‘Frightening’… Kieran Trippier says player Tottenham sold for £11m was up there with Lionel Messi
Who is the Greatest Of All Time in football?
Since as long as we can remember, people have been debating this, and everyone from Lionel Messi to Johan Cruyff to Pele has had a different response.
Nevertheless, Kieran Trippier provided an other response while appearing on the Sky Sports Premier League YouTube channel.
The Newcastle player was asked to name the first player that sprung to mind when discussing the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) during a word association game.
Trippier selected former Tottenham teammate Mousa Dembele as the greatest player he has ever seen, ignoring players like Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Dembele the GOAT
Trippier mentioned the Belgian who cost £11 million to leave Spurs.
“All right, here’s The GOAT,” Someone asked Trippier.
“I’m going to knock Dembele off.” You could certainly mention Messi or Ronaldo, but this guy was the greatest of all time when we were teammates at Tottenham. To be honest, it was terrifying what he could do with a football during practice and games. He’s undoubtedly one of them whenever someone asks who the best player they’ve ever played with, Trippier said.
High praise
From a player who has seen the best of the greatest in recent years, like Trippier, this is enormous praise.
Even though Trippier has played alongside some of the biggest names in football, including Harry Kane and Luis Suarez, Dembele still stands out as one of the finest, which is a testament to his skill.
The Belgian was undoubtedly a captivating player for Tottenham, and even though he didn’t receive the recognition he deserved at the time, everyone who shared the field with him at that time can attest to his incredible skill.
READ ALSO:
‘Piece of cake’ – Ange Postecoglou insists Spurs will not make any excuses despite injuries
Ange Postecoglou has said he will not make any excuses over the coming weeks despite being without some key players, insisting that the team is focused on winning matches.
Following the London derby, Tottenham’s injury list has significantly expanded, with James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, and Richarlison joining Ryan Sessegnon, Manor Solomon, and Ivan Perisic—long-term absentees—on the treatment table.
To make matters worse, Destiny Udogie is suspended for this afternoon’s match at Molineux, and the Lilywhites will also be missing Cristian Romero for the following three games.
Postecoglou, nevertheless, doesn’t think the team will use that as a justification for failing to win all three points in the Black Country.
Tottenham have an injury crisis on their hands
The Australian told Football.London: “To be fair we’ve had plenty of excuses already we could have used. I know people seem to think it has been a fairly smooth ride so far, but I can assure it hasn’t been. We’ve had plenty of reasons not to be where we are, plenty of excuses in terms of the disruptions we’ve had already and some of the challenges we’ve had to face.
“Fair to say we won’t be using any kind of reason for us not to perform at our best tomorrow. Tough opponent, Wolves are a very good side and Gary O’Neil is an outstanding young manager. We’re going to get really tested, but we’ve been tested in every game and it is up to us to match that.”
Many criticized Postecoglou for sticking to a high defensive line and pressing Chelsea despite being reduced to nine players, arguing that he was being pragmatistically minded rather than foolish (ESPN FC).
The 58-year-old has now asserted, nonetheless, that he took this stance in order to offer his team the best opportunity of winning.
“Trust me, I don’t try to lose games on purpose,” he declared. I’m determined to try to win a football match. I appreciate that it’s a little out of the ordinary, but you can’t go from Australia to the Premier
League by being conventional and trust me, this isn’t the first time people have questioned my madness.
“It’s gotten me where I am, and the only reason I keep doing it is because I think it’s the only way we can win. On Monday night, there were moments when the players thought that was the only way to keep us in the game and try to gain the much-needed equalizer.
Certain elements of it most likely contributed to Chelsea’s success in breaking through. On the other hand, I thought the guys’ intent and mindset were excellent. Instead of going back to some other strategies that, you know, can also be effective, they wanted to try to play our football again.
Postecoglou mocked claims that Tottenham will take on Wolves in their first significant test of the season, pointing out that the team has faced a great deal of hardship.
In response to the question of whether this afternoon’s match serves as Spurs’ first true test, he said, “The first test? Saying goodbye to this competition’s greatest player the day before the season begins? Nope, easy peasy. We lost players to injuries that nearly ended their seasons. No, don’t give it any thought.
“My entire career has been filled with testing, but I’ve come to the conclusion that there are only two possible conditions for a manager: under siege or it’s approaching. I know that nothing goes smoothly every day. Challenges are a constant in the world.
“I just try to make sure I don’t change my state of being. It is what it is. I try and focus on what’s important – we’re still building a team and an environment where people want to win. It’s not going to change from week to week.
“It’s fairly extreme even for a person of my experience to lose five players in one game, but that doesn’t mean it’s any worse than anything we faced so far, and it’s being a bit disrespectful to this group of players to say that everything has gone their way, because it hasn’t. From day one there’s been a real resilience and character in the
group, and they will need to perform it once again. It is present already.
We are far less dependent on individual brilliance to save us than we were under Antonio Conte or Jose Mourinho because to the approach we currently employ.
Nevertheless, it is not ideal to lose so many key players at once, and Wolves will undoubtedly be itching for blood.
A goal within the first 20 minutes will help to ease the players’ nerves and remove some of the early pressure from the contest.