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Ex-Player Watch Player Watch: Mousa Dembele

TwanYid

Well-Known Member
Aug 1, 2013
1,223
3,484
Ok folks- let's talk about the 800 lb. gorilla in the room. I've seen so many mentions of this guy that he deserves his own thread- and if he's had one before then he deserves his own new thread.

I'll go first: I hate this player, because I actually think he embodies everything that's wrong with our team. He's a supremely talented football player, one that, as we all know, can "glide past anyone," yet seems to have zero heart and even less drive. Look- I'm not totally blind to the fact that on occasion he does things well, but too many times he's just disappeared. On his day he can be great, but it is rarely his day.

I remember when we got him from Fulham, a week after he'd just singlehandedly destroyed Man U- a Man U team under Ferguson- and man I was excited. To my chagrin I soon found out that that was a one-off, never to be repeated again (at least in Lilywhite).

He won us a Europa League game and has done well a couple of times against minnows, but how often has he bossed a match when we've needed it? How often has he taken a game by the scruff of the neck and won it for us? FFS I can name more Holtby-dominated matches than Dembele ones- and Lewis literally has half the physical attributes as Moussa.

I want to love him, but I don't. I think he needs to go immediately. Am I wrong? Can he turn it around? Or should he be offed ASAP?
 

EQP

EQP
Sep 1, 2013
7,958
29,657
He's been injury plagued. His hip has been off for the last year or so and considering that he excels at cutting/lateral movements, having that part of his body injured has not helped his performances. If he can get that sorted he can still play a big part for us.
 

beats1

Well-Known Member
Feb 22, 2010
30,006
29,551
The thing is his performance have been getting worse ever since he got his hip injury. He should of had an operation and didnt because we needed him!

That one decision has fucked him over and imo potentially his career.

This is what it means for Dembele:
“He suffers from hip pains that he carried from last season,” Villas-Boas explained.
“He normally needs three days to recover. He was initially selected to travel but it was too painful this morning so we left him out.”

He is missing training due to recovering from the injury from his hip and most likely taking injections to play matches.

Taking injections would definitely affect his performances especially his ability considering he would have a loss of feeling in his legs

So is it fair to judge a player who is injured and potentially a great player once he recovers from his hip injury?
 

Spurger King

can't smile without glue
Jul 22, 2008
43,881
95,147
Ok folks- let's talk about the 800 lb. gorilla in the room. I've seen so many mentions of this guy that he deserves his own thread- and if he's had one before then he deserves his own new thread.

I'll go first: I hate this player, because I actually think he embodies everything that's wrong with our team. He's a supremely talented football player, one that, as we all know, can "glide past anyone," yet seems to have zero heart and even less drive. Look- I'm not totally blind to the fact that on occasion he does things well, but too many times he's just disappeared. On his day he can be great, but it is rarely his day.

I remember when we got him from Fulham, a week after he'd just singlehandedly destroyed Man U- a Man U team under Ferguson- and man I was excited. To my chagrin I soon found out that that was a one-off, never to be repeated again (at least in Lilywhite).

He won us a Europa League game and has done well a couple of times against minnows, but how often has he bossed a match when we've needed it? How often has he taken a game by the scruff of the neck and won it for us? FFS I can name more Holtby-dominated matches than Dembele ones- and Lewis literally has half the physical attributes as Moussa.

I want to love him, but I don't. I think he needs to go immediately. Am I wrong? Can he turn it around? Or should he be offed ASAP?

 

Franchise60

Well-Known Member
Feb 26, 2008
912
1,994
Brilliant dribbler and one of the more unique players around.

Problem is he never creates anything with his dribbling. Doesn't make the killer pass or score goals.

His dribbling, while great, usually just ends up with a sideways pass and a stalled transition. Can't see him working in Poch's system and personally hope he is sold before our other cms.
 

JimmyG2

SC Supporter
Dec 7, 2006
15,014
20,779
He's top of my midfielders list for transfer.
Not sure if it's his head, his heart or his hip
that negates his natural talent
but somethings wrong.
 

guy

SC Supporter
May 31, 2007
4,507
6,182
I just want him to get his surgery done, if that's what is holding him back. I'm skeptical that that's the sole cause of his average displays though.
 

paulcumpstone

Well-Known Member
Jul 17, 2008
8,781
10,892
i think he is a good player but needs coaching, does far too much of his dribbling and takes risks too deep, when he higher up the pitch he can make a difference.
 

