Tottenham attacker Timo Werner has come under fire for his underwhelming performance in the 1-1 draw against Leicester City in their Premier League opener on Monday.
Despite Spurs dominating much of the match, they could only manage a point at the King Power Stadium, leaving fans and pundits frustrated.
Pedro Porro’s first-half goal gave Tottenham an early lead, but Jamie Vardy equalised for Leicester with a close-range header, making the most of their first real chance of the game.
Tottenham’s failure to capitalise on their dominance was highlighted by Werner’s ineffective cameo off the bench.
Speaking on ESPN, Craig Burley didn’t hold back in his assessment of Werner’s performance, criticising the German international for his lack of impact.
He said:
“You say about making an impact off the bench, I’ll tell you another one for me, and I look at him as an international footballer of some repute who has been around the block. Is someone going to tell me what the hell Timo Werner does?”
“He came into that game and he looked frightened stiff of the full-back. He never runs in behind, he never gets the cross in. I don’t give two stuffs what he did in Germany, he’s not at Leipzig.”
Burley further questioned Werner’s confidence and assertiveness on the pitch, saying:
“I’ve seen it before from him, whenever a ball is played up to him, if a defender is close to him he’s like a frightened schoolkid, he taps it off to the side, five yards, it’s a lack of responsibility.”
Tottenham extended Werner’s loan for another year after he impressed last season, but his slow pre-season and poor showing against Leicester have raised concerns.
With Spurs set to compete on multiple fronts this season, including European competitions, manager Ange Postecoglou will need Werner to quickly rediscover his form and step up when called upon.
