moussa Sissoko was excellent once again against Ernesto Valverde’s team, while Christian Eriksen was terrific as well. Those two and Winks should be the undisputed midfield partnership for Tottenham moving forward.
The England international is too good to be wasted. Pochettino needs to put his faith in him and give Winks the keys to the Spurs engine room on a permanent basis.