Tottenham have endured a rollercoaster of a season so far, impressing in cup competitions but playing out an incredibly poor campaign in the Premier League. As a result, they could remarkably win the Europa League whilst also finishing 17th, directly above the relegation zone.
Ange Postecoglou has made it no secret that he feels there are plenty of problems that need to be addressed in his squad, but his focus, as it stands, is firmly set on securing glory against Manchester United in Bilbao later this month.
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The Aussie boss will need his forwards to step up to the mark against the Red Devils if the club are to end their trophy drought - but there is one player Spurs got rid of whose contributions they could have done with this season. That man is winger Ivan Perisic.
The versatile Croatian, who can also be deployed as a full-back, left Spurs in January 2024 on loan to join his hometown club Hajduk Split following an injury-ridden opening few months to the season. However, the homecoming lasted just a matter of months and Persic mutually terminated his contract at the club last August.
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Aged 36, he has since resurrected his career since joining Eredivisie outfit PSV Eindhoven, recently bagging a hat-trick in his side’s 4-1 win over Fortuna Sittard before following up that performance last weekend with a goal and an assist against Feyenoord.
Perisic has scored 15 goals and registered 11 assists in all competitions for PSV, trumping the number of direct goal contributions that every Spurs forward has managed this campaign. Brennan Johnson has been Tottenham’s most influential forward in the final third, scoring 17 and assisting seven, but he remains two short of Perisic’s total.
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Dominic Solanke, James Maddison and Heung-min Son each have 23 direct goal contributions to their names this season, with Dejan Kulusevski on 21. With injuries continuing to rack up in north London, Postecoglou could be forced to rely on several of his fringe players to step up in the Europa League final and play key roles in the match.
Wilson Odobert, loanee Mathys Tel and Mikey Moore could all have a part to play at San Mames, with Kulusevski an injury doubt, Maddison ruled out for the remainder of the campaign and Son still working towards full fitness.