Timo Werner showed promise on his Tottenham debut… he may have squandered three first-half chances, but his assist for the equaliser gives Spurs something to work with
What you take away from Timo Werner’s return to the Premier League will largely depend on where your agenda is.
If you think Tottenham’s decision to give the former Chelsea striker a second chance at England’s top flight is a good idea, then you would rate his role in assisting Rodrigo Bentancur for Spurs’ second equalizer with a certain viewed with complacency.
By contrast, the doubters wore the ‘I told you so’ grin as Werner squandered three first-half chances with the kind of erratic poise that characterized his time at Chelsea.
The truth lies somewhere in the middle.
Explosive? No. Something to work with? Absolute.
Timo Werner made his first appearance for Tottenham against Manchester United on Sunday
The German assisted Spurs’ equalizer as his side drew 2-2 against the Red Devils at Old Trafford
He passed a pass to Rodrigo Bentancur, who coolly fired the chance into United’s net
Tottenham’s selection problems due to international call-ups, injuries and illness allowed Werner to start immediately, just days after his arrival at Red Bull Leipzig was confirmed.
His entry into Bentancur’s path gave cause for optimism. So did his willingness to return with the kind of ferocity that has become a staple of Tottenham’s setup under Ange Postecoglou.
He still has the innate ability to put himself in positions of real threat, but in many ways that’s where the frustration lies.
Because some of the flaws that saw him leave Chelsea in the summer of 2022, considered a £45 million mistake, still appear to be ingrained 18 months later.
There was certainly evidence of those issues here on his Tottenham debut.
His finishing was wayward – regulars at Stamford Bridge during Werner’s two-year spell in west London know that frustration all too well.
The lack of composure and finesse he showed when he had an excellent chance from Oliver Skipp’s beautifully executed pass in the 44th minute was all rather unconvincing.
The Red Bull Leipzig and Germany forward completed his move to Tottenham this week, with the north London club able to sign him permanently for £14.5 million in the summer.
United’s Rasmus Hojlund started the thriller within three minutes with a fierce attack
We’d gotten used to that, of course, and here at Old Trafford there was little sign of improvement in terms of his efficiency in front of goal.
Making a decisive judgment after 80 minutes is unwise. He must settle and must be given the time to do so before we judge Werner 2.0.
But that said, it’s hard to see a regular place for Werner in Tottenham’s strongest starting XI once Dejan Kulusevski, who missed the match due to illness, and Son Heung-min, who is in the Asia Cup, are available .
‘He’s had two sessions with us and hasn’t started a game for a while, but I could see today that he’s going to be really exciting for us once he gets to know our game, gets up to speed with our training – he’s always been a threat,” Postecoglou said.
“He will enjoy his football here but the most important thing was that today we had no choice but to start him and he was a willing participant, he wanted to help, he raised his hand and that is a credit to him.”
There were encouraging shoots here. Werner played his part in a dominant Tottenham game, with Postecoglou gushing over them after the final whistle.
Richarlison then leveled the scoreboard with a powerful header from Pedro Porro’s corner
Marcus Rashford ended his goal drought to fire Manchester United 2-1 ahead at the break
‘Performance like that gives you growth, you come out knowing that you probably won’t have as difficult a time as we had today in terms of the build-up of the game (with illness and players unavailable) and still live up to that level,” the Australian said.
He is right. Once everyone is available, this Tottenham team can take on the best the Premier League has to offer.
What role Werner can play is up to him, although the sound of Tottenham’s traveling supporters erupting into chants of ‘Timo, Timo, Timo’ will give the 27-year-old reason to believe his second stint in England will prove more memorable then his First.