Adrian Durham compared Tottenham defender Kyle Walker-Peters with Manchester City defender Kyle Walker as he believed they were similar players.
The talkSPORT host started talking about the 21-year-old right-back after co-host Darren Gough suggested that the Spurs player was ready for Premier League football based on his display against Southampton.
“When you look at the young lad Walker-Peters, he was out of position so many times, he may be a tremendous young talent but is he quite ready at this stage of the season to be getting game time in the Premier League?” said Gough on talkSPORT (16:10, Monday March 11).
“That is the issue they’ve have at this moment in time.”
Durham then replied in order to compare the Tottenham defender to Walker, and reveal that he had doubts about whether the player was good defensively.
“Walker-Peters is great going forward but defensively he is another Kyle Walker but Kyle Walker is that many more years advanced and is that much more experienced, that he has managed to make up for it and improve on certain areas,” stated Durham.
“I think it’s a worry for Spurs.”
OPINION
Of course Walker, who earns £100,000-a-week at Manchester City (Source: Spotrac), is a better player than Walker-Peters as it stands, and it’s an odd comparison to make. The Spurs 21-year-old may not be ready to feature in the Premier League every week but if Durham believes he needs experience in order to get as good as the Man City full-back, then clearly he needs to play. The talkSPORT host clearly has doubts about Walker-Peters featuring but then in the next breath suggests he needs experienced in order to cover his flaws. The 21-year-old didn’t have the best game in the 2-1 loss to the Saints on Saturday, but it’s harsh to single him out. Several Tottenham players struggled to deliver the goods in the second half of the match and they should be held accountable too. The only positive that can be taken from Durham’s verdict is that he believes Walker-Peters is one day capable of being as good as Walker, but it’s unclear how he can achieve that task if the broadcaster suggests it’s a worry when he plays.