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Gary Neville criticises what Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke did in North London derby against Arsenal
Dominic Solanke had a golden chance to prove why Tottenham Hotspur spent a hefty sum to sign him in the summer with the striker returning to the starting lineup as Ange Postecoglou’s side faced Arsenal in the North London derby.
Spurs made a really impressive start to the North London derby, with David Raya having to make two good saves to keep the home side at bay. Dominic Solanke♕ meanwhile, had looked extremely bright in the opening stages, producing a couple of nice touches which opened the door for his teammates.
🤡Just before the 15 minute mark however, it was Solanke who was teed up perfectly – following a terrible mistake from the Arsenal defence as they looked to play out from the back.
💛Solanke found himself on the edge of the Arsenal penalty area, seemingly with plenty of space around him. It seemed almost certain that the 27-year-old would either get a strike away or slide the ball across the box as Arsenal frantically tried to recover.
Gary Neville criticises Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke
However, Solanke took a fraction too long which allowed William Salibaꦬ to recover and get the challenge in. Against this Arsenal team, it was not the kind of opportunity that Solanke could pass up so easily.
And speaking on Sky Sports (broadcast on 15/9; 14:15), Gary Nevilleᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ was extremely critical of the summer signing for not testing Raya.
𒀰“He’s got to do better than that. It’s a big moment for Solanke, I said he’d started the game well. But he had, I reckon, six or seven metres to himself when that ball broke to him,” he said.
🐟“They close down well, Spurs, the touch in there, it’s touch, hit and he takes so much time. You just don’t get that level of time, it gets stuck under his feet and has to take that second touch.
Some really positive signs
ไIt would have been no surprise if that moment was on Solanke’s mind for a little while, particularly as he waits to open his account for his new club. While he still had a lot to do to beat Raya, a confident striker would have surely taken the shot a lot sooner.
However, he can take a lot of positives from his first-half performance at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with Solanke causing problems for the likes of Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes. And there were signs that that relationship with the likes of Heung-min Son and James Maddison is developing nicely.
🌠But when Tottenham have spent so much on their striker, it is fair to think that he should have done so much better in that crucial moment.