De Zerbi Knows He Can't Trust Gallagher After Tottenham Win vs Chelsea

· GiveMeSport

Tottenham claimed a historic win over Chelsea on Saturday night, but one star is clearly not good enough to be in De Zerbi's team.

Tottenham Hotspur claimed a historic 2-0 win over rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night for a second consecutive Premier League win.

Spurs were the better team throughout and finally broke the deadlock in the 77th minute as goalkeeper Mike Penders punched into his own net from a corner. Mathys Tel then wrapped up the three points with a stunning solo goal, where he ran from his own half and beat two Chelsea defenders before slamming the ball into the net from outside the box.

It was an excellent performance from the north London club, following on from the 3-1 win over Coventry City and 1-1 draw at Old Trafford against Man Utd, and Roberto De Zerbi is now beginning to figure out which players he can trust and rely on.

In defence, the manager already has his trusted soldiers. Micky Van de Ven, summer signings Jan Paul van Hecke and Andy Robertson, World Cup winner Pedro Porro, and utility man Archie Gray can all be called upon with no issue, regardless of the opponent.

In midfield, Sandro Tonali has started to find his feet after his £100m move from Newcastle, while Mateus Fernandes finally stepped up with a man of the match performance against Chelsea , showing everyone why they paid £85m to take him off West Ham. Ahead of them, James Maddison has made a huge impact in his last two appearances and seems to have secured the number ten role, although his injury in the second half may see him sidelined for a period of time.

His knock in the second half saw De Zerbi introduce Conor Gallagher into the number ten role, and immediately the team saw their control and technical level drop, and that's a problem.

It's no coincidence that the team's best performances have come with a more traditional and technical midfielder in the number ten role, because De Zerbi likes to control games and have his players be fluid with their movement.

But Gallagher, while he has his positives when it comes to pressing and energy, is not that player. He's not that tidy in possession, isn't the most technical, and his best attributes come off the ball rather than on it.

With Maddison injured, De Zerbi would be better off using the likes of Omar Marmoush or Mohammed Kudus in the number ten role instead of Gallagher. That poses an issue for Gallagher going forward, because in the deeper roles he is rightly behind all of Tonali, Fernandes, Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall, and even Archie Gray.

With so many obstacles in his way, and the fact that De Zerbi likes a different style of player, an exit away from Tottenham for Gallagher may make sense for a lot of people.

For Gallagher, a move away can see him play more regular football, while also getting him into his more preferred role, which could see him resurrect his England career potentially, at a time where Thomas Tuchel is welcoming opportunities for players.

For Spurs, they have Xavi Simons returning from an injury in the new year, while Dejan Kulusevski and Maddison will be looking to build up their fitness too, which means his absence likely won't be missed too much, and they can recoup some of the money they spent on him a year ago.

De Zerbi can't fully trust the former Atletico Madrid man to carry out his instructions, and likely never will be able to. That makes it better for everyone if they go their separate ways, and the sooner the better.

Tottenham earned a sensational win over Chelsea, with Mateus Fernandes the star of the show.

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