Did Tottenham Make a Mistake Getting Rid of Matt Doherty?
Contents
Let us take you back to earlier last the season. Matt Doherty had found some form and was pushing for a place in a Tottenham squad that was doing well. Then, to surpirse everyone including the media pundits, Doherty agreed a loan deal to Atletico Madrid. Then, that loan deal became a free signing, after Spurs realised that they had too many players on loan. Not to deny Doherty the opportunity, they cancelled his contract, and he made his way into Diego Simeone’s squad in Spain. Do we think current Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou will regret the decision made by his predecessors or will he be happy with the current squad?
Injuries To Other Players
Pedro Porro is Spurs only fit right wing-back after Emerson Royale was ruled out for the season. He is new to the physical demands of the Premier League, and if he suffers an injury, they will have to play a player out of position.
Doherty has proven himself as a Premier League-standard player and had some excellent moments at Spurs. To get rid of him when there are so few natural right-wing backs at the club wasn’t the wisest of choices.
Flexibility Of Position
Spurs aren’t exactly blessed with left wing-backs either, and Doherty had the flexibility to slot in and do well there too. When Ben Davies isn’t playing, it’s the likes of Ryan Sessegnon and other more attacking players who get put in that position. Doherty recently played in this position for his country against France, and he did very, very well.
Gaining Form
In his second last game with the club, Doherty scored against Crystal Palace and he was actually playing well for Spurs. During the World Cup break, Spurs played a number of friendly matches and Doherty was outstanding in them. He looked as though he was really finding his feet at the club and was about to become one of the sides’ most important players.
Something to Prove
Spurs is a big club and Doherty had moved from Wolves to get there. With all due respect to Wolves, it was a big step up for Doherty. And he didn’t really get to make a mark when making that step up. However, if there were some assurances given to the Irishman, he would have no doubt been more likely to stay at the club and try to prove himself further. This motivation should have been viewed by the Tottenham board to keep him at the club.
Was It Just An Admin Error
With the mistake made over the loan, you would wonder how much of the cancelling of Doherty’s contract was simply the result of an administrative error. They clearly didn’t intend to get rid of him for good when they agreed to a loan move. However, they clearly had to keep face after that possibility was removed from the table late in the day. We have all made admin errors in our own work, but there are rarely as costly as this one could be to Tottenham. Meanwhile, Doherty could be playing Champions League football in Madrid next season.
Current Spurs Team
The biggest news of the summer was Harry Kane leaving Tottenham Hotspur for German Giants Bayern Munich and the appointment’s of Ange Postecoglou from Celtic. Spurs have started the season in fantastic form, currently in the top four with wins against Manchester United & Liverpool already. Tottenham fans are excited by this season and believe they have a chance to win a major trophy, the first in a long period of time. Find tickets for Tottenham Hotspur matches, both home and away here on SafeTicketCompare.
Update 2023/2024 Season
Whilst many believed that Matt Doherty had great potential and Spurs made a mistake over his transfer to Atletico Madrid, last season he only managed one game for the Spanish giants. Since then , the Irish international has has appeared only twice for new team Wolves. Based on this, it appears as that Spurs were wise to cancel the defenders contract and allow him to move away from North London.
