Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou says he is impressed with new signing Dominic Solanke’s qualities and determination to get back to playing at the highest level.
Spurs open their 2024-25 Premier League campaign at the King Power Stadium against Leicester City on Monday, and Postecoglou, while speaking to the media, heaped praise on Solanke’s attacking prowess ahead of his possible debut for the North London club.
“My role in all the signings is pretty small,” the Australian manager said. “I’ll just make the decision mate. So, I am the one that says yes or no. They’re here because I want them here, and Dom [Solanke] certainly fits that boat. And, no, it wasn’t one performance, I thought he did well against us.”
MATCHDAY! 🤍
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⏰ 8pm BST
#️⃣ #LEITOT pic.twitter.com/mAWjS0Zazh— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) August 19, 2024
The English forward, born to a Nigerian father, was Bournemouth’s unsung hero last season, scoring 19 goals and providing three assists in 38 Premier League matches. The 26-year-old finished last campaign with 21 goals and four assists in 41 games in all competitions.
His numbers from the last season, the best of his career in the Premier League so far, earmarked his attacking qualities, which caught Postecoglou’s attention.
“He [Solanke] gave us some real problems that a lot of struggling strikers in the league maybe didn’t give us…you know, his mobility and his movement was I thought really impressive.
“It’s no secret we love to press. And he’s got a great work ethic. And he scores goals. You know, he’s a presence and he scores different types of goals. I think the way we play sets us in. And I really like where he was in his career.
“You know. I said I’m a big one on kind of, understanding [a] person and their motivation. And, you know, he obviously was an outstanding young player. Got to some big clubs. But it never worked out for him. And you know, we’ve spoken about this already in this press conference. What do you do in that kind of a scenario. Do you just think, well, it’s never going to happen for me. Or do you work your way back in?” he added.
Spurs enjoyed a strong start to the 2023-24 campaign, but injuries to top players and a decline in form for some others saw them finish fifth, a spot outside of the top four as they missed out of the UEFA Champions League.
They, however, will be playing in the UEFA Europa League, alongside Manchester United as the Premier’s League’s representatives in the second-tier of the European club competition, and Postecoglou, in his second season, is pushing for improvements across board.
“As you said, we had a decent season last year,” he said. “We certainly improved on the season before, just on results alone.
“ But obviously we changed the football. You know, we had some really good moments, some moments when, you know, we had to work really hard to get results. And probably the back end of the season was pretty disappointing for us.
“So there’s a lot in there. But for us, if we can get improvement on that and more consistency. I think that gives us the opportunity and a platform to try and achieve something, which is what you go into every season trying to do,” the 58-year-old concluded.
