Speaking exclusively with BOYLE Sports , former Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur favourite Alan Hutton has previewed the new Premier League season and the outlook at Spurs .
The former Scotland international has explained why he would love to see tactics go back to basics with two strikers, why a top-six finish would represent a good season for Tottenham , and why he is baffled that Liverpool let Andy Robertson leave for nothing.
Hutton has also backed Robertson as a future manager, expressed his shock at the sale of Djed Spence , and explained why the top English clubs steered clear of Cristian Romero .
Tactical Trends
Will Football Go Back to Basics?
Football is always moving in different cycles. Everyone wants to play football now, but you have your ideas of tiki-taka, one-touch football, everyone on the pitch being a creator, but then we've seen corners come back in, and throw-ins. Every team is chasing every advantage, even if it means launching it from a long throw into the box, so why can't we bring back some of the old ways too to catch the current teams out?
Let's bring back two strikers up front and put that pressure back on centre-backs who aren't used to playing against that anymore. I don't think that would be a bad thing at all. To be honest, people overcomplicate the game at times with different formations and jargon, but it's all just positions on the pitch. It all comes down to space. I'd love to see more teams commit to playing with two strikers. Rangers do it well at the moment, and it's something that I think fans enjoy too because they want to see goals, they want to see action, and having more forwards and more tackles on the pitch only helps that.
Spurs Outlook
How Do You See Tottenham Doing This Season?
I think top four is a big ask for Tottenham Hotspur this season. I know they've been through a transitional period with different managers, different personnel, and it's been difficult, but to finish 17th two years in a row and go from there to top four, even though they've spent a lot of money and spent it wisely, that's a big jump in one season.
Spurs have needed something like this, a bit of a reckoning, to get back to being the sort of club they should be, and I think if they were to finish sixth or around there this season, that would go down as a successful season in my book. It might not keep the fans happy, as I'm sure they expect more with the business they've done, but that's how I look at it. After the last couple of years, a top six finish would be a good result, but they have spent well, and I think in Roberto De Zerbi they have a top manager who can get the best out of the players, so I wouldn't be surprised if they exceeded my expectations to finish top five or top four. For me, I think sixth or seventh is a good guess for where they will finish this season.
Andy Robertson
How Much Will Robertson Benefit De Zerbi On and Off the Pitch?
I am very surprised Liverpool allowed Andy Robertson to leave for nothing. I believe he's still at an age where he's got so much more to give. Experience counts for a lot, even in that Liverpool team. It doesn't matter how much money they've spent. You still need players who understand what it's like to win, and what it takes to play for a club like Liverpool with the level of expectations from the manager, the crowd, the community, and everything that goes along with it. To allow the situation to develop where he can leave on a free is a strange decision by Liverpool .
Andy Robertson coming in is a massive opportunity for Spurs , and I think he'll help because they have lost that sort of leader for the last couple of years within that dressing room. I've played with Andy . I know what he's like. He demands the best from everyone around him every day, and I'm sure he'll be doing exactly that at Tottenham .
Is Robertson a Future Premier League Manager?
Could we see Andy Robertson return to Liverpool as manager someday or take the Scotland or Celtic jobs? I think he can go on and do that if he wants to. He has always been a student of the game for as long as I've known him. I was just doing what I needed to do before leaving for the day, whereas he would be there, in training, asking questions constantly.
He wanted to know why we were doing this a certain way, what were the reasons for setting up the team how we were for the next game, why do we want to do that, and anybody that's like that, inquisitive about the game to that level, with their team and with themselves, is on that path to becoming a manager eventually. He's got all the attributes to take on a job like that after he finishes and builds up his coaching career.
Departures
What Do You Make of Djed Spence Leaving?
I'm shocked that Tottenham Hotspur have let Djed Spence leave. Pedro Porro has just won the World Cup , but I think Spence is a great player, and to be a top, top team challenging for honours at the top of the league, you need competition in every single position. Tottenham looked very strong at right-back, and he can cover at left-back too. He's just had a really good World Cup . He's got great pace. He can get forward; he can defend. He's a very good player. Selling Spence is a step backwards.
It's a brilliant move for Inter Milan , and for Spence , going to Serie A and playing in Italy in a huge stadium and everything else that goes along with it. It's great for Spence . Look at what moving to Italy has done for Scott McTominay ! But in terms of Tottenham , he's not an old player, so I don't understand it, to be honest. Chelsea , Liverpool , Manchester United , Djed Spence could have got into any of those teams, and by the way, we're not talking about the kind of transfer fees we've seen bandied around for other players this summer. Inter Milan have bought Spence for £30 million. How has a club like Chelsea , Liverpool or United not had a look at him for that price? It's not a fee any of these clubs could struggle to pay, and you'd be getting a player who can still develop, has proven himself on the international stage, and ticks all the boxes for a modern full-back.
Why Did the Big Clubs Avoid Romero?
Cristian Romero has all the talent in the world, but it's his temperament that has been questioned, and I believe that's why the top sides in the Premier League decided not to take a risk on him if he's going to get himself sent off five or six times a season. He's got the quality to play for Liverpool or Manchester United , but if he's going to keep having outbursts with fans on social media or wherever else, I don't think these clubs need any more of a circus around them either. They have enough pressure on them to go and win trophies.
Atletico Madrid just suits him. It's where he belongs, playing for Diego Simeone , with all the antics we see from his teams and the Argentina side. It just agrees with him, I think, so I can understand why they came in for him. I can also understand why none of the big teams in the English game took an interest. It's not because Romero isn't good enough to play for them. It's everything else that comes along with him, wherever he goes.
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