Harry Winks has gone from England regular to only managing to get a game for Tottenham in the beleaguered Conference League and honestly reckons his time at Spurs is almost up
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Nuno relishing chance for Spurs to ‘compete’ in Conference League
Harry Winks launched a scathing attack on Tottenham’s Euro trash – and admitted he was unhappy after going from England international to midweek auxiliary with Spurs.
In a lacerating assessment of his haemorrhaging confidence and despair at slipping down the pecking order for club and country.
Less than a year ago, Winks was winning his 10th England cap in the 4-0 Nations League romp against Iceland at locked-down Wembley.
But the 25-year-old midfielder cut a desolate figure after Tottenham’s dismal 1-0 defeat against Vitesse in the Europa Conference League.
He has no chance of starting Sunday’s derby at West Ham – and although his heart belongs to Tottenham, Winks does not intend to remain a bit-part player on head coach Nuno Espirito Santo’s watch forever.
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Spurs came unstuck in Holland after making 11 changes, but a starting XI containing nine full internationals did little to force their way into first team contention.
And in a brutal analysis of his own form, Winks admitted the day may be approaching – “when the time is right” – to discuss his future with Nuno.
Asked if he fans should expect more of Tottenham’s squad depth, he replied: “They should do, yeah. We’re Tottenham and whoever goes out on the pitch, we should be winning these kind of games.
“There’s no excuses. We didn’t play well enough. They (Vitesse) outfought us, they outplayed us, they played a better way, with more creativity – in my opinion, they completely dominated us.
“It’s not good enough for Tottenham. We’ve got to come to these places and dominate and win.
“First of all, as players we hold our hands up. We’re the ones on the pitch, we’re the ones that have to go out there and play – no excuses.
“But it’s difficult when you don’t play regularly. It’s difficult to come into these games when teams have fans behind them and they are up for it.
“When you play one game every few weeks, it’s difficult to match that energy, that tempo and their confidence.
“There’s a lot of different reasons why were weren’t good enough this year and last year in these competitions – ultimately, as players we’re not performing well enough and well we should be.”
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Is it tough for Winks to feel like he is consigned to Tottenham’s second string?
“It is tough, yeah. We’re meant to be a team. Everybody should be fighting to play in weekend games and it’s difficult. Motivation should be everybody fighting for the same cause and the same thing.
“Listen, I love Tottenham, I’ve always made that clear… but I want to play football – and I want to play regular football.
“The only way to play your best football and build momentum is when you’re playing regularly.
“I’m giving my all for the club, of course I am. They stuck by me, I stuck by them – and I want to play for Tottenham. But it is difficult when you get matches here and there, confidence is low and you don’t get that run of games.
“Of course my confidence is low. When players are not playing well and you only have yourself to blame, it’s difficult. I want to be at my best, firing and playing really well.
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“I’m man enough to admit that I need to improve in certain areas. But I need to play games and the only way to do that is getting minutes and getting that sharpness back.”
Winks and team-mate Dele Alli were once indispensable members of Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions squad – now they can’t even get in it.
And Tottenham’s ‘other’ Harry admits he can’t understand how he has fallen so far down the pecking order so quickly.
“No – no, I can’t. But listen, the circumstances are that I’m in this situation,” he said. “We all want to win games for Tottenham and pull in the same direction.”
It is not inconceivable that rival Premier League clubs will test Spurs’ resolve to keep hold of a home-grown jewel in January, but Winks is not yet ready to go knocking on Nuno’s door to demand more minutes on the pitch.
He said: “It’s got to be the right time for me. The manager has a lot of games to think about, they are coming thick and fast and I don’t want to stand in the way of preparation, and stand in the way of the other players in the team.
“When the time is right I’ll have a conversation, but right now it’s important that the team and manager focus on the next game and he doesn’t get any distractions from me.”
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