Scouting Matias Soule: Strengths, Weaknesses & fit under Thomas Frank at Tottenham – Opinion

When you go around the Tottenham Hotspur stadium asking the supporters about this next generation team that the North Londoners are forming under Daniel Levy, many would be speaking about technical solidity alongside that flair and creativity (which we have seen a lot from someone like Lucas Bergvall and Odobert in their time at Tottenham), and Matias Soule is precisely someone like that. And given how he has been featured in Serie A in the past season, he has shown his ability with the ball and how he moves, which is quite crafty at times, and all of that is complemented by that pinpoint left foot, which could end up being the answer to the creativity woes at N17 under Thomas Frank.

Matias Soule is a creative genius who could bring a lot to Tottenham

The 22-year-old is quite a creative prospect, and he is good at a lot of it, be it trying to thread through balls between the lines or attempting those weaving runs past defenders when he is backed into tight spaces. Soule consistently finds a way, a way to unlock even the most stubborn defences, and that is exactly what the North Londoners have been craving at the moment.

He has that vision, complemented by his capacity for picking pockets of space, which we are not seeing consistently at Tottenham as of now.

We saw how the supporters at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were screaming from the top of their heads when facing a low-mid block hybrid last season, where we saw a sense of settled and stagnant build-up play. And that needs a player like Soulé, who uses his dribbling prowess and is always trying to make something happen.

Now let me point out that he is not someone who is a blistering winger like Son Heung-min, who is looking to always be in full flight, but when it comes to tight spaces, Soule is a master of disguise; he uses his sharp feints to beat his man and uses his clever change of direction alongside his delightful close control to get the better of not only his markers but also the system that he is facing. And most of the times, you rarely see someone that predicts his next move, given how he is unpredictable and agile with his movements.

How can Soule fit in at N17 under Thomas Frank?

We know that the Dane head coach likes to have a sense of tactical flexibility in his side irrespective of whether he is playing in a 4-3-3 or a 3-5-2 formation. The former Brentford manager likes to use his wide attackers drifting in centrally quite a lot as he looks to create an overload and try to disrupt the defensive lines of the opponents.

And this is where having someone like Soule naturally helps you to move towards okaying those interior channels, given how he can play as an inverted winger or even as an advanced midfielder, where we can use his ability to circulate the ball whilst trying to link the midfield with attack, and he also is really good at operating from the half-spaces. This plays quite in line with the fluid system that Frank would be looking to deploy at N17.

Moreover, Soule is quite relentless, and he uses that positively in attack but also in defence, which also will help him integrate with the aggressive pressing approach at Tottenham, where he brings a sense of creativity with discipline to that frontline.

There are things that Tottenham will have to consider before securing his signatures

Soule is quite reliant on his left foot, which at times makes him very predictable when he is stuck on particular angles, especially when facing experienced defenders. And then, given his lack of outright pace and acceleration, it might restrict the much-needed rapidness that you need to catch opponents by surprise in transitional situations.

He is also not quite as aerially apt as you’d want him to be.

And then Frank would need to help him with overlapping support from fullbacks, and this stretching of the play will help you to give Soulé that space to use his dangerous movement into central zones.

Author Opinion

From everything I have seen of him, a lot of his skill sets do end up aligning with the system that the North Londoners are expected to adapt to under Thomas Frank, and he is surely going to give you that sense of creativity and dynamism in the attacking sequences. And if he is properly integrated tactically at Tottenham, he could give the North Londoners a lot of flair and identity.