‘Why start him?’, ‘different version of Eden Hazard’: Some fans react to Spurs player’s display for his country

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Tottenham Hotspur newcomer Matt Doherty played the full 90 minutes for the Republic of Ireland as they played out a 1-1 draw with Bulgaria in Thursday night’s UEFA Nations League in Sofia.

The 28-year-old was named at right-back ahead of Seamus Coleman, a fairly bold call by Stephen Kenny, so all eyes were on the new Spurs signing.

Doherty’s display on the night was fairly mixed – although he didn’t put a foot wrong, he wasn’t as much of a threat going forward as he can be.

This could have been partly due to playing in a back four, and partly due to the lack of composure on the ball from those in front of him, which meant he didn’t have many opportunities.

Ireland conceded a soft goal in the 56th minute, Bozhidar Kraev finding space in between Shane Duffy and John Egan, but Duffy made amends with an injury-time header.

The Irish Independent, the Irish Examiner and Balls.ie all gave Doherty a 6 out of 10 in their post-match player ratings, and fan reaction from club and country supporters was also fairly mixed.

Here are some of the comments on social media:

Doherty was announced as a Spurs player on Sunday, the 28-year-old joining from Wolves in a reported £14.7million deal and penning a four-year deal in North London.

The right-back made 50 appearances for Wolves last season as the Molineux club finished seventh in the Premier League and reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League.