Joe Cole has declared that Tottenham Hotspur are in a relegation battle following their 3-2 defeat to Aston Villa, and singled out one of their summer signings as 'not good enough'. Speaking on TNT Sports, the former Chelsea midfielder warned that Spurs face a 'long season' after their latest Premier League setback.
Spurs remain winless after Villa defeat
Tottenham went into Saturday's clash yet to win or score in the Premier League, and actually started the game well, with Villa goalkeeper Zion Suzuki making several very good saves. However, the match turned against the run of play when Johan Manzambi struck on the stroke of half-time.
After the break, Nicolas Jackson and Emiliano Buendia added further goals for Aston Villa. Conor Gallagher and Jan Paul van Hecke did eventually find the back of the net for Roberto De Zerbi's side, but it was too little, too late as Spurs will spend the international break in the relegation zone.
Cole criticises Van Hecke and summer spending
Spurs signed Van Hecke for £52m following an impressive spell at Brighton, but the Netherlands international is yet to show his worth. Cole pointed to Van Hecke's performance as a major concern, despite the defender scoring a consolation goal.
'He scored the goal but he has to be disappointed with his performance. Knowing the way that they play, they leave the centre-halves a little bit vulnerable, that's why you buy centre-halves who can deal with those one on one challenges,' Cole said on TNT Sports.
'I know he's a handful Jackson, but for the goal he's not good enough and I know he scored the goal but they've got a real problem.'
Relegation fears grow despite heavy investment
Though they have finished 17th in the past two seasons, there was optimism for Spurs after they ended the last campaign well under De Zerbi and spent a whopping £314m over the summer. Instead, after five games, they are 18th with just two points and two goals, and have already been knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Liverpool.
Cole believes the club made a major mistake in the transfer window, saying: 'I feel like they've overpaid for every player this summer. You can't rule them out of being in or around the relegation battle because they're not scoring goals and they look so weak at the back.'
The decision to sign Van Hecke was viewed as baffling by some, given that they then let Luka Vušković go to the Amex for almost the same fee, and the Croatian is arguably the much more promising defender.
'Forget scoring goals, they look fragile. Put the two together and it only comes up with one conclusion, that this is going to be a long season for Tottenham,' Cole added.
