Football.London’s Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold has questioned Mauricio Pochettino’s treatment of Japhet Tanganga during his time at the club.
The defender has become a first-team regular under the management of Jose Mourinho.
No clues whatsoever: Which seasons do these iconic Spurs images belong to?
He made his Premier League debut against Liverpool on November 1st and has since played against both Watford and Manchester City, while has also played three times in the FA Cup, against Middlesbrough and twice against Southampton due to the fourth round replay.
And Gold, answering a question in a Q&A, confirmed that Spurs are attempting to tie him down to a new contract, while questioning how Pochettino didn’t see him as a first-team player.
He wrote: “Tanganga is a real talent. I was fortunate enough to see plenty of him at youth level and it’s great to see him getting his chance and you wonder why Pochettino, with his usually very good judgement of young players, didn’t bring him in sooner.”
Tanganga made just one appearance for Spurs under Pochettino, against Colchester United in the EFL Cup but he has looked remarkably at home in the first-team.
He has averaged a WhoScored rating of 7.44 in the Premier League, with his best appearance coming against champions City.
Gold is absolutely right to question why exactly Pochettino was so reticent to bring him into the first-team.