Tottenham star is a ‘bit of a mystery’ after ‘weird’ development – insider says he ‘doesn’t fit in’
Thomas Frank is still yet to get the best out of one “mystery” player at Tottenham, a journalist covering the club has revealed.
Spurs’ 2-2 draw against Man United, currently has the north London club in fifth position in the Premier League table.
Frank retains the full support of the Spurs board, despite recent unrest from supporters with their home form a growing concern.
Their recent home defeat to Chelsea was particularly uninspiring, with Spurs generating an expected goals of just 0.11 against their London rivals.
Brennan Johnson is a ‘mystery’ at Tottenham
As per BBC Sport, [13 November], The Athletic’s Spurs reporter Jack Pitt-Brooke believes Frank’s style of play is not suiting winger Brennan Johnson.
The 24-year-old scored the winning goal in the Europa League final in May, and was proving a success under the management of Ange Postecoglou.
“He came in at quite a weird time for the club. I’m not sure they really had a good plan for how to replace Kane. Johnson came in at a difficult moment but, with injuries to other players, he ended up playing tons that year and he was actually pretty good,” Pitt-Brooke said.
“He fitted what Ange wanted from wingers. Really high and wide, scoring goals where a winger goes down one side, pulls the ball back across the box, and the opposite side winger taps it in. Johnson was good at both delivering that cross, and also tapping it in at the far post.
“Frank wants to play a different way, and he wants his wingers to do a lot more on the ball than just score tap-ins.
“Spurs paid £55m for Kudus, who doesn’t score many goals, but everything until he gets to the opposition goal is much better than Johnson. At the moment, I don’t think any Spurs fan would have Johnson in their first-choice team. It’s not really clear where he fits.
“He doesn’t really do a lot apart from scoring goals. “There are obviously worse things to be than a guy who’s just known for scoring goals, but I think people would probably have expected him to have done more.
“He’s a bit of a mystery.”
Johnson out of form after Spurs managerial change
Johnson has started just five Premier League games under Frank, with the Dane preferring other options over the Welshman.
| Minutes Played | 469 |
| Goals | 2 |
| Expected Goals | 0.96 |
| Shots | 5 |
| Chances Created | 4 |
| Dribble Success % | 42.9% |
Spurs supporters slammed Johnson for his display against Man United, with the winger losing possession 18 times in the contest.
Under Postecoglou, Johnson was one of Spurs’ main positives, scoring 11 goals and registering three assists in the Premier League last season, and there is sure to be interest in him if his current predicament at the club continues.