Alex Keble assesses the qualities Dominic Solanke will bring to Tottenham Hotspur following his move from AFC Bournemouth.
Player analysis - Dominic Solanke (Spurs)
The timing was perfect. A year on from his departure, Harry Kane received a standing ovation on his return to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium just a few minutes after the crowd were introduced to the man who will replace him: Solanke.
A direct comparison between the two players is unflattering to Solanke (as it is to pretty much anyone up against the world-class Kane), but then again perhaps "replace" is the wrong word to use here.
That’s not quite what Spurs are trying to do. Kane is not the type of striker that Ange Postecoglou’s tactics require.
Solanke, on the other hand, is the perfect fit.
Solanke’s penalty-box poaching improved under Iraola
Last season, the former AFC Bournemouth striker became just the 10th player in Premier League history to score as many as 19 goals for a bottom-half club, and 17 of those were scored from inside the penalty area.
He might not be an elite finisher – under-hitting his Expected Goals (xG) by 0.6 in 2023/24 – but Solanke consistently gets himself into dangerous positions around the six-yard box to finish off moves.
That is thanks to Andoni Iraola, who coached Solanke to stay central and remain higher up the pitch, rather than drop to get involved in the play as he was naturally inclined to do.
Solanke averaged 46.4 touches per 90 minutes in a Liverpool shirt, and across his first five league seasons at Bournemouth, averaged 32.9 touches per 90. Last season, that average dropped to 29.0.
His touch maps from the last two seasons, when Solanke went from 16 per cent of his touches in the box to 20 per cent, highlight the shift.
Consequently Solanke excels at finding space between opposition defenders, pouncing on crosses into the box and finishing off team moves.
He scored the fourth-most goals in the division last season, as well as ranking in the top five for xG, shots and touches in the opposition box, which is hugely impressive in a team that finished 12th.
How Solanke ranked in 2023/24
| Total | PL rank | |
| Goals | 19 | 4th |
| xG | 19.6 | 4th |
| Shots | 109 | 3rd |
| Touches in box | 239 | 6th |
These are the qualities that make Solanke the right man to put the finishing touches on Postecoglou’s choreographed attacking moves.
Postecoglou wants a pure finisher, not a Kane-like striker
Of course Postecoglou would have rather kept Kane, but once he left, the focus has been on finding someone who stays in advanced positions to get on the end of complex – and consistent – team moves.
Postecoglou’s underlapping full-backs help to create a 2-3-5 formation that uses those free-moving defenders to draw the opponent inwards, in turn offering up space for two chalk-on-the-boots wingers.
It is a pattern you instantly notice watching Postecoglou teams: the winger is freed to square up a full-back, go on the outside and fire in a cross or a cutback to the striker.
That’s why Spurs ranked fifth in the Premier League for crosses attempted last season, with 710. Tellingly, they were all the way down in 13th for penalty-box crosses completed, with 65.
They needed a player who could get on the end of those crosses. Solanke took 30 headed shots last season, not only the fourth-most in the Premier League, but more than double Richarlison’s 14.
He scored four of these headers, again the fourth most.
That’s largely why Bournemouth, who crossed the ball 709 times, just once less than Spurs, were all the way up in fourth for complete crosses, with 88.
Postecoglou needs Solanke’s penalty-box play, then, and not just to get on the end of these crosses.
By occupying defenders and staying out of the build-up play, a classic No 9 helps free up space centrally for the Spurs midfielders.
Solanke, ready for those cutbacks and crosses, is exactly the lurking goalscorer Spurs need – and an upgrade on Richarlison and Son Heung-min, both of whom have a tendency to drop deeper in search of the ball should they be out of the action for long.
Solanke’s hard-pressing perfect for Postecoglou
But that isn’t the only thing he offers Spurs.
Off the ball, Postecoglou’s football is all about pressing high and hard, and statistically there literally isn’t a better player in the Premier League than Solanke in that regard.
He topped the Premier League charts among all players for pressures (1,242), pressures in the final third (703) and pressures in the final third resulting in a turnover, with 142.
Spurs, meanwhile, topped the team charts for pressures in the final third (2,935) and pressures in the final third resulting in a turnover, with 591.
They also recorded the league’s lowest Passes Per Defensive Action (PPDA), which measures pressing intensity, with a score of 8.8, reflecting their constant urgency in looking to win the ball back all over the pitch.
Solanke’s energy leading the press, therefore, is a huge asset and clearly a big reason why he was Postecoglou’s top target this summer.
Comparing Solanke to Richarlison and Son, the new striker is actually slightly less effective in the press than the Brazilian, although that is largely because Richarlison was playing in a team that pressed more.
Solanke v Son/Richarlison per 90, 2023/24
| Player | Pressures | Pressures in attacking third | Turnovers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominic Solanke | 33.5 | 15.6 | 4.5 |
| Son Heung-min | 28.9 | 15.4 | 4.9 |
| Richarlison | 37.3 | 18.9 | 6 |
One asset of Solanke’s that Richarlison does not possess is strong hold-up play. He is good with his back to goal and bringing wingers into play – which is another example of the traditional centre-forward play demanded of a Postecoglou No 9.
Solanke can give Spurs edge in top-four race
Solanke’s fitness and intelligence in the press means he should hit the ground running, even if Postecoglou’s 2-3-5 formation and measured possession football is a sizeable change from the direct and urgent Iraola – as Opta’s "Team Style Comparison" shows (Bournemouth and Spurs are circled).
If he does, then Solanke’s goals could make all the difference as Spurs look to go one better and secure UEFA Champions League football in 2024/25.
They fell just two points short of Aston Villa last season, conceding the same number of goals (61) but scoring two fewer (74), making them only the seventh-highest scorers in the competition.
If Solanke can hit 19 Premier League goals again, you would expect Spurs to at least score as many as Villa. But more significantly, his tendency to score goals that matter could tilt matches in his new side's favour.
Solanke’s goals were worth 15 Premier League points last season, the joint most along with Chelsea’s Cole Palmer.
This tells us that he is a decisive player, capable of stepping up in tight matches and in big moments.
In that respect, at least, he is close to Kane.
Solanke won’t have the same impact as Kane. It would be unreasonable to expect that. But, being a superb tactical fit and one of the Premier League’s best goalscorers, he could nevertheless be a game-changing player for Postecoglou.
