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Tottenham Hotspur will not win a trophy in 2023-24. That in itself is not remarkable. Their poor trophy record is often weaponised against them and this February marked 16 years since Tottenham’s last piece of silverware: the 2008 League Cup.
They have, however, consistently developed some of the best young talents in the Premier League, at least as PFA Young Player of the Year titles go. The award stretches back to the early 1970s and only Manchester United have had more winners of it (eight) than Tottenham (six).
Five of the last 12 Young Player of the Year winners have been Tottenham players — Kyle Walker in 2011-12, Gareth Bale in 2012-13, then Harry Kane and Dele Alli twice in three consecutive seasons between 2014-15 and 2016-17 — an impressive feat as team trophies can often be decisive in crowning individual awards.
Central midfielders are typically overlooked for individual accolades, but Tottenham’s Pape Matar Sarr deserves to be in the mix. Head coach Ange Postecoglou explained why back in November: “I think with Pape, when you consider his age, it is just his ability to embrace the challenge of playing in a midfield role, particularly for us when it is quite multifunctional”.
Postecoglou elaborated on how “multifunctional” Sarr is. “Sometimes he is a six, sometimes he is an eight, sometimes he’s a 10. Sometimes he’s a full-back and he does all that with ease, which is not easy to do because it requires real energy and a really strong work ethic.”
Sarr has been a chameleonic support act for Tottenham’s much-discussed full-backs, who frequently occupy spaces in advanced central positions. Yves Bissouma is first choice to play as the lone pivot. Sarr, consequently, becomes the missing piece in the jigsaw.
If the right-back is upfield and inside, the 21-year-old takes up a wide position to connect play to the touchline winger, like below, with Pedro Porro in midfield.
Against low blocks, he becomes an extra No 6. This allows Spurs to bait-and-switch, going from wing-to-wing to attack opponents on their weak side and Sarr’s role frees up a full-back to play an over/underlapping role and support their winger — rather than having to stay deeper to prevent counter-attacks.
That showed away to Wolverhampton Wanderers in November when Sarr facilitated the opener, receiving from left winger Brennan Johnson and switching play to Dejan Kulusevski. He released Porro on the overlap…
… who played the cutback for Johnson to score the opening goal.
Those cutback goals have been a feature of Tottenham under Postecoglou. If he is not involved in the build-up, then Sarr is crashing the box himself.
He opened the scoring with a well-timed late run at home to Manchester United in September, ghosting in behind Mason Mount and Casemiro to convert Kulusevski’s deflected cutback — Sarr’s first Tottenham goal.
His penetrative runs have been essential against compact mid-blocks, partly because Tottenham increasingly face opponents who defend zonally.
One of those trademark Sarr runs, a big straight-line sprint from a deeper midfield position, got Tottenham level at home to Brighton & Hove Albion in February.
Roberto De Zerbi’s side were pressing aggressively man-for-man, committing a centre-back upfield, which vacated space for Sarr to crash through the middle.
When his initial cutback for Richarlison was deflected onto the post, Sarr tapped in the rebound from a tight angle.
His assist for James Maddison away to Aston Villa, in Tottenham’s 4-0 win last month, was another example. Kulusevski dropped deep to combine with Porro, so Sarr took up an advanced position on the halfway line.
Left centre-back Pau Torres was marking him. Then, when Kulusevski and Porro split the Villa press with a one-two, Sarr spun in behind and Kulusevski sent him through.
The final ball from Sarr is phenomenal, crossing early with plenty of whip to pick out Maddison between the posts.
There can be no complaints about the outcome of the past, but it is an example of Sarr’s technique looking awkward and gangly at times. He is tall, 6ft 1in (185cm), with noticeably long legs. Sarr stumbles as he runs onto Kulusevski’s through ball and is so off-balance that he falls over as he crosses (his delivery is hit with plenty of force).
In tight spaces, often with his back to goal, Sarr’s close control belies his stature, able to escape from opponents with sharp turns and quick touches. “I think as he gets more experienced, he’ll refine some areas of his game,” Postecoglou said earlier this season. “Sometimes his decision-making is a little rushed, but for where he’s at in his career, what he’s providing for us is enormous at the moment.”
Postecoglou’s consideration of context is essential. Sarr, a graduate of the Generation Foot academy and its pathway to Metz in France’s Ligue 1, is only 37 appearances and 23 starts into Premier League life. He played a bit-part role under Antonio Conte last season, notably shining at San Siro on his Champions League debut in the first leg of the two teams’ round-of-16 meeting — he and Oliver Skipp played the full 90 in central midfield.
Of central/defensive midfielders aged 21 or younger, which is the age criteria for the Young Player of the Year award, Sarr has the most Premier League minutes, with 1,585. Newcastle’s Lewis Miley (1,205) and Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo (1,194) are the only others with more than 1,000 and have both been praised significantly more.
Central midfield is a role of consistency, not moments. Sarr’s shot accuracy, pass completion and aerial duel success either rank inside or close to the top quarter of Premier League central midfielders this season. He has footballing intelligence beyond his years, which is reflected in 22 senior Senegal caps, and he was their second-youngest player at AFCON in January alongside midfield partner Lamine Camara.
The best way to measure Sarr’s impact is not his own numbers but Tottenham’s results with and without him. They have won 15 times in his 21 Premier League starts (plus one draw and five losses) this season, compared to just two wins from nine without Sarr in the starting XI.
Based on 2023-24 points per game, over a full 38-game season, Spurs with Sarr starting would earn over 83 points. It is a crude method of predictive analysis, though that kind of a season has only been bettered once in Premier League history by Tottenham (86 points in 2016-17) and would have landed them a top-three finish in the past six seasons.
It would be fully deserving for Sarr to make it six Tottenham Young Player of the Year winners in the past 13 seasons. Their exponential growth this season owes so much to him.
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