Former Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara did not hold back in his criticism of his former club’s performance in their FA Cup defeat to Sheffield United.
O’Hara was particularly scathing of Tottenham’s defense, claiming that the back three on paper is “not good enough” to win the FA Cup.
Tottenham’s hopes of ending their trophy drought were dashed by a 1-0 defeat to Sheffield United, leaving the Champions League as their only remaining hope for silverware this season. They trail AC Milan 1-0 on aggregate in the competition.
In his assessment of Tottenham’s performance, O’Hara was critical of Richarlison, stating that he was not worth the £60m that Tottenham paid for him. While acknowledging the Brazilian’s goalscoring record for his national team and his impact at Everton, O’Hara questioned his ability to step up for Tottenham.
Speaking to TalkSport (via HITC), he said:
“No I don’t (think he is worth £60m).”
“But his goalscoring record for Brazil is really good. At Everton, he basically kept them up single- handedly. He was a positive coming into the team. You can’t play Harry Kane every minute of every game.
“There has to be a time where the man needs a rest. Other players have to step in and do a job for you.”
“You’ve got Richarlison, Son and Lucas in your side. You expect to create chances, take nothing away from Sheffield united. Son is miles off it,”
O’Hara also criticised Tottenham’s defense, claiming that the back three of Ben Davies, Eric Dier, and Davinson Sanchez is “not good enough” to win the FA Cup. He acknowledged that Davies and Dier were solid players who worked hard, but felt that the defense as a whole was lacking in quality.
He said:
“Ben Davies is solid. He works hard, I like him. Dier is the same, Davinson Sanchez. But if you look at that back three on paper, when you’re realistic about your chances of winning the FA Cup, that back three is not good enough.”
In addition to his criticisms of Tottenham’s players, O’Hara was also scathing of their performance as a team, describing it as “Spursy.” He felt that there was a lack of determination, resilience, and passion in the team’s display against Sheffield United.
He added: “(From Tottenham there was) no determination, no resilience, no passion. It was Spursy. So Spursy.”
Tottenham’s only remaining hope for silverware this season is in the Champions League, where they face an uphill battle to overturn their 1-0 deficit against AC Milan. Their only other chance of success will be to finish in the top four of the Premier League.
