Spurs must rue selling £20m star who can be “as effective as Declan Rice”

Tottenham Hotspur were forced to settle for a point at the AMEX on Saturday when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League.

Thomas Frank’s side had beaten West Ham United and Villarreal in their last two matches without conceding a goal, but they were unable to add to those wins with a third successive victory.

A late own goal from Jan Paul van Hecke ensured that the Lilywhites did not come away from the match without anything to show for their efforts.

Despite it being a fairly disappointing result, as they were almost beaten and only picked up one point, there were some positive performances across the pitch.

One player who caught the eye with his display in the middle of the park was summer signing Joao Palhinha, who started in the number six position for Spurs.

It was his fourth start of the Premier League season since signing on loan from Bayern Munich, and it is already clear what kind of player the club have brought in.

Why Joao Palhinha is not the perfect player for Spurs

Palhinha is an out-and-out defensive midfielder. If you were told to list the attributes you would want in a pure defensive midfielder, he has all of them.

The Portugal international is tall, mobile, strong, wins tackles well, competes in the air, and covers gaps in midfield. All of the things that you would associate with a defensive-minded midfielder.

So far this season, per Sofascore, Palhinha has averaged 4.2 tackles and interceptions per game and won 65% of his ground duels and 54% of his aerial duels in the Premier League, which is evidence of his defensive strength in the middle of the park.

However, despite getting on the scoresheet against Manchester City, the former Fulham star does leave a bit to be desired with his use of the ball.

The best number six types in world football are not pure defensive midfielders, because they are expected to dictate play and be impactful in possession as part of a team that wants to win the biggest prizes.

As you can see in the table above, Palhinha falls well short as a progressive passer in comparison to some of the best defensive or deep-lying midfielders, whether they play as a number six or a number eight, across Europe.

This does not mean that the Portugal international is a bad player, by any means, but his lack of progressive play in possession may be why Bayern were willing to send him out on loan in the first place.

Palhinha may not be the perfect player, therefore, to deploy in matches when Spurs are expected to be the dominant force and need to break teams down, but may be ideal in the biggest games, like against Manchester City, when they need backs-against-the-wall defending.

Spurs did once have a promising young player, though, who had the potential to be a defensive monster like Palhinha, but with the progressive passing to make him the club’s own version of Declan Rice.

Given what has happened to him in recent years, it may seem ridiculous to suggest, but Oliver Skipp could have been Tottenham’s own Rice in different circumstances.

Why Spurs may rue selling Oliver Skipp

The English number six came up through the youth ranks at Spurs and made a smattering of appearances for the first-team before going out on loan to Norwich City in the 2020/21 campaign.

Skipp played in 45 of Norwich’s 46 Championship matches that season, per Sofascore, and played a pivotal role in their promotion to the Premier League, winning the title in the process.

As you can see in the table above, the England U21 international provided quality as both a progressive passer and carrier, whilst also excelling defensively with his ability to make tackles and blocks in his own third.

After that season with the Canaries, former Spurs striker Paul Stewart claimed that he could be as effective as Rice, who was at West Ham United at the time and ranked well above Palhinha in the earlier table for progressive passes for Arsenal last season.

The pundit stated: “You know what, I’d like to see him do what Declan Rice does. I think he’s got that in him and I think he showed that at Norwich. The plaudits that have come out of East Anglia have been massive about Oliver Skipp. I think he can go on and be as effective as Declan Rice at West Ham.”

Unfortunately, Skipp only started 37 Premier League matches in the next three seasons combined, fewer league starts than he managed in one season with Norwich, which meant that the midfielder was unable to really hit his stride in North London.

Ange Postecoglou opted to part ways with the English midfielder in the summer of 2024, selling him to Leicester City, and that is a decision that they should regret.

Skipp has failed to impress with the Foxes, having been thrown into a season that ended in his club being relegated from the Premier League, but things could have been so different for him.

It is all hypothetical now, but what if the defensive midfielder had been given a real run of games to show what he could do after returning from that superb loan spell with Norwich? Maybe he would have become the club’s own version of Rice in the number six position, as a player who could progress play as well as disrupt it.

Instead of cashing in on him, Spurs could have given him a chance to nail down a place in the side and get his confidence back. Now, playing in the Championship, it seems like his career is heading in the wrong direction.