Ribble

Well-Known Member
Apr 13, 2011
3,504
4,776
Having a dodgy hip isn't what makes him fail to see passes, or pass it behind players quite regularly when he does manage to. He's not got the approach to be a CM, doesn't pay attention to where other players are on the pitch and his first instinct is to dribble rather than pass. Bentaleb at just 19 has far more on pitch awareness, he's always looking around and tracking his teammates ensuring he knows what options are open to him.

Probably the worst "Like for like" replacement since buying Zokora for Carrick.
 

TottenhamMattSpur

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
10,925
16,007
Having a dodgy hip isn't what makes him fail to see passes, or pass it behind players quite regularly when he does manage to. He's not got the approach to be a CM, doesn't pay attention to where other players are on the pitch and his first instinct is to dribble rather than pass. Bentaleb at just 19 has far more on pitch awareness, he's always looking around and tracking his teammates ensuring he knows what options are open to him.

Probably the worst "Like for like" replacement since buying Zokora for Carrick.
I think you unfairly missed out Dembele's best attribute which is not dribbling, it's ball retention.
I don't think we use him to his best because we lack movement.
He'd be immense of players have him the ball and they and others then moved to make themselves available to receive the pass back.
All I've ever seen is him get the ball then left with it.
I want to see players showing themselves for it.
 

Mullers

Unknown member
Jan 4, 2006
25,914
16,413
The thing is his performance have been getting worse ever since he got his hip injury. He should of had an operation and didnt because we needed him!

That one decision has fucked him over and imo potentially his career.

This is what it means for Dembele:
“He suffers from hip pains that he carried from last season,” Villas-Boas explained.
“He normally needs three days to recover. He was initially selected to travel but it was too painful this morning so we left him out.”

He is missing training due to recovering from the injury from his hip and most likely taking injections to play matches.

Taking injections would definitely affect his performances especially his ability considering he would have a loss of feeling in his legs

So is it fair to judge a player who is injured and potentially a great player once he recovers from his hip injury?
Yes it is.
If he wasn't fit enough he shouldn't play and if he wanted to be at his best for spurs he should have had the operation already.
 

raf18

Well-Known Member
Aug 29, 2006
2,502
1,819
His decline is sad to watch. I hope he can get back to the form he showed at the start of his Spurs career with Sandro, but it looks like we're drifting further and further away from that.
 

Lufti

Well-Known Member
Jan 3, 2013
7,994
16,635
To be fair, his lack of passion probably stems from his lack of passion for the game:

‘I could not watch a game for 10 minutes. But in the last three years I’ve started watching football more and more, and now I watch quite a lot. I find it more interesting. Before, I just wanted to play football. Now I can watch it.

‘I like to watch the top teams in different countries, like Spain or Bayern Munich in Germany. The rest I don’t watch. I have nothing to do with that.

‘I’m not a freak. I know guys who watch every game. I’m not like that. I need to know someone or have a bit of history.

‘Ninety minutes? Impossible. Maybe 30 minutes, then 10 minutes doing something else, then another 20 minutes. Ninety minutes is too long.’

Even the problem which everyone recognises is his biggest issue, he admits to, but doesn't see as a problem

‘I never saw myself as the replacement for Luka,’ says Dembele. ‘I feel like I’m a totally different player. For me I like to touch the ball as much as possible.
 

Coyboy

The Double of 1961 is still The Double
Dec 3, 2004
15,506
5,032
He never used to release the ball early enough but now it has reached the point of absurdity. He turns defence into attach brilliantly by beating a player or two then he just needs to lay it off or make a simple pass. He seldom does and then undoes the good work he has done. It should be easily rectified.
 

mpickard2087

Patient Zero
Jun 13, 2008
21,886
32,512
I voiced my concerns back in Autumn 2012 and was met with a bit of derision. He is totally unsuited to playing for a top team in my opinion because his habit of taking 27,000 touches before usually showing no self belief and playing a conservative pass is such a killer against teams who park the bus. You have to pass and move quickly and ask questions of them, not fuck around on the ball before eventually deciding to lay it off.

To be honest I have come round to @Bus-Conductor 's long held idea of playing him further up the pitch in one of the wide roles and try to make better use of his dribbling skills in more dangerous areas... But even then he would have to find more self belief and have a shot himself at times... Can someone get into his head and change the way he plays?
 

Zlatan

Well-Known Member
Dec 30, 2012
391
1,621
I wanna give him a chance under Poch, he's got an unbeliveable talent and if Poch can coach him right he can make real big things.
 

TaoistMonkey

Welcome! Everything is fine.
Staff
Oct 25, 2005
32,629
33,577
I like Dembele. He can pick the ball up and get us down the other end of the pitch.

It was a difficult season for him but as a team we didn't help each other out. I expect him to be pretty useful this season.
 
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