Alasdair Gold says Mathys Tel could ‘really flourish’ under Roberto De Zerbi at Tottenham Hotspur following the Italian’s appointment on a five-year deal.
The 46-year-old manager officially replaced Igor Tudor on Tuesday and is preparing for his first game in charge, a visit to Sunderland in the Premier League next weekend.
While there has been a lot of guessing about how De Zerbi’s first Tottenham line-up could look, Gold predicts the Italian ‘will like’ Tel as the Frenchman suits his tactical approach.
Tel has three goals in 31 appearances in all competitions this season and started Spurs’ last three league games under Tudor, as well as both legs of their Champions League last-16 tie with Atletico Madrid.
Alasdair Gold: Tel Could Flourish Under De Zerbi
Gold, speaking on his YouTube channel, said De Zerbi’s tactical approach is based on ‘a lot of fast play’, which is why Tel could potentially flourish under the Italian.
“[De Zerbi] like speed up front, likes a lot of fast play. I think he'll like Mathys Tel, certainly could really flourish under him.”
Tel is one of the few Tottenham players who have managed to stay fit all season so far, although the forward did have to wait for his chance to impress.
The 20-year-old was rarely a starter under Thomas Frank before his sacking in February and was left out of Tottenham’s Champions League squad for the majority of the league phase.
Amid his limited playing time, Tel, who controversially claimed Frank 'didn't like him', was briefly linked with a loan exit in January, just six months after joining Spurs permanently from Bayern Munich on a six-year deal.
Tel spent the second part of last season on loan in north London and has nine goal contributions in 51 appearances for the club to date.
De Zerbi Facing Selection Headache
De Zerbi has been dealt an injury blow at Tottenham before even taking his first training session, after Senegal midfielder Pape Matar Sarr missed the match against Zambia on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old has suffered a shoulder injury that resulted in his absence, becoming the 10th injured Tottenham player ahead of De Zerbi’s first game in charge at Sunderland next weekend.
Wilson Odobert, James Maddison, Yves Bissouma, Guglielmo Vicario and Dejan Kulusevski are all looking set to miss the upcoming fixture at the Stadium of Light.
Mathys Tel, Mohammed Kudus, Rodrigo Bentancur and Ben Davies are in contention to make a return ahead of a crucial run of Premier League fixtures for relegation-threatened Spurs, who sit 17th with seven games left.