Earlier this week, Connor Gallagher scored in the 69th minute of Tottenham’s Carabao Cup tie against Liverpool, Tottenham’s first goal of the season.
Unfortunately, the goal came with the Lilywhites trailing 2-0 at Anfield and the game ended in a 3-1 defeat for Roberto De Zerbi’s side, who are yet to win a game this season.
Tottenham’s last goal in the Premier League was a 1-0 win over Everton on the last day of the 2025/26 season, with defensive midfielder Joao Palinha scoring the winning goal in the first half.
Simply put, they haven’t been good enough at the top of the league this season, and Mattistal’s mediocre performance is one of the reasons why.
Why De Zerbi had to give up the phone this weekend
Tottenham face Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday and one of the first players to drop from the starting XI following their defeat to Liverpool should be the French winger.
Tell was given the opportunity to start on the left wing after being omitted from the starting line-up in the 0-0 draw with Everton, but he failed to make the most of the opportunity at Anfield.
|
vs liverpool |
Matisse phone |
|---|---|
|
every minute |
85 |
|
lens |
0 |
|
key pass |
0 |
|
created huge opportunities |
0 |
|
cross |
0 |
|
through accuracy |
71% |
|
Dribbling completed |
2/4 |
|
lose possession of the ball |
15x |
He failed to make any significant contribution in the final third, failed to shoot or create any chances for his teammates, and was substituted with 15 minutes left in the game.
Unfortunately, his performance came as no surprise. In the Premier League, Terr failed to score, create a “good chance” or assist in 259 minutes of action in the first four games of the season.
The 21-year-old striker only scored 4 goals in all competitions last season. He is not effective enough as an attacking force for the Lilywhites and should be left out for this match against Villa.
Spurs will surely regret losing Mattis phone upgrade
Spurs paid £30m to sign Thiel permanently from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2025, a decision they may now regret, especially when they have had more impressive strikers slip through their hands in the past.
Noni Madueke was one of the wingers who fell through the academy, leaving the club on a free transfer in 2018 to join PSV in the Netherlands.
After four years in the club’s academy, the left-footed star chose to try his luck abroad rather than sign a scholarship contract with Tottenham as he felt it would be better for his development.
It’s hard to argue with the England international’s decision-making as he has gone on to enjoy a very respectable career and is now a better forward than the man Tottenham paid £30m for Ter.
|
After Noni Maduk leaves Tottenham |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Season (club) |
Target |
Assist |
|
26/27 (Arsenal) |
1 |
0 |
|
25/26 (Arsenal) |
8 |
3 |
|
24/25 (Chelsea) |
10 |
4 |
|
23/24 (Chelsea) |
8 |
3 |
|
22/21 (PSV & Chelsea) |
3 |
0 |
|
21/22 (Eindhoven) |
7 |
5 |
|
20/21 (Eindhoven) |
9 |
6 |
After spells at PSV Eindhoven and Chelsea, Arsenal signed Madduk from the Blues for a whopping £52 million in the summer of 2025, and he played an important role in last season’s Premier League title win.
It doesn’t look good for Tottenham, as a player they spent four years in the youth system achieving nothing has emerged as a star for both of their London rivals, helping both teams win trophies.
Maduk may not be a world-class player who contributes 20 goals and 20 assists a season for the Gunners, but his return of 19 goals and 7 assists since the start of the 2024/25 season is very respectable.
The versatile winger, who can play on either wing, has proven himself to be a valuable player at elite level, even starting four of England’s five World Cup matches earlier this year.
At the same time, Terr has yet to make his debut for the French team. Since the start of the 2024/25 season, he has only contributed a total of 7 goals and 4 assists in all competitions for Tottenham and Bayern.
Unlike Marduk during his spells at Chelsea and Arsenal, the French attacker rarely contributed at the top end of the pitch and the £30m the club have spent on him so far looks like a failure.
Spurs will therefore surely regret their failure to convince Marduk that there was a path to first-team football in north London in 2018, as he would be a significant upgrade over the players De Zerbi currently has.