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Rio Ferdinand picks this surprise 16 goal star as his Tottenham player of the year

Originally posted on To The Lane And Back
By Rohan Sengupta | Last updated May 29, 2025 10:17 AM ET

TNT Sports pundit Rio Ferdinand makes interesting claim when asked about Tottenham’s best player this season

Tottenham Hotspur fans will be pleased with how the 2024/25 season ended, as the club picked up their first piece of silverware after 17 years.

Ange Postecoglou and his men beat Manchester United 1-0 in the Europa League final in Bilbao last week. Brennan Johnson’s first-half strike turned out to be the difference between both sides, thereby, helping the North Londoners qualify for the Champions League next term.

In a season full of ups and downs, there have been some star performers this year. Dejan Kulusevski was undoubtedly Spurs’ standout player in the first half of the campaign, flourishing in a new-found central midfield role. Lucas Bergvall grew in stature with his performances and nailed down a regular spot in the team, while fellow teenager Archie Gray deputised very well in defence during an injury crisis.

James Maddison was one of the chief contributors behind Tottenham’s Europa League success, even though he was unfortunate to miss out on playing the Bilbao final due to an injury. Johnson finished the 2024/25 campaign as the club’s top scorer with 18 goals across all competitions.

Speaking to TNT Sports, former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has been naming who he believes have been the star performers for their respective Premier League clubs this term, and he made an intriguing claim when naming Tottenham’s best player. He believes Dominic Solanke has been Spurs’ best player this season, possibly catching plenty of fans by surprise.

Dominic Solanke arrived at Tottenham in a club-record £65m deal from Bournemouth last summer, as the Hotspur Way chiefs tried to fill the gap left by Harry Kane a year earlier. Expectations were high from our fans after watching the centre-forward score 19 Premier League goals for Bournemouth during the 2023/24 season.

However, he hasn’t lived up to those expectations, managing only 16 goals across all competitions in his debut season for the North Londoners. Solanke endured an injury-hit campaign that disrupted his rhythm and flow, but if delved deep, the 27-year-old made 24 goal contributions—the most by any Tottenham player.

This suggests Solanke’s well-rounded attributes as a striker, and his impact with and without the ball. The England international’s pressing, work ethic, energy, physicality, link-up and hold-up play gives the Lilywhites’ attack something different than what the likes of Son Heung-min, Richarlison and Johnson provide. He also chipped in with crucial goals during Tottenham’s Europa League run, stepping up to the plate when it mattered the most.

While Ferdinand would have certainly raised a lot of eyebrows, Solanke’s overall goal contributions and impact does justify the English pundit’s claim. Nonetheless, we are yet to see the best version of Solanke in a Spurs shirt and the fans will hope the striker can add some more goals to his name next year.

This article first appeared on To The Lane And Back and was syndicated with permission.

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