Tottenham 1 Bayern Munich 2: Spurs need another centre forward ...

Tottenham Hotspur ended their pre-season tour to Japan and South Korea with a 2-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in Seoul, in a match that underlined their need for another centre forward.

The 20-year-old midfielder Gabriel Vidovic opened the scoring for Bayern and Leon Goretzka doubled their lead after 56 minutes.

Pedro Porro pulled one back for Ange Postecoglou’s side soon after with a well-taken goal from outside the penalty area, but they struggled to push for an equaliser.

Seb Stafford-Bloor analyses the key Tottenham talking points from the match…

Have Spurs run out of steam?

Postecoglou revealed that, physically, his players were lagging ahead of this game and had given about as much as they had to give in Asia.

Was the performance good? No. Its technical flaws underlined the shortages that everyone already knows about, but — having been around this squad for ten days, to see them slog away in thick, oppressive heat — it is clear that this has been extremely taxing and that, heading into this game, few of the players had enough energy to compete. 

It showed time and again. Bayern had a life with and without the ball that Spurs simply could not deal with, which was shown in the yawning gaps that opened down both flanks and the inability to adequately press any Bayern player in possession. It was not a coincidence that Spurs improved significantly after half-time, when some of the younger players who have had fewer minutes on tour, were introduced. 

Still, the reliance on very familiar patterns to create chances and the prominence of vulnerabilities that often seem to exist in Spurs’ football, whether they are fatigued or fresh, will hardly create a forgiving mood; fans will be upset by this because of the lack of transfer activity and they will have a point — because that would be a source of variety and evolution.

But that is not something Postecoglou is denying. He has openly discussed the need for new signings, particularly at the top of the pitch.

When will they buy another centre forward?

When The Athletic spoke with Ange Postecoglou on Friday, he admitted centre forward was the weakest part of the squad and the area that most needed reinforcing before the end of the transfer window.  

It is hard to see this team’s attacking play diversifying without investment in that position. Richarlison has shown what he can provide and when he is fit, if he stays at the club, he will be valuable. 

But perhaps what Spurs need — and this game was strong evidence of that — is more permanence in the attacking third, more of a fixed presence. While Dejan Kulusevski is a valuable false nine and has actually had an excellent tour, his threat tends to appear fleetingly in the box, rather than consistently in and around it. 

Bournemouth’s Dominic Solanke is of interest to Spurs, as is Lille’s Jonathan David. Both would add something to this group that it currently does not have. 

Given the lack of energy and the heat — and a strong Bayern performance — the evening probably over-emphasised how dependent Postecoglou’s players are on quick raids and how little pressure they tend to actually exert. They have creative players, yes, and direct wingers, certainly, but what is it that exists between those virtues in the attacking sense — what connects them and accentuates their impact? 

At the very least, forgetting the technical aspects, it is difficult to see Spurs competing across four different competitions next season without having someone who can make them less dependent on speed and dynamism. 

Which young players impressed?

Describing the strong performances of the young players on this tour has, at times, been interpreted as a fig leaf for the lack of transfer activity — as if it is being over-stressed on purpose.  

Not so. Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall have had many paragraphs written about them already — Bergvall was terrific again this evening, playing with wonderful force and ego — but there is room to mention others, too. Will Lankshear has shown budding talent. Mikey Moore has had plenty of good moments and, against Bayern, Alfie Devine added another fine performance to what has been a catalogue of strong games on tour.  

The good news — and this might fall flat among the bigger issues tonight — is that the Europa League should afford Postecoglou and Spurs the chance to expose some of these players to senior football on a regular basis. Not all of them will progress at the same rate. Some are destined to head out on loan instead. But, whatever else this trip has been, it has showcased what might be a really exciting future. 

The young players deserve that recognition, because their contribution in Japan and South Korea has been independent of whatever macro issues may exist around them.

Did we learn anything about Djed Spence? 

Postecoglou made clear this week that Djed Spence’s Spurs career is not over, saying that he was happy with the full-back’s performance and attitude across the tour. As reward, he was given his first start of the tour, playing from left-back.

Spence is fighting for his future at this level and his opening 20 minutes betrayed plenty of tension, with some loose touches and difficulties connecting with his teammates from a less familiar role. Guglielmo Vicario’s underhit pass probably bore more responsibility for Bayern’s first goal, but it was a moment that Spence did not need and from which he struggled to regain composure for much of the first half.

There was no lack of industry. At the end of an attritional few weeks, he made a pair of well-timed moves forwards, too, which might have opened Bayern up had he received better service. There was also a fine block to prevent Serge Gnabry running into space down the right and, in the second half, a few forward surges that could have yielded a good Spurs chance. 

Spence is a complicated issue. There was no shortage of effort, but he still has little instinct for this system and even this Bayern team, jet-lagged and half-strength, were able to exploit his positional difficulties. Understandably so, because of how little football he has had under Postecoglou or even just at top-flight level. Add that he was playing on the left rather than right and within an obviously exhausted side and there was even less clarity over what this performance meant.

It is unsatisfying, because everyone is in a hurry to resolve this situation one way or the other — Spence has been divisive for a long time now — but this was not the moment to draw conclusions. He remains a project.

What next for Tottenham?

Saturday, August 10: Bayern Munich (again), 5.30pm, UK, 12.30pm ET

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(Photo: ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images)