Pape Matar Sarr showed flashes of his ability in his limited game time in a Spurs shirt last season, but could we see the full extent of what the midfielder has in his locker next season?
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Pape Matar Sarr, 20, officially joined the Lilywhites from French side FC Metz in August 2021 in a £14.6m deal (transfermarkt).
However, before joining the Spurs squad in the summer of 2022, the Senegalese midfielder spent the season on loan with his former club to assist with his development.
The 20-year-old arrived in N17 with most fans excited to see what he can bring to the side; however, last season was far from rosy for the young midfielder as he struggled to get minutes all season.
Sarr was only given three starts last term (Whoscored.com), with his most impressive cameo coming in Spurs’ 1-0 loss to AC Milan in the Champions League.
Despite not having an ideal first season in North London, the Senegal international could be given the chance to shine next season with Ange Postecoglou now in charge.
Sarr gained an excellent reputation before his switch to N17, as he was viewed as a top midfield prospect.
The 20-year-old regular stood out from his FC Metz teammates with his frequent impressive performances for the French side.
Pape Matar Sarr could stand out under Postecoglou
One massive advantage that you can see in the midfielder’s game is how he utilises his long legs.
The Senegalese midfielder typically likes to stick his legs into tackles, which usually gives him an advantage in duels as he often wins the ball in challenges on the ground.
His long legs also allow him to draw in a lot of fouls from the opponents as they usually clip them whilst trying to make a challenge or after being dispossessed by the 20-year-old.
The more fouls he can draw in will help the team create more opportunities from free-kicks or can help his side retain possession.
Sarr also has bags of energy during matches and makes it very clear in matches that he can be the engine of the team, allowing him to dictate the pace of the game.
He is also not afraid to use that energy to charge upfield with the ball, take on other midfielders and create attacking opportunities when the game goes flat.
Against AC Milan, the Senegal international used his football intelligence and his bundles of energy to dispossess his opponents, take on players and make charging runs upfield in the hope that he could spur on his teammates to create threatening opportunities.
After watching the games he has featured in, it has become evident that Sarr possesses amazing vision when he has to pick out an attacking pass to one of his teammates.
Under Conte, Stellini and even Mason, Sarr tended to spread his passes out wide onto the flanks, typically to a wing-back or a winger who can go on to make a darting run forward.
The 20-year-old performed many of these passes against AC Milan, which created space on the wings for Spurs to attack, but the wing-backs in that match failed to exploit that space and create any key attacking opportunities.
In a more successful example, Sarr’s long-range header into space on the right flank allowed Pedro Porro to run onto the ball with plenty of pace and freedom before he assisted Harry Kane for Spurs’ third goal against Leeds United.
These attributes can work very well for Postecoglou’s system.
As previously explored, the Australian loves to use two progressive midfielders, who are tasked with responsibilities like exploiting the space on the flanks, playing between the lines, or helping the holding midfielder by becoming a forward passing option, which can lead to attacking opportunities for the side.
The 56-year-old’s tactics also demand a lot of pressing, intense running when helping to draw in a midfielder or defender and incredible football IQ to figure out where on the pitch to operate to help their teammates in attacking phases.
Whilst Sarr boasts a lot of positive attributes, he also has his negatives, which are currently keeping him out of the starting eleven.
It’s fair to argue that the Senegalese starlet is still very rash on the ball and is not comfortable yet in the Premier League.
When the 21-year-old receives the ball from a teammate, he tends to move the ball onto a colleague straight away, typically in the form of a short pass.
This indicates that Sarr was not very confident during the torrid campaign last season.
Perhaps a loan move to another Premier League side or a Championship side can help breed confidence and self-esteem into the Senegalese midfielder, as he possesses a lot of ability.
Although the new culture around the club since Postecoglou’s arrival could help the midfielder achieve a break-out season.
It appears that the Australian is very close with all his players, who seem to speak highly of him, which could help with the confidence issues that Sarr and the squad have been facing for a while.
Postecoglou also loves to use young players and to get them involved with the first team, which could help Sarr develop in North London and may even help him cement a place into the first team if he impresses in pre-season and in the chances that he will be given throughout the season.
However, the recent arrival of ex-Leicester City midfielder James Maddison may hinder the 21-year-old’s chances of making it into the starting XI regularly.
Spurs’ midfield three is predicted to consist of Rodrigo Bentancur, Yves Bissouma and Maddison.
This indicates that Sarr will have to settle for being a great-depth option in the middle of the park unless he impresses Postecoglou a lot.
However, Bentancur suffered an ACL injury in February against the Foxes, which resulted in surgery. The Uruguayan is expected to be back for first-team action around November time.
This means that Sarr could be presented with a huge opportunity to cover the absent star for the first few months of the Premier League, which could potentially spark a huge for the Senegal international.
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