Wanyama-less Tottenham sink Aston Villa to send Spurs fifth
Premier League
By
Waweru Titus
| Feb 17, 2020
Harambee Stars captain Victor Wanyama was once again left out of the Tottenham Hotspur squad that faced Aston Villa on Sunday.
Wanyama’s career progression at the North London club has gone from bad to worse as reports emerged at the beginning of February that Spurs want to terminate his contract.
It is reported that Mourinho wanted to offload Wanyama in the January transfer window but interested clubs were put off by his salary demands.
The midfielder has lost his place in Mourinho’s plans as plenty of central midfield options are available with the likes of Moussa Sissoko, Tanguy Ndombele, Harry Winks, Giovani Lo Celso, and Eric Dier. Injuries and his match fitness concerns have not helped the midfielder either.
Son Heung-min pounced on Bjorn Engels' (Aston Villa) error to score at the death as Tottenham won 3-2 at Villa Park.
Engels' equaliser appeared to have earned the relegation-threatened club a crucial draw, but his failure to control a long ball from Davinson Sanchez allowed Son to score at the 94th minute.
Son had earlier put Spurs 2-1 in front from the rebound of a penalty awarded as a result of an Engels foul shortly before half-time, the forward's first in the game coming after team-mate Toby Alderweireld had scored at both ends.
Villa remain just a point above the bottom three, while Mourinho’s side are just one point adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea ahead of Manchester United game on Monday.
The ‘Lion of Muthurwa’ as he (Wanyama) is popularly known by Kenyans has not started a single Premier League game in the 2019/20 season.
The former Southampton star has been restricted to just four appearances this campaign, playing a total of 122 minutes. Wanyama has 18 months left on his contract.
Wanyama became the first-ever Kenyan player to score in the UEFA Champions League when he scored the first goal in Celtic's 2–1 win over Barcelona on 7 November 2012.
The Kenyan talisman has earned over 50 caps for Harambee Stars since making his international debut in May 2007 at the age of 15.