One of Tottenham Hotspur’s midfielders is quickly establishing himself as one of the most well-rounded players in the Premier League and his stats back this up.
Ange Postecoglou has made a few tweaks over the last few weeks and Spurs’ £14 million star has been at the heart of everything the Lilywhites have done well.
The North London club have produced wins over Manchester City and Aston Villa placing them in a great position in the Carabao Cup and Premier League.
Pape Matar Sarr is outperforming Declan Rice’s stats
Pape Matar Sarr made a rather slow start to the season, however, over the last few weeks, the Senegalese midfielder has started to once again reach the levels he was hitting last term. He is quickly becoming one of the Premier League’s most underrated midfielders at the age of just 22.
It’s when you compare his stats to that of Arsenal’s £100 million midfielder Declan Rice that you start to appreciate just how good he has been. Sarr is outperforming the England international in most key areas for passing and defensive stats.
| Stat | Pape Matar Sarr | Declan Rice |
| Duel% | 23.5 | 30.4 |
| Defensive actions | 18.7 | 16.1 |
| Porgressive carries | 89.1 | 84.6 |
| Forward passes | 86.6 | 33.5 |
| Forward passes% | 73.3 | 89.9 |
| Key passes | 90.5 | 70.8 |
| Progressive passes | 67.3 | 27.8 |
| Minutes played | 439 | 857 |
The youngster has been especially important in the last two matches for Spurs with his work rate and ability to cover so much of the pitch being second to none.
Sarr set a Premier League record for the season against Villa as he won possession in the midfield third nine times highlighting his incredible ability to battle.
Pape Matar Sarr must replace James Maddison for Tottenham
Sarr is also becoming one of Postecoglou’s most important players with the Australian manager starting to show an understanding of the importance of having steel in his midfield.
Postecoglou introduced Sarr at half-time for James Maddison against West Ham at the time, the substitution raised a few eyebrows, but it ended up being the turning point in the game.
Sarr ended up providing the assist for Heung-min Son’s goal against the Hammers and added a much greater energy to Spurs’ midfield. He started ahead of Maddison against Villa and Postecoglou must continue to keep him in the team over the 27-year-old.
Tottenham’s best line up when fully fit: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Bentancur, Sarr, Kulusevski; Johnson, Son, Solanke.
Receive a digest of our best Spurs content each week direct to your mailbox
