Report!!! Marcelo Bielsa drop his opinion on the Spurs 26 year old Midfielder.. says he is a player that’s difficult to find of the midfield that he should be considered ahead Tottenham vs Aston villa…
Marcelo Bielsa couldn’t be more right about Rodrigo Bentancur after he sang the praises of the Tottenham midfielder.
The 26-year-old made his first start in more than nine months on Tuesday (21 November) as he helped Uruguay pick up a 3-0 victory over Bolivia in a 2026 World Cup qualifier.
Speaking after the game to El Observador about Bentancur’s performance, his international manager Bielsa waxed lyrical about the qualities the midfielder possesses as he continues his return to full fitness following a nasty knee injury.
“He is a player that it is difficult to find an area of the midfield that he is not in a position to assume,” said Bielsa.
“There are not many players who defend like a holding midfielder, who attack and defend like an interior, like a number eight, like a mixed midfielder, and that when they reach the rival area he has the resources, the qualities of an offensive midfielder.
“It is a very special case within football in general. A player who in himself meets the conditions for all places on the field. Today he stood out clearly.”
The former Leeds boss got it absolutely spot on about Bentancur after he has put in a number of top-drawer performances at international – and club level – over the past few years.
He received a SofaScore rating of 8/10 for his display against Bolivia on Tuesday – the second-highest total of any player on the pitch behind Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez, who scored twice in Montevideo.
In his 86 minutes on the pitch, the midfielder had a staggering 115 touches and recorded a pass success rate of 92 per cent, while he made one key pass, three interceptions and two tackles.
It’s clear to see why Bielsa was delighted by his performances and it shouldn’t be long before he is fighting for a place in the Tottenham lineup, having made three appearances off the bench since returning to action.
His absence was really felt towards the back end of last season after his displays in the opening half of the campaign had put Spurs in with an excellent chance of qualifying for the Champions League.
Bentancur scored five goals and laid on two assists in 18 Premier League games before he suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage in his knee in the 4-1 defeat to Leicester City in February – a game in which he gave his side the lead.
He averaged 62.7 touches per match, had a pass success rate of 85 per cent and made 0.6 key passes as he looked to provide creativity for his side before his campaign was cut short.
The Uruguayan also contributed heavily from a defensive standpoint as he made 1.1 interceptions per game, 2.5 tackles and 1.2 clearances.
His all-action displays in the middle of the pitch were something Spurs really missed as the results – and the team’s performances on the whole – rapidly went downhill in his absence.
They won just six of their remaining 15 Premier League games following his injury as they slipped out of the European places down to eighth in the table.
But as the South American looks to get back to his best, Ange Postecoglou will be tempted to throw the midfielder in from the start after his impressive showing for Uruguay.
Although Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr have both nailed down a place in his absence, the Aussie boss showed in the 2-1 defeat to Wolves on 11 November that he is prepared to play a three-man midfield after Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was handed a start alongside the duo.
It will be interesting to see how the Uruguayan’s return is handled from this point onwards as the supporters will be desperate to see him named in the starting lineup before too long after emerging as a firm fans’ favourite since his move from Juventus.
