There are very, very few Tottenham Hotspur players who come out of this 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League relegation battle with any credibility intact, but by far the most disappointing performance of the afternoon has to go to starting striker Dominic Solanke, who inexplicably did not get hooked off for a full 90 minutes of disastrous football.
Tottenham could not muster anything against Forest, and while Solanke eventually got a couple of shots off and moved the ball about, it was too little and too late. Despite Spurs building the attack around the No. 9, the man who looked like the team's star up top not but a few weeks ago was suddenly nowhere to be found.
Spurs are starting to realize that when they need him most, their bloated 65 million pound signing is nowhere to be found. Even at the time, Tottenham fans should have been skeptical about a journeyman striker from Bournemouth living up to the task of being the club's most expensive signing of all time, and while he was a bit flat in his first season at the N17, he did play a key role in winning the Europa League.
Dominic Solanke was woeful against Nottingham Forest
Again, this season, he had his moments, too, dominating Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League. Now, though, Solanke is back to being bad, and Spurs fans have to wonder if a purple patch for a few weeks was any indication of his quality or if this is simply where his quality truly lies - as a Yo Yo player who oscillates between a passable Premier League striker and an outright disaster.
In a must win matchup against Nottingham Forest with a large part of Tottenham's very future hanging in the balance, Dominic Solanke may have shown his true colors by playing as poorly as he did. Solanke was not without chances, opportunity, or even help from young gem Mathys Tel, and though he was chosen to continue over Richarlison, he let his coach Igor Tudor and his fans down.
The harsh truth on Solanke is that he's not good enough. No matter how you dress it or when he goes on a hot streak, Solanke cannot consistently deliver the goods for Spurs. He is well rounded without being skilled enough to truly elevate the team. And we all know he does not have it in his locker to be a consistent 20 goal striker.