Tottenham Hotspur’s Bryan Gil “didn’t look anywhere near it” following his introduction in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
That’s according to former Premier League striker and talkSPORT pundit Gabriel Agbonlahor, who was speaking following Spurs’ 0-0 draw away at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Following a win and a defeat in their first two matches, Tottenham picked up what could yet prove to be a valuable point in what is a tightly contested Group D.
With Lucas Moura suffering a setback in his recovery from injury and Dejan Kulusevski now set for a couple of weeks on the sidelines (Daily Mail), Antonio Conte’s options going forward were stretched.
Gil was the only attacking option on the bench and the Spaniard was brought on to replace Richarlison after 79 minutes, but Agbonlahor was less than impressed – and has concerns for the Lilywhites.
As posted on TalkSport’s Twitter account, he said: “I don’t think their squad’s as good as people think.
“Kulusevski’s out injured and the only option they had to bring on, really, was Bryan Gil, who didn’t look anywhere near it – not had enough game time.
“And if Kane, Son or Richarlison got injured while Kulusevski’s out, they’re struggling for numbers.
“You look at that squad that Spurs have got there compared to Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea… they’re miles behind, for me.”
TIF Thoughts on Gil and Spurs…
What should Spurs do with Bryan Gil?
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Conte has yet to give the £80k-per-week ace a Premier League start, and despite being named among the substitutes for the north London derby, he did not play last weekend, either.
Recovering from a knock himself, the Spain U21 international may not be fully fit yet, but it does pose a problem for the club.
Last summer, the Lilywhites paid £21.6m to bring Gil to N17, with Erik Lamela going the other way while Nuno Espirito Santo was in charge.
According to SofaScore, he only had 12 touches during his cameo in Frankfurt and lost the ball five times – and that lack of minutes appears to have caught up with both player and manager.
However, with a flurry of fixtures on the horizon, he is sure to be given further chances – and only then can a judgment be made on whether or not he is a useful alternative for the side going forward.