£26m Tottenham player not deemed a long-term option for Ange Postecoglou

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Tottenham Hotspur defender Emerson Royal doesn’t seem like a long-term option for Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou, according to Tom Allnutt.

The Times journalist, speaking on The Tottenham Way, believes the only way Emerson could stay put at Spurs is if he accepts being a back-up.

Emerson is a right-back by trade, but Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has been using him as a centre-back of late.

All of the 24-year-old’s club appearances at centre-back have come this calendar year.

He played there against Aston Villa in May before featuring centrally in Tottenham’s last two games.

Emerson has been struggling for game time at Spurs prior to their recent defensive injury crisis.

Although he’s now getting starts at Tottenham, it remains to be seen whether that’ll be the case when their injury crisis abates.

Allnutt, speaking on The Tottenham Way, suggested that Emerson may not be at N17 for much longer.

“It’s easy to dismiss all the injuries they’ve got and you’re right, Emerson is playing out of position,” Allnutt said.

“There are times when Emerson does look quite uncomfortable but it’s to be expected, it’s just not his position.

“He, for me, doesn’t seem like someone who is here for the long-term under Postecoglou, unless he’s happy to be a back-up.”

Emerson Royal seemingly facing uncertain future at Tottenham Hotspur

Emerson sadly hasn’t made a huge impact at Tottenham, and criticism of the player remains, despite him having made close to 100 appearances for Spurs.

Admittely, the £26million man deserves some sympathy for how he fared in arguably the toughest fixture in English football – Manchester City away – out of position, and Postecoglou will likely keep him around until the end of the season.

However, beyond that, unless there’s a huge improvement from Emerson and he continues to get game time (and starts featuring regularly at right-back), you can’t help but wonder whether both parties will opt to part company come the summer.