Ange Postecoglou issues fiery defence of under-fire Tottenham star - "He's not useless"
Tottenham's Timo Werner has found himself in the spotlight having fired blanks so fire this season but his manager is adamant he'll come good as he rejected the criticism
by Samuel Meade · The MirrorAnge Postecoglou has jumped to the defence of Timo Werner amid criticism over his form in front of goal.
The ex-Chelsea man is spending another season on loan in north London but is yet to show the prolific qualities he did previously in Germany. Werner didn't last long in Blue before they sent him back to RB Leipzig, but the Tottenham boss is confident he has a quality player on his hands.
Werner missed two golden opportunities during Tottenham's 3-0 success over Manchester United last weekend and was again denied in a one-on-one scenario when Tottenham played Ferencvaros in the Europa League on Thursday. Postecoglou though has likened the German to Brennan Johnson before he began enjoying his purple patch. The Welshman deleted his social media several weeks ago in light of constant criticism and has since scored in five successive games.
The Australian said: "It was 14 days ago those questions were asked of Brennan. It's where we're at in this world. We just think, 'he's missed two chances, so he's hopeless'. No, he's not hopeless. All footballers at this level are very, very good footballers. In terms of his general play, I think his last two games have been really good for us. He's been taking on his players, getting in the right areas.
He also added: "Yes, goals help. We've seen that with Brennan. But that doesn't mean he's not a good player and that's where I get really annoyed when they put everything on that moment to say he's not a good player. Of course he's a good player. He's a fantastic player. Scoring goals would help him, would help us, yes. But we'll persevere with him because I still think he's contributing to the team."
Dominic Solanke, as well as Johnson, was questioned in the opening weeks but the new frontman at Tottenham has since found his goalscoring touch and has just been named in the England squad with Postecoglou keen to underline how quickly it can all change.
Werner remains very much in the first-team picture and could get the opportunity to silence his doubters when the north Londoners take on Brighton this weekend. Since returning to English football with Tottenham the German has scored just twice - both of those strikes coming last year.
His best season when he was on Chelsea's books saw him score on 12 occasions. Those numbers though are a far cry from the kind of figures he posted whilst in the Bundesliga. His most impressive year at Leipzig saw Werner hit a career high 34 in 2019/20.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Sky Sports deal
Sky Sports launches 'lowest price' Premier League package
£43 (was £52)
Sky has slashed the price of its Sky Sports, Sky Stream, Sky TV and Netflix bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £216 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
With Ultra HD included at no extra cost, football fans can enjoy the 2024/25 season with crystal clear picture quality.