Do Spurs need a January overhaul?

Mauricio Pochettino doesn’t seem to think so but do Tottenham need a squad revamp to compete again? The obvious answer is probably ‘yes’ given some of their recent form – losing 7-2 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League followed by a 3-0 loss away at struggling Brighton is not exactly a brilliant indication of a perfect squad.
When posed the question, Pochettino batted away any suggestion that big changes were needed in north London. “I believe in the players we have. I believe in the players that are in Tottenham today,” he said. “I respect the opinion of people who say we need to change or do something, in or out. But if it is my decision, I am going to stick with players because I know have the quality.”
It’s an admirable stance – he doesn’t want to suddenly discard the players that have served him so well – but it does seem a little naive from the former Southampton boss.
Spurs are in a real rut and it is something that perhaps could have been predicted long ago.
Before this summer, when they broke their club-record transfer fee to sign Tanguy Ndombele from Lyon for around £65million, they had gone nearly two years without bringing in any noteworthy senior players.
Surely there must have been some foresight that the squad was going to get jaded under the current system?
Pochettino is a wonderful coach but can only do so much with the players at his disposal.
And the ages of the players did not seem to be considered, either. Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen are now into their 30s, while Danny Rose is set to reach that mark in June. A system that Pochettino deploys requires younger blood given how much energy is needed.
In that regard, the club have failed their manager as Pochettino needed fresher players and he did not get them.
Ultimately, when Spurs did finally break the bank in the summer, it might have just come too late for this team.
It is a sad end for squad that promised so much. No matter what anyone says, Spurs have been devastatingly brilliant when at their best under the Argentine and he has allowed the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli, and Christian Eriksen to blossom.
But time and time again it has been proven by various clubs that the best moment to strengthen is when the club is at its strongest – Spurs didn’t do that and allowed an effervescent group of players to go flat.
Pochettino is an overtly loyal manager and does not want to dig out his players in public, but if the club wants to get back to challenging for the title – or even for the top four at the current rate – they must start making a few hard decisions with the squad.