Tottenham have missed a creative spark in the midfield in the absence of Dejan Kulusevski.
Thomas Frank has been stripped of the pleasure of properly coaching Kulusevski due to injury.
Kulusevski has been out of action for Spurs since undergoing surgery on his knee in May after coming off within the first 20 minutes of Tottenham’s 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace last season.
But the midfielder will now give Frank a lot to think about as he eyes his return to the pitch.
Dejan Kulusevski return to the pitch in next three months
Kulusevski wasn’t expected to return to individual training at Tottenham before mid-December.
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He left Tottenham to join his national team for the international break, but is hopeful of returning to the fold soon.
As reported by Fotbollskanalen on Saturday, 6 September, Kulusevski has stated that he is confident of taking to the pitch in two or three months.
The attacking midfielder was having a good season for Tottenham before he sustained his injury. Kulusevski scored seven goals and provided four assists in 2391 minutes played in the Premier League during the 2024/25 season.
In creativity in the midfield was a huge miss for Spurs during the tail end of last season, and was an issue during their more recent defeat to Bournemouth under Frank.
Last season, from an 81 per cent passing accuracy, he created 2.45 chances per 90 for the Lilywhites while recording 0.15 in expected assists. Kulusevski completed 1.43 successful dribbles but had a dribble success rate of 34.9 per cent.
His keen eye for goals are something else Spurs have been missing. From 0.16 in expected goals, Kulusevski scored 0.26 per 90. This is a large overperformance, which indicates he is capable of creating and scoring his own chances.
As such, Frank will already be thinking up ways to fit him into his squad this season.
How does Dejan Kulusevski compare to Xavi Simons?
The biggest decision for Frank will be deciding whether to field Kulusevski or Xavi Simons in the attacking midfield.
Simons arrived at Tottenham as both a market opportunity and a replacement for James Maddison. It was suggested that his arrival could usurp Maddison’s place in the starting eleven upon his return. But it now seems that Kulusevski could be at a greater risk.
According to DataMB, last season, Kulusevski excelled in key passes, recording 98.9 per 90, while Simons recorded 53.5. In terms of carrying, the Swede excelled once again with 99.5 carries to Simons’ 88.4.
However, it must be noted that both had different roles on the pitch, with Simons undertaking more of an attacking role. As such, the way they have been compared and who they have been compared to reflects this.
Compared to other attackers, Simons registered 90.5 non-penalty goals per 90, which indicates he could be as much, if not more, of a goalscoring threat than Kulusevski.
Therefore, while the Swede may be more polished, Simons has the advantage of time. With Kulusevski sidelined for at least two months, the Dutchman has time to cement his place as a starter.