Tottenham have a ‘secret weapon’ that could give Ange Postecoglou perfect plan B
Alejo Veliz outperformed his Tottenham Hotspur counterparts in the air last season
VAR was the center of attention when Tottenham Hotspur stabbed a dagger into Liverpool’s hearts last month.
Joel Matip’s own goal sent North London into raptures after a grueling eight minutes of stoppage time. In the press conferences that followed, Jurgen Klopp lost his cool and demanded that the game be replayed after Luis Diaz’s first-half goal was incorrectly overturned.
Alejo Veliz, a summer signing for Spurs, made his club debuts among the turmoil. a late-game cameo
never going to alter the course of history, but it did give supporters a chance to see their $13 million man.
Veliz is made of a different material than graceful South American forwards like Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero, who have wowed the Premier League with their skill and finesse. Adrian Dezotti, his previous coach at Rosario Central, provided some insight into the 20-year-old’s qualities.
“Alejo is really intelligent but also very cunning, mischievous,” he said to The Athletic. He is quite cunning and has several tricks in his sleeve. He is a quick thinker and a strategist. When we finished third in the league that year, I can only think of one game, a really challenging road game against Lanus.
“When one of their strikers made a solo break, we were up 2-1. He left our defenders behind as he sprinted from half way and appeared certain to score. Alejo whistled next, pretending to be the referee who had stopped the match. One of our center backs stole the ball when the striker halted.
“Their coach lost it and yelled at the official. They missed the goal, and we prevailed 3-2 in the end. That demonstrated how he had a roguish, comedic side and how intently he was watching the match.
“He wasn’t even close to the action, yet he contributed in some way to help us win a challenging game. It was a daring step. The Lanus coach wanted to kill him.
