Another New Year’s Day Scout Notes and another stalemate! This time, Brentford 0-0 Spurs.
THIAGO NEARING A REST?
Owners of Igor Thiago (£7.0m) may have raised an eyebrow when his name appeared on the Brentford teamsheet, particularly given his recent injury concerns.
That said, following a partial rest in Gameweek 14, the forward has now started five matches in a row, completing the full 90 minutes in each.
While his latest appearance proved fairly quiet, with no shots on target recorded, it still leaves some uncertainty around his minutes heading into Gameweek 20.
Everton come next at the weekend, before a midweek home fixture against Sunderland. However, an FA Cup tie with Sheffield Wednesday in eight days’ time may present a more natural opportunity to rest their star man.
Minutes are not the only concern for Igor Thiago, with his recent blank leaving him with just one assist across the last five matches. During that spell, he has failed to record more than 0.50 expected goal involvement (xGI) in any single game.
SPURS: FIXTURES OVER FORM?
Some may have noticed they are about to arrive into a good run of fixtures:
Tottenham Hotspur face Bournemouth, West Ham and Burnley across their next four fixtures, a run that, on paper, should boost the appeal of their assets.
However, based on recent performances and what we have seen from them this season, that appeal may not match the promise of the fixture list.
The away fans belted out ‘Boring, boring, Tottenham’ in west London as the Lilywhites extended a barren run to two goals in four matches.
LEWIS-POTTER OOP…AGAIN
One player who stood out during the match was Keane Lewis-Potter (£4.9m).
The in-game defender continues to operate out of position on the wing, making this his fourth consecutive league start in that advanced role.
Alongside his clean-sheet points, Lewis-Potter ranked among just four players to register more than one attempt on goal. While his expected goal involvement (xGI) totalled just 0.31, it still surpassed the figures recorded by Thiago and Mohammed Kudus (£6.4m).
It remains unclear how long that advanced role will continue. However, with Dango Ouattara (£5.8m) still away at AFCON and Lewis-Potter continuing to impress, he could emerge as a viable short-term punt for managers dealing with defensive injuries.
