Tottenham Hotspur fans are becoming increasingly frustrated with manager Thomas Frank's treatment of Mathys Tel this season. Now, Tel is far from the only young standout at the N17 who has been neglected by the underperforming manager, as gem center midfielder Lucas Bergvall and fellow French forward Wilson Odobert have also been oft overlooked by the Danish coach.
But Tel's case is particularly befuddling. Every time he plays, including a recent start against Sunderland, Tel is the main goal scoring attacking threat from the perspective of his mentality to shoot and create chances from nothing. Tel has the athletic and even technical traits Spurs are looking for in a young forward and is by far their best current left wing option.
And yet, the former Bayern Munich man rarely starts for Tottenham. Even at striker, he has scored game changing goals against Manchester United and Leeds United, but the highly inefficient and one dimensional Richarlison continues to hoard starts over him.
Tottenham could still lose Mathys Tel, though
Clubs around Europe have taken notice of Tel's plight, and the young French forward is now being linked with a potential loan move away from Tottenham this winter. Roma in Serie A have been linked, as have Galatasaray in the Turkish Super Lig, which was a transfer rumor that took many by surprise.
Could you imagine Mathys Tel joining Galatasaray on loan? What sort of prospect ends up at a Turkish giant meant more as a retirement home for players like, say, wantaway Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Yves Bissouma?
Well, according to a report from Florian Plettenberg of Sky Sports Germany, the transfer rumors linking Tel to Galatasaray are "wide of the mark". So Tottenham fans worried about potentially losing Tel to Galatasaray or even watching him spend six months on loan in the Turkish top flight won't have to be worried about that.
But while that is one bullet dodged for Tottenham in terms of losing Tel to an unideal location, Plettenberg and other transfer reporters have not fully denied the notion that Tel is disgruntled or could try to leave on loan to another club for more immediate playing time than what Thomas Frank can give him.
Honestly, Frank needs to shape up and get his act together. Tottenham do need a new left winger this January who can play right away and bring a veteran presence, but they also need Tel at striker and left winger in the here and now, too. Tel has so much future upside and can be a superstar, and if Frank is not willing to give him those minutes, maybe he really would push for a loan move.