Tottenham, is this Santiago Gimenez even worth the hassle?

By Alessandro Schiavone in Sittard

Fortuna Sittard 0-1 Feyenoord Rotterdam

Goal: Hancko

Tottenham target Santiago Gimenez was once the most-talked about footballer in the Eredivisie. And he still is... albeit not exactly because he is still setting the league on fire like in the beginning of the season.

Because the Mexican drew another blank in Feyenoord's 1-0 win over Fortuna Sittard, having extended his scoreless streak to five games now.

The red flags had been there long before a ball was kicked as Gimenez failed to take part in his side's 6-0 goal festival against bitter rivals Ajax a week ago. For someone who was once scoring for fun that was quite astonishing.

Today he delivered another proof that he's stuck in a rut having had only 16 ball contacts in 67 minutes and failed to muster a single shot on goal. Worryingly he was stopped in his tracks by Sittard's defenders each time he tried to charge forward.

In the grand scheme of things, Gimenez did very little to enhance his case that he's the right man to add to Tottenham's attacking options. In fact, quite similarly to Erling Haaland he's pretty useless for the team when he doesn't score as he offers little in terms of hold-up play and doesn't exactly screen his team's midfield when the opponents plays out from the back.

What was initially viewed as a natural blip after a red-hot form and hard-to-maintain Midas Touch, has now translated into a genuine confidence crisis.

Gimenez looks like a player sinking deeper and deeper into quicksand and someone who is crying out for a couple of goals to end on a high. Only this way will he put himself back in the shop window.

Yet for interested suitors the 22-year old's sudden could be great news though with his £76-80million price tag plummeting.

But a potential summer capture could have Vincent Janssen written all over it for Ange Postecoglou. There would have been doubts as to whether he is the right man to lead the attack even if he had kept scoring, let alone now. Tottenham need a centre-forward who is more than just a finisher, someone who can create depth by dragging the defenders out of their backline which then enables the wingers to do run riot in open space. Like Harry Kane once did. And Gimenez isn't that sort of player but more a classic no.9 who lurks in the box and applies the finishing touch. Or who used to do just that.

Because let' put it this way, if his performances were a job interview he'd hardly be hired on the spot right now.