Player Watch Player Watch: Dejan Kulusevski

[dontcallme]

So much of the criticism this guy gets seem to come from the idea that good wingers should solely be defined by their pace and ability to attack the byline.

He helps us control the game and build our attack from the wing, holding up the ball and contributing massively with key passes. While also running his ass off for us.

I agree he needs to be more productive, but it really annoys me when his contributions gets boiled down to "he works hard, but" all the time. That's a really one dimensional way of assessing his role in the team, and failing to see his contributions.

Good post.

I loved our second goal yesterday with Johnson heading it through then bursting into the box to assist Son.

I think a lot of the frustration with Kulu is he regularly gets the ball deep in space for a counter but he doesn’t have the pace to make something happen on his own.

But we shouldn’t be judging him solely on that. When teams are deep, it’s often Kulu’s ability to turn in tight spaces and pick out a pass that we often rely on.

If we only have pacy wingers, teams will simply setup accordingly. Kulusevski has areas to work on but he’s important to our team.

 

[gavspur]

I think at the moment he’s being a bit too predictable. He needs to switch up his play a bit. Head to the byline.
He’s got to hold and give, and do it at the right time. He can be slow or fast but he must get to the line. They’ll always hit him and hurt him, defend and attack, there’s only one way to beat them, get round the back.

Errr. Yeah. That’s what I mean.

 

[YiddoInPoland]

He was off it yesterday, like he didnt know what to do with the ball, that weird corner was an example but he did it a few times in the match. Not sure if he has been given any time off after the incident on internationals week, he came straight back in after that and that would affect everyone

 

[fishhhandaricecake]

The quesiton you posed (to me) was can we upgrade on him. Of course we can. He's not in that bracket of elite wingers quite yet. That doesn't mean I don't rate him, he's a good player who works his arse off, I just don't particularly like our balance out wide with both him and Richy starting.

Spot on mate

 

[fishhhandaricecake]

Agree with this completely. I don’t think anyone is saying Kulu is a bad player and Richy is certainly the weaker winger by some significant distance. But we have to look at the squad in relation to what we want to achieve. If we are actually hoping to challenge for honours every year then for me, on current form, he’s not quite good enough to be a starter.

Im not even saying we should drop him, after all Brennan and Gil are still completely untested and we have no idea what, if anything, they can bring to the table. But unless he goes up a level (which to be fair he could) then I’d be looking to upgrade and keep Kulu as a hard working rotation option.

Personally I think we need to be taking the Liverpool approach when it comes to building our forward line Ie having a number of top quality players rotating in.

As always you’re spot on mate

 

[Gassin's finest]

I think Kulu is doing fine. Maybe needs a bit more of that undefinable "oompf" but he's a good player.

 

[whenstevewentup]

I’ve said a few times , keep him as a squad player , to really get the most out of him we need a pacey full back to over lap and give him a bit more space . He doesn’t look a goal threat at the moment and with Richi so out of form we need him to step up . I certainly wouldn’t be dropping him but we must give Johnson a chance over Richi . Neither Richi or Kulu would start at any of our top 4 rivals and that has to be our benchmark .

 

[Rout-Ledge]

He’s still young and we’ve seen he has genuine quality. He can do more than he is currently doing. At his current level you would always want him in the match day squad too. But he’s just below the level required for a top top team - again, at his current level, not his potential level. Miles better than Richarlison though, and the club was absolutely right to purchase him in the summer.

 

[dontcallme]

I’ve said a few times , keep him as a squad player , to really get the most out of him we need a pacey full back to over lap and give him a bit more space . He doesn’t look a goal threat at the moment and with Richi so out of form we need him to step up . I certainly wouldn’t be dropping him but we must give Johnson a chance over Richi . Neither Richi or Kulu would start at any of our top 4 rivals and that has to be our benchmark .

Ange is using a lot of subs, often early enough to make an impact. So if by squad player you mean someone playing an active part in most games but not always starting, I agree.

At the moment when playing full strength, I’d start him though.

Like Richy, this is his season to make a place his own. I can’t imagine Ange and the scouting department sitting back. They’ll be looking to improve at every stage.

 

[mil1lion]

We just need pace on one side. Richarlison and Kulusevski don't offer that. I'd like to see Johnson have a run now on the left side.

 

[allpaths]

He's done alright but he's shying away from taking responsibility in finishing off moves too much. We need one of him or Richarlison to start chipping in more consistently or we will start to drop points.

