Tottenham fans may be left wondering what might have been after they fell to a 1-0 home defeat against Liverpool on the weekend, and rightly so, seeing as the Lilywhites had a strong game in the second half against the Premier League leaders and could have quite easily overcome then on a different day.
Loads of headlines will be written about the form of Japhet Tanganga in the game after the 20-year-old came in for his debut and starred against Jurgen Klopp’s side, but as Jose Mourinho got one decision massively right with Tanganga, he got it massively wrong elsewhere.
The Portuguese tactician went into the game with what looked like a back six at times. However, one of those apparent six who were guarding Paulo Gazzaniga’s goal should never have been put into a starting role in this game, and that man was Danny Rose.
The England left-back struggled no end against Liverpool, and with Mo Salah coming down his flank it was always going to be a really difficult game for him, no less because it was the 29-year-old’s first start for the club in the league since Spurs’ visit to Anfield in October (Transfermarkt).
Part of the reason behind Rose’s absence from the Premier League has been a calf injury that the left-back has been nursing, and lobbing him back into action against both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mo Salah is the most intense baptism of fire that world football has to offer.
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All things considered, Rose didn’t do too badly in the clash. However, he certainly wasn’t up to the required standards of a Tottenham defender, and the smart move from Mourinho would likely have been to use the more attacking and more mobile Ryan Sessegnon down the left, who would surely have at least been able to make inroads down the left in behind Alexander-Arnold.