Alan Shearer didn’t hold back in criticizing Lucas Bergvall’s role in one of Brentford’s goals during Tottenham’s rough Premier League season-opener.
After a summer of buildup and hope around Spurs, Saturday’s result hit painfully close to home for the fanbase. Roberto De Zerbi’s side put in a poor showing as Brentford cruised to a 3-0 win at the Gtech Community Stadium. Things were bad enough that De Zerbi made two substitutions at the break, pulling Bergvall off. Just days earlier, the 20-year-old had been reassured by his manager that he still had a future at the club despite transfer talk — but his flat display against Brentford may now have the club’s hierarchy second-guessing that stance.
Shearer goes in on Bergvall
Even before kickoff, eyebrows were raised over De Zerbi’s choice to start Bergvall instead of other midfield options — especially with Mateus Fernandes and Rodrigo Bentancur both on the bench (and both eventually brought on for the whole second half), proving the manager had alternatives he chose not to use initially.
Bergvall simply didn’t deliver in the first half. The moment that drew the most attention came in the buildup to Brentford’s second goal: trying to be clever, Bergvall tried nutmegging the ball past Mathias Jensen in a challenge, but lost the ball instead, letting Jensen drive forward. Jensen’s shot was saved, but the loose ball fell to Vitaly Janelt, who tapped home from close range to make it 2-0.
On Match of the Day, Alan Shearer didn’t mince words about Bergvall’s part in the goal, questioning his judgment and, specifically, his reluctance to simply win the ball cleanly in that key moment — adding fuel to the criticism already building around the youngster’s performance.
A rough night by the numbers
It wouldn’t be fair to pin the whole loss on one young player, but Bergvall’s stats tell a tough story. Per FotMob, he created zero chances, had no shots on target, was directly responsible for a goal-conceding error, and managed just one pass into the final third.
His attacking output was equally sparse — just a single touch inside Brentford’s box, and his one attempted cross didn’t come off. He lost the ball once, won only one tackle, and came out on top in just two of his four ground duels. His lone successful dribble did little to shift the momentum of a frustrating opening half. In total, he had only 27 touches before being hauled off at halftime.
A tough call looms for De Zerbi
Bergvall gets a chance to bounce back in Wednesday’s League Cup clash with Charlton — a good opportunity to put Saturday behind him and remind De Zerbi why he’s trusted. But the stakes rise considerably when Newcastle visit the following weekend. With Fernandes and Bentancur both fit and available, De Zerbi now has real options in midfield, and after this showing, he may hesitate to throw Bergvall straight back into such a big Premier League fixture.
The message for Bergvall is simple: bounce back fast, silence the doubters, and justify De Zerbi’s continued faith in him.