 

[Flobadob]

The only reason he’s upgradeable is due to his fit as a winger in this system, he just can’t make the most of counter’s and isolated 1v1’s vs the fullback often enough due to his lack of pace. Other than that he’s an excellent player, has very little weaknesses other than that, but they are extremely important weaknesses that diminish his effectiveness in this system. Johnson showed on the other side how effective a player that has pace and makes good runs off the ball can be, we are going to need something similar on the right too I feel. Maybe Johnson as that kind of outlet on the left with Kulu a different kind of threat on the right may work though, don’t want to completely right him off, let’s wait and see. We absolutely need at least 1 real threat of pace and movement in the 2 wide positions though. Kulusevski is an excellent player who I’d give time and the benefit of the doubt to, Richarlison on the other hand just isn’t really good enough if you’re being honest, he doesn’t have anywhere close to the class of Kulu.

 

[beats1]

They are learning Ange's system and haven't got it yet,

Him, Richarlison and Son aren't wingers but inside forwards, they aren't used to hugging the touchline

They will all get better but imo, if son is moved away from the no.9 position, he will have a dip as well

 

[McFlash]

He's a very good player and is very important to how we play, he helps create space and hold possession but he does need to up his goal and assist count though.
We know he can do it, so that's probably why it's a bit frustrating to see him currently not creating or finishing much.

Got to remember that he's having to evolve his game under yet another manager though, one with a whole new philosophy.
We've more important positions to look at before we start looking towards Deki, in terms of upgrades.

 

[Tucker]

He’s better than he’s currently showing, and I don’t think he’s playing particularly poorly either. We all know he can be brilliant on his day, I think he needs to learn to release the ball a bit quicker.

 

[bubble07]

Are first 11 is so good that him and richarlison are looking like the weakest players in it

 

[spurs9]

Good post.

I loved our second goal yesterday with Johnson heading it through then bursting into the box to assist Son.

I think a lot of the frustration with Kulu is he regularly gets the ball deep in space for a counter but he doesn’t have the pace to make something happen on his own.

But we shouldn’t be judging him solely on that. When teams are deep, it’s often Kulu’s ability to turn in tight spaces and pick out a pass that we often rely on.

If we only have pacy wingers, teams will simply setup accordingly. Kulusevski has areas to work on but he’s important to our team.

For me, the only issue I have with Kulusevski ATM, is his lack of end product and his unwillingness to quickly play the ball in.

We know he has the end product in him from his 1st 6 months here and if he can get back to that, he is a nailed on starter IMO, as like you say, having 2 wingers that are completely different makes us hard to defend against.

If he doesn't improve, I would want to bring in an upgrade RW but would still keep as back up to Maddison/different option on the RW over Lo Celso.

 

[spurs mental]

Thought he was decent second half, nobody was very good first half.

He's technically very good, and shows some lovely bits of skill in almost every game. One point last night he sent two of their guys for a hot dog around the box. Just missing that final ball being sharp enough.

We've seen enough of him to know he's got it in the locker though.

 

[west indie]

For me, the only issue I have with Kulusevski ATM, is his lack of end product and his unwillingness to quickly play the ball in.

We know he has the end product in him from his 1st 6 months here and if he can get back to that, he is a nailed on starter IMO, as like you say, having 2 wingers that are completely different makes us hard to defend against.

If he doesn't improve, I would want to bring in an upgrade RW but would still keep as back up to Maddison/different option on the RW over Lo Celso.

Spurs9 Johnson and Deki are the wingers for the RW, so can't see the club splashing out on that position unless Deki is moved as an 8, 10 or upfront. We saw a brief glimpse of Johnson making a dart and being found by Bissouma against Sheff Utd but the goal was ruled out. Deki is a good player but upfront we need to find a better balance to take the scoring pressure off Son & Madders

 

[Fergus]

In last night's match thread people saying we can upgrade on Deki, is that a wide spread belief?
I'm genuinely surprised by this he is a quality player. He isn't flashy but there's a reason he's never taken off his work ethic is unreal. He has a great relationship with Porro on the right. He is also a very real option to go up front like he did against Luton if we need someone to hit up top and run a defence.
He is not lightning quick but he is so physically strong as a runner he gets away from defenders using his strength and skill.
There's a number of starters I would be looking to upgrade before him.

Well said. The guy is 23 years old FFS. Do people here really think he's reached his peak already and can't improve on or modify aspects of his game? It would be better to judge him after a full season under Ange.