World News – GB – Who are Tottenham’s fringe players on Jose Mourinho’s hit list?

Posted: 2:00 p.m. GMT, November 1, 2020 | Update: 16:53 GMT, November 1, 2020

Jose Mourinho has made it clear which Tottenham players he can and cannot trust after their miserable 1-0 loss to Antwerp

The Spurs boss couldn’t hide his disappointment over a number of the club’s fringe players after their dismal performance in Belgium on Thursday night

Mourinho made nine changes to his starting XI for the Europa League clash, giving players like Dele Alli, Harry Winks, Carlos Vinicius and Steven Bergwijn the chance to shine against less opposition

But as long as the opportunity was there, neither of them seized it – leaving Mourinho to make a flurry of changes at half-time in an attempt to recover a result

The second half appearances of Son Heung-min, Harry Kane and Erik Lamela were not enough to save a point at Bosuilstadion, the damage already done following Lior Refaelov’s winning goal in the first half

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When Mourinho was asked about Alli’s performance afterwards, he refused to get caught up in the player’s individual criticism, but didn’t hold back when it came to criticizing the dismal performance of the team

« I don’t want to analyze individually, » Mourinho told reporters after the game. « It’s fair to say that players with poor performance influence the team but also a team influence individual performance

His team produced one of their worst performances under the Portuguese since joining last year

‘It’s not for me to individualize and bring some names to the table You can do it yourself You always tell me « why this player isn’t playing, why this player isn’t playing it doesn’t « – maybe you don’t ask me this for a few weeks because you have the answer

‘You know which is our best team I always like to think that the players deserve an opportunity We have a great team with a lot of good players It’s my responsibility to give them opportunities but it is also their opportunity to seize the chance with both hands and ask for more Tonight shows that my future choices are going to be very easy ‘

Mourinho’s overwhelming assessment shows one thing clear: he knows his best XI and who he can count on to move forward

But who are the players who made his future selections “very easy”? Here, Sportsmail takes a lot from Spurs players who need to improve quickly if they are to make their way to the first team

Chances have been hard to come by for Dele Alli this season and it looks like they will be even harder to come by after Thursday’s performance

The England international may now regret the possibility of leaving the club on loan in the summer window as it is clear that the minutes are drying up under Mourinho

After getting his first start in a month, Alli disappeared when it mattered most, as he left no marks on the game.

Before being one of four men to be hooked at half-time, Alli didn’t make a single attempt on goal, he did a zero percent duel and made no tackles , while he lost possession of an 11 narcotic times

This was the second time in three starts that Alli failed to return for the second half after starting the game, leaving a lot of doubt about his future at the club

His start in life under Mourinho was very promising but now the Portuguese boss will be wondering if ‘Dele’s brother’ is back on the scene

As Alli has fallen down the pecking order in Spurs’ attacking ranks, Bergwijn has the unenviable task of competing against players like Son, Erik Lamela, Lucas Moura and Gareth Bale for a spot on the wing

The Dutchman was given a starting spot against Antwerp but struggled to break through the stubborn defense of Ivan Leko, who saw him join Alli in the stands for the second half

Although both are old on their side, the chance to impress Mourinho on a badly needed night is now over and Bergwijn faces an uphill battle in an already heavily populated position.

His performance on Thursday will now leave no doubt in Mourinho’s mind about Bergwijn’s role in the squad – an under-impactor and a good rotating player

But if the ex-PSV player wants a bigger role in the squad, he’ll need to have more impact when given the opportunity

When the Colombian lined up for Ajax in the 2017 Europa League final against Mourinho’s Manchester United, he was targeted as the ‘weak link’ in the Dutch defense

Recent performances will not have helped his cause as he appeared shaky in periods against an Antwerp side who could have scored three or four goals on the night

Sanchez managed to redeem himself by making a goal block after a terrible pass back to Hugo Lloris, but he has been left exposed on several occasions, raising the question of whether he will have more opportunities starting in the premier league

Eric Dier and Toby Aldwereireld are Mourinho’s favorite center-backs and have nailed starting spotsSo it remains to be seen if Sanchez will get a regular streak of minutes in the near future

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is the type of midfielder Spurs have been calling out for some time – but the Dane’s arrival came at the expense of Harry Winks’ place in the squad

The England international put on an uninspiring display against Antwerp and failed to make a lasting impression in the 90 minutes he spent on the pitch

He almost gave Antwerp a second goal after the break, when his lazy return to Lloris was superbly blocked by Sanchez, as previously mentioned

Winks also fights for minutes with Tanguy Ndombele, whose rapid build-up has pushed Winks lower in the midfielder’s pecking order, with the Frenchman preferred in a pivot given he is much more direct to the taste of Mourinho

It’s safe to say that Mourinho has a soft spot for Winks since taking over from Mauricio Pochettino last November, but with performances like this against Antwerp, Winks will have to do more than rely on good feeling for return to start XI

This might be one of the toughest inclusions on this list, but it’s fair to say there’s a lot more work to be done for new boy Carlos Vinicius

The Brazilian impressed on his debut last week after notching two assists against LASK in the club’s first group game in the Europa League

His bonding game with Lucas and Son has earned him rave reviews and many can’t wait to see him again in action

However, his heroic exploits should not be repeated, the Brazilian trailed at halftime in Belgium to allow Son 45 minutes to make the difference

It’s far too early to judge how fair Vinicius will be at Tottenham, but Mourinho will be counting on him given the busy schedule this season

Another addicted player at half-time, Lo Celso seemed out of step in the first half

As the Argentine returns to fitness after muscle injury, he hopes to have more of an impact when he has more minutes in the days and weeks to come

Lo Celso did enough to impress Mourinho at Tottenham to earn a place in his starting XI but injuries plagued him

While not a concern like others on this list, Lo Celso will know his standards can’t go wrong if he can be counted on this year

Giovani Lo Celso returns from injury but was one of the men to be hooked at half-time

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Tottenham Hotspur FC, José Mourinho, Premier League, Dele Alli, Gareth Bale, Manchester United FC