Tottenham Hotspur Head of Scouting Rob Mackenzie has made an interesting revelation about one underrated attribute Mohammed Kudus possesses.
Spurs faced some huge challenges over their previous two campaigns, including one major one, which was arguably the main reason why they finished in 17th place.
Tottenham endured a major injury crisis in each of the last two seasons, and at one point, they even had double-digit absentees.
Some may feel that it was down to their intense style of play, with Spurs completing more sprints per game than any Premier League side under Postecoglou.
Tottenham prioritised athleticism and fitness in their summer recruitment
Thomas Frank has said that he has put plans in place to avoid another injury crisis this season, and the Dane has certainly not been shy of rotating his squad at the start of the campaign.
Rob Mackenzie has now explained that the fitness record of players is something that Tottenham paid a lot of attention to while identifying their transfer targets in the summer.
He also made it clear that athleticism was another key factor in profiling players, which he insisted is now a prerequisite to succeed in the Premier League.
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Mackenzie told Training Ground Guru: “The Premier League has got to that point where almost everybody is an elite athlete first and foremost. It’s such an important part of the package.
“Even (Kalidou) Koulibaly, when he left Napoli to join Chelsea, he said in Serie A you can think and then you can run. In the Premier League you have to think while you run.
“If you look across Europe, across the world, there is nothing that compares to this, there just isn’t. The athleticism is remarkable. Unless you play one or two very specific positions and have an unbelievably high skill level and are exceptional technically, without athleticism you won’t make it.
“A coach will always want players who can play for him every week, even if he chooses to rotate. A Chief Executive will want to be trying to maximise the potential value generation of an asset.
“So the ability to have your players on the pitch regularly is a skill and can differentiate you from teams who are not able to do that. So again, it’s part of the profiling and assessment aspect of our process.”
Mohammed Kudus’ robustness was a key factor for Spurs
Mohammed Kudus has been Tottenham’s best player this season, with the Ghana international winning a lot of plaudits for his strength and his burst of pace in one-v-one situations.
Additionally, he has also completed 90 minutes in almost all of Tottenham’s Premier League games this season, and Mackenzie admitted that the Ghanaian’s fitness record is one of the main reasons why the Lilywhites were drawn to him.
Mackenzie added: “The perceived risk robustness of a player is something that we value very highly. Just as an example, if you were to consider someone like Muhammed Kudus, if you looked at his time at West Ham, outside of being called up for his national team and getting sent off against us and subsequently suspended, he missed two match days.
“He was never an unused sub – if available on the bench, he would always come on. This is a geyser who has found a way to keep himself fit and as a result, has already been one of our most played players. It’s a reflection on physical make-up and genetics, but it’s also a reflection on how professional they are.”