Bengaluru, India:
Tottenham Hotspur coach Ange Postecoglou says his side are struggling to the point where even in-form Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah will not make a good impression as part of the team.
Tottenham, who will face the Premier League leaders in the first leg of the League Cup semi-finals later on Wednesday, fell to 12th place in the league and have lost three of their last four matches.
While Salah scored 21 goals and provided 17 assists in all competitions, Postecoglou said that the 32-year-old Egyptian will have difficulty providing similar numbers to the London team this season.
He told reporters, “He is not a world-class player, but if you put him in our team now, I am not sure he will provide the same level of performance because of the situation we are going through as a group.”
“You need a team that is in good condition, creates chances, plays attackingly, and has a really solid foundation for a cohesive defence. There are none of those things at the moment (at Tottenham).”
“We rely on individual moments.” On the other hand, Postecoglou said that Tottenham captain Son Heung-min, who has scored just seven goals in all competitions this season, would thrive in Liverpool’s current squad.
“I would risk saying that if you put Sonny in the Liverpool team, I think his goalscoring return would be good,” Postecoglou said. “But when we are at our best, I still think you will see Sony come back.” Tottenham activated a one-year contract extension for the 32-year-old South Korean striker on Tuesday.
Bournemouth’s suffering
The Bournemouth team announced on Wednesday that its striker, Enes Unal, suffered a tear in his anterior cruciate ligament during training, in a strong blow a day after it was reported that his fellow striker, Evanilson, had undergone surgery due to a broken foot.
The club said in a statement: “We are very shocked to confirm that Enes Unal suffered a tear in his right anterior cruciate ligament during a training session this week.”