TBR Football understands that Mathys Tel is understandably disappointed by Thomas Frank’s decision to leave him out of Tottenham’s Champions League squad.
Fans were left baffled by Frank’s decision to omit Tel from Tottenham’s Champions League squad, given the North London club had just paid £30m to sign him.
Kota Takai, Radu Dragusin, Yves Bissouma, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Tel were the six senior players left out of Spurs’ squad for the group stages.
Dragusin, Maddison and Kulusevski are all recovering from injuries, and Bissouma is set to be sold, but for Tel and Takai, there is simply no room for either of them in the squad.
Exclusive: Mathys Tel
Thomas Frank has assured Mathys Tel that his omission from the squad is not a reflection of him as a player, but rather due to logistics, sources have told TBR Football’s chief correspondent, Graeme Bailey.
The North London club’s lack of homegrown and club-trained players meant that their squad for the competition was reduced from 25 to just 22 players.
The 20-year-old hasn’t played a great deal of football under Frank yet, playing a total of just 30 minutes in four matches.
Speaking about the situation, Bailey told TBR Football: “In terms of Tel, I am told that he was informed by Frank and was assured it was purely because of the logistics and Spurs losing the three places because of the lack of homegrown players.
“They fully sympathised with him and assured him that it was not a reflection on him, as such, just an issue with them only being able to register less than 20 outfield players.
The Frenchman could be picked for the knockout stages should Spurs make it through the group, but Dejan Kulusevski is likely to be first in line.
“The player is understandably disappointed, but the squad can and will be assessed again heading into the next round, so there is hope for him that he will be involved.”
Jamie O’Hara called Tel a ‘terrible signing’ is harsh, but question marks will be raised as to why Spurs spent £30m on him over the summer.
Savinho named in Man City’s Champions League squad
Tottenham transfer target Savinho has been named in Man City’s Champions League squad, which will be a blow for their hopes of signing him in January.
TBR Football understands that Tottenham plan to return for Savinho in the next window, but the Brazilian back in City’s European squad could complicate a deal further.
Spurs tried hard to convince the former Premier League champions to sell the winger, however, Pep Guardiola blocked Savinho from leaving.
The potential arrival of Savinho would further complicate plans to bring Tel back into the fold, and this would need to be considered when making transfers in the winter window.