Steven Gerrard doesn't fancy Tottenham for the top four. The former England midfielder delivered his verdict after Spurs slipped to a 3-2 home defeat by Aston Villa on Saturday.
Gerrard told TNT Sports after Tottenham's defeat to Aston Villa: "They have fixed some positions. I think the midfield has become stronger with Tonali, Fernandes and Bentancur. That is a strong midfield. And you have Conor Gallagher, who perhaps deserved to start today. So I don't think the midfield is a big problem."
The defence is another matter. "Tottenham are weak and a little fragile at the back, and they concede too many goals," he added. "If your two centre-backs are unable to deal with long balls, then you will face problems. So that is something that needs fixing."
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Gerrard put his finger on what he considered Tottenham's big "mistake" in the transfer market, saying: "I think Tottenham have improved in some areas, but the big problem lies in the attacking side, specifically the lack of goals. They don't have a clinical striker, they don't have a goalscorer. I say that with all respect, because they have good players up front, exciting players. But who is going to score you 20 goals?"
Those who sanctioned the signings should take a hard look at themselves, he argued. "The recruitment officials and those who made the decisions to sign this type of player have to look at each other and say: we didn't go out to sign a player who scores 20 goals a season. If you don't have that player, and you are conceding goals, then it may be time to worry again if you are a Tottenham fan."
For Gerrard, it comes down to a simple choice. "There are two things: either you keep clean sheets, and that keeps you in a safe position in the table, or you have exceptional goalscorers in your team, as Harry Kane did for many years," he stressed. "Those players score the number of goals that keeps you at the top of the table. If you are fragile at the back and don't have that clinical striker, then you need to be careful."