Jan Paul van Hecke has given a blunt verdict on Tottenham’s dreadful start to the Premier League season, and he also seemed to take a dig at teammate Andy Robertson over Aston Villa’s opening goal.
The Dutch centre-back, who signed from Brighton for £52million in the summer, called Spurs’ performances unacceptable as Roberto De Zerbi’s side still look for a first league win. Saturday’s 3-2 home defeat to Villa, along with other results, left Tottenham bottom of the table.
The Robertson incident
Van Hecke seemed to blame the former Liverpool defender for a costly moment before Villa scored. Captain Micky van de Ven had gone off for treatment, leaving Spurs briefly a man down. Robertson kept the ball in play instead of sending it out for a corner, Villa won it back, and Johan Manzambi scored to make it 1-0.
Speaking to Dutch outlet Algemeen Dagblad, as reported by Sport Witness, Van Hecke said that with only ten players on the pitch, the smarter move is to put the ball out and wait for Van de Ven to return.
Frustration with the team
The 24-year-old admitted the squad had expected things to go differently, especially after so much summer spending. He said the way they play and concede goals is unacceptable, and that the way the team’s energy fades during matches is simply wrong.
What’s next
De Zerbi will hope the international break lets his players regroup and fix their problems. Tottenham’s next league game is at Old Trafford against Manchester United on October 10. Van Hecke has meanwhile linked up with the Netherlands, who open their Nations League campaign against rivals Germany on Thursday.
