Tottenham vs Aston Villa: Richarlison offers welcome boost for Ange Postecoglou as fresh options emerge

Ange Postecoglou watches an awful lot of football by his own admission.

He is likely, therefore, to have tuned in last month when Aston Villa beat Bayern Munich on their return to the Champions League after a 40-year hiatus — the game’s only goal coming from substitute Jhon Duran, nine minutes after he had replaced Ollie Watkins.

The visit of Villa to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday sees Spurs welcome a team with a genuine Plan B in the striker position. Watkins was on fire last season and scored the goal that sent England to the European Championship Final, but Duran has eight goals in 14 games this term and even then can’t buy a place in Unai Emery’s starting XI.

Strength in depth is vital at any club, and that is why it could prove so valuable for Spurs over the coming weeks, including the winter period, that Richarlison is now back fit.

The Brazilian missed nine games with injuries to his ankle, knee, hip and lower back last season, and he has already been absent for six matches in the early months of this campaign after sustaining a calf injury in training in late August.

He is back now though, appearing off the bench in Tottenham’s last two league games and against Manchester City in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday, as well as scoring the game’s only goal in the Europa League win over AZ Alkmaar with a nerveless penalty.

Though he missed a golden chance in the City win in midweek, Richarlison showed at Watford and Everton and in fits and starts for Spurs last term that he can, when high on confidence, finish ruthlessly. As Postecoglou put it on Friday: “You can see he is getting back to the levels.”

That bodes well for Tottenham and for Postecoglou, who admitted regularly in the early weeks of the season that it was making things difficult not having Richarlison available to throw on late in games or to use as an alternative type of striker to £65million summer recruit Dominic Solanke.

Solanke has already returned to the England set-up after years out after a promising start to his Tottenham career, with Postecoglou “delighted” by his progress and insistent on Friday that “he is the perfect front man for us”.

Richarlison is unlikely to dislodge the 27-year-old from the starting XI, but his presence offers Postecoglou another and different option — Solanke a high-pressing runner in behind, Richarlison a little more direct and of a slightly more bullish frame. Late in the game against Crystal Palace last weekend was the first time both had led the line together. Though it didn’t get Spurs back into the game on the day, it is an option.

Solanke has scored three goals since joining but has not registered a shot on target in six straight games. Postecoglou is not concerned, though, because of the Englishman’s proficiency in other areas.

“I don’t think it matters”, he said. “I really don’t. To me what is much more important is his contribution to us playing our football. He’s been a breath away from scoring another goal or two and people don’t talk about this stuff. It’s not how I measure a striker’s performance.

“I do believe he will score a lot of goals for us. I don’t have a fear in terms of that.” Postecoglou added that it is “great to get Richy back” in a busy period.

“What I believe brings out the best in players is competition, I really do. It’s really important with the volume of games we’ve had. The way they attack is different. They both have great strengths that we can certainly benefit from.”

Spurs are already in fine form in all competitions, with eight wins from their last 10 games. Now having the option to change things up in the striker position, including affording Solanke a rest in cup competitions, can only be a good thing.