Tottenham Hotspur crashed to a 4-3 defeat against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday evening.
The North London giants did well to come back from 3-0 down to level the scores in injury time but they conceded a late goal in added time and will be thoroughly disappointed to have come away empty-handed from the game.
The Tottenham defence put on a disastrous performance against Liverpool and the home side raced to a 3-0 lead within 15 minutes.
Former Premier League defender and popular pundit Gary Neville has now slammed the performance of Cristian Romero against Liverpool on his podcast.
The 25-year-old Argentine international is undoubtedly the best defender at the club right now, but he has been quite poor in his last few outings. Romero’s positioning and decision-making have cost his side dearly against Newcastle United and Liverpool.
The Argentine is an aggressive defender who likes to venture forward and win the ball back with his outstanding tackling ability and interceptions. However, his decisions have proven to be rash in the last two games and Neville feels that he has left his teammates down. Romero’s decision to move out of position has left spaces behind him for the opposition attackers to exploit.
“When he first got in the team, Romero, I thought he looked calm and composed, but there’s something just triggered in his mind – he’s trying to win every ball, he goes running into areas.
“What you have to remember when you’re going to be like that – when you’re going be that rash – you’re making it incredibly difficult for the players alongside you because then they’ll have no idea what you’re going to do as a defender.
“That’s how you look at good defenders or good defensive partnerships – they understand each other. He’s not thinking about his teammates right now. He’s just trying to look good.
“Sometimes fans see that and go, ‘Oh look at him, he’s showing aggression, he’s trying to win the ball.’
“No, you need to think, ‘You’re not thinking about your team. You’re letting your teammates down with performances like that.'”
Spurs were duly punished for their defensive vulnerabilities and they could have easily conceded more goals yesterday. Romero’s rash tackle ended up handing Liverpool a penalty in the first half as well.
Champions League qualification seems beyond Tottenham now and the north London giants should look to finish the season as strongly as possible before they can re-group in the summer.
