Mathys Tel: Tottenham's New Scapegoat as Attack Stalls

Mathys Tel has become the main target of public criticism after Tottenham Hotspur made a poor start to the 2026/27 Premier League season. The 21-year-old winger has yet to score or assist in domestic competition, while Spurs have scored only one goal in their last four matches. Pressure has mounted after their Carabao Cup exit and with no league win yet.

Tottenham's attacking crisis is nothing new. The club has splashed major funds to sign Savio (£85 million) and Omar Marmoush, yet its goal output remains minimal. Manager Roberto De Zerbi is seen as having been unable to solve the finishing problem, even though the defense has looked more organized with two consecutive clean sheets against Nottingham Forest and Everton before conceding three goals to Liverpool in the League Cup.

Tel, who was signed permanently from Bayern Munich for £30 million in the summer of 2025, initially showed positive signs in preseason. He scored a fine free-kick goal against Sydney and created two goals for Mikey Moore against Hoffenheim. However, that form did not carry over into competitive matches. Against Liverpool, he played 85 minutes without a single shot or key pass, lost possession 17 times, and won only 5 of 13 duels. Football.London's Alasdair Gold described his performance as 'a lot of effort with no result' – an apt summary for a player dubbed the successor to Serge Aurier and Emerson Royal as a scapegoat.

Tottenham's dark history with players who become punching bags for supporters is no secret. Serge Aurier and Emerson Royal are two clear examples of how individual mistakes often mask the club's systemic weaknesses. Aurier was known for defensive blunders, including a foolish foul on Raheem Sterling in the 2021 Carabao Cup final that led to Manchester City's winning goal. Emerson Royal was also often criticized for poor decisions and passive defending, with his worst performance coming against Liverpool in May 2023. Both became symbols of Antonio Conte's deeply disappointing era.

"Tottenham's story is this: 20 years, there is this owner [Daniel Levy], and they never won something. Why? If they want to continue in this way, they can change the manager- a lot of managers- but the situation cannot change." – Antonio Conte, former Tottenham manager.

Now, Tel faces similar pressure despite a different role. He is not a defender prone to blunders, but a forward who has failed to make an impact. Criticism of him is not unfounded: he scored only four goals last season and has not shown significant development. Yet some observers believe Tottenham's problems run deeper than individual performance. The reliance on young players like Tel, without an established strike partnership, makes the attack predictable and blunt.

For fans in Indonesia, this Tottenham saga mirrors how big clubs often get caught in a cycle of high expectations and disappointment. The Premier League is not a domestic league, but the dynamics at Spurs are relevant to national football discourse: the importance of patience with young players, objective tactical evaluation, and managing supporter expectations. Many Indonesian clubs also often make foreign players scapegoats when team results do not meet expectations, without looking at the more structural root of the problem.

Going forward, De Zerbi faces a difficult choice: continue to trust Tel at the risk of dropping points, or change his approach with other options up front. If the negative trend continues, it is not impossible that the manager's position will be at stake. Meanwhile, for Tel himself, the rest of the season will be a mental and technical test to prove that he is not merely the next 'Spursy' figure. Will he bounce back, or become another footnote in the long list of Tottenham scapegoats?