Tottenham stats suggest Thomas Frank should hand attacker his first start in six games

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Tottenham were given a glimpse of what they have been missing with one bright cameo off the bench against Crystal Palace.

Thomas Frank saw his Tottenham Hotspur side get back to winning ways on Sunday evening when they secured a 1-0 win over London rivals Crystal Palace.

It was a hard-fought victory for Spurs, who had to dig deep as they defended their early first-half goal scored by 19-year-old Archie Gray.

Tottenham are now four points off fifth-placed Chelsea heading into the new year, and the expectation will be that they can carry on from here.

Wilson Odobert cameo stands out in Tottenham win

While three vital points were picked up, Spurs’ performance was far from convincing, especially in the first half, where they barely caused Crystal Palace problems.

However, in the second half, after a few changes, Spurs looked more threatening, particularly down the left when Wilson Odobert came on for Muani.

Despite featuring for just 27 minutes, Odobert was a standout performer for Tottenham, and his underlying numbers back this up.

Odobert’s stats from the match were as follows:

Hit the woodwork: 1
Shots: 2
Accurate passes: 9/12 (75%)
Successful dribbles: 2/2 (100%)
Passes into the final third: 1
Accurate crosses: 1/2 (50%)
Ground duels won: 3/3 (100%)
Aerial duels won: 1/1 (100%)

Why Spurs may need Odobert from the start

Spurs need to find the right balance in the forward areas of the pitch if they are to remain an attacking threat.

Presently, the balance on the left is non-existent when Muani is used in that position with Djed Spence supporting him, as both players often look to cut inside, making the pitch too narrow for Spurs and rendering their attacks down that side predictable.

If Odobert were to be used in that position, then the balance could return, as he is capable of going on both the inside and the outside, and with Brentford up next on Thursday, Frank needs to consider reverting to using him out wide to provide more dynamic wing play.