Tottenham Hotspur lost 4-1 to arch-rivals Arsenal in the north London derby, leaving Spurs fully entrenched in a relegation battle.
For a few moments after Arsenal’s opener, it seemed like Tottenham had found their footing, clinching a quick equaliser and pushing for more.
Unfortunately, Arsenal found a different gear and dispatched an injury-ridden Spurs team with ease.
New manager Igor Tudor cannot be blamed for the loss under these circumstances. However, he will have learnt more about his players from this defeat.
One of them is that midfielder Conor Gallagher is clearly not what Tottenham need in the engine room.
After the signing of Joao Palhinha, a player who struggles to progress the ball, Spurs needed someone to fill that gap.
The team was crying out for a passing master in the centre of the park, but the Tottenham hierarchy opted for a different profile altogether.
Gallagher is a pressing machine, but Spurs need a player who can take control of the game and connect midfield to attack seamlessly.
The 26-year-old completed a miserly 11/15 passes as the game flew by him. He recorded only 26 touches (three unsuccessful) in a game like this, which is won and lost in midfield.
Gallagher had one memorable moment when Randal Kolo Muani turned in his deflected cross, ruled out for the softest of touches on Gabriel Magalhaes, but that was it.
The England international lost possession six times and won only three of his eight duels before being substituted for Dominic Solanke.
‘He didn’t offer too much,’ Alasdair Gold wrote for Football London before giving him a 4/10 rating.
Honestly, it feels like a waste to blame Gallagher for a bad performance when the mistake lies with the hierarchy that should have known better.
He was clearly not what Tottenham needed in midfield, and it is an indictment on the board that they could not see what many fans and armchair pundits could.