Speaking with Football Insider, pundit Tam McManus discussed the ‘problem’ with Tottenham Hotspur star Matt Doherty.
The Irishman has only featured in eight league matches this season under Antonio Conte, with only three of those appearances being from the start.
Doherty joined Spurs back in the summer of 2020 from fellow Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers. The Guardian reported that the fee spent on the full-back was a total of £14.7m.
McManus thinks that Doherty is a great asset going forward, but the defensive side of his game lets him down. He believes that the player needs to take advantage of the occasions when he’s picked.
He stated: “That’s all he can do. When you have players away on international duty, it gives you a chance to impress. He came in and he will be wanting to get back into the team.
“He has been in and out, and it sounds like he has had a couple of run-ins with the manager, but I do think he is a good player.
“He is great going forward, but Tottenham’s problem isn’t going forward, is it? They are scoring goals but struggling defensively.
“The problem is [that] Doherty is much better going forward than he is defensively.”
TIF Thoughts on McManus’ comments…
We believe that in the case of Doherty, Conte clearly wants to play a full-back who is better defensively.
The 30-year-old doesn’t boast the most impressive stats when you look at his defensive work from the last year. When compared to other full-backs in Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, Doherty is in the bottom 42% for tackles made and in the top 35% for blocks (FBref).
A new right-back is where Spurs perhaps need to strengthen. Doherty is clearly out of favour along with Djed Spence, who’s only played in three league matches this term – all being substitute cameos.
Emerson Royal has been the go-to man for Conte in that position, but it’s safe to say he’s been very poor. The Brazilian is in the bottom 3% for interceptions and the bottom 19% for blocks in comparison to other full-backs (FBref).
We think Doherty can work his way back into the Tottenham starting XI as it seems to be a position that’s up for grabs, but he’ll need to work on improving the defensive side of his game in order to nail down his place.