Pape Matar Sarr and Oliver Skipp very much demonstrated on Tuesday evening against AC Milan that they can have a big impact for Tottenham in the present as well as the future. Down to the bare bones in midfield ahead of the Champions League Round of 16 tie with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg suspended and Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma out injured, Antonio Conte had no choice but to start his young midfield duo in such an important game.
Both Sarr and Skipp were excellent in the middle of the park with performances that belied their tender years. The former, who was handed a shock start against Arsenal last month, was perhaps the standout player of the two, although the latter went from strength to strength as the game wore on and appeared to be hitting the form he showcased regularly in the first half of last season.
"About the two midfielders, I think that I'm really happy about the performance from Skippy and Pape Sarr. Honestly to play in this way in the Champions League and to play in the San Siro in this atmosphere, I think that normally it's tough for important players," outlined Conte in his post-match press conference.
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"They played a really good game and I'm really happy. This type of performance make me more relaxed for the future because we have to consider that we could finish the season with only three midfielders, Pape Sarr, Skippy and Pierre Hojbjerg.
"To have this type of performance makes me more relaxed because I know that I can count on these two players 100% and I'm really happy for them."
Only having the two midfielders for Tuesday's encounter at the San Siro, Cristian Stellini, who has taken over first-team duties with Conte resting up again in Italy after a post-operation check following his recent surgery, has an extra midfielder available for selection for Sunday's game vs West Ham following Pierre-Emile Hojbejrg's return from suspension. As well as Sarr and Skipp played in the middle of the park, the Dane will be expected to immediately regain his place in the side and that will mean one of the aforementioned duo misses out in the process.
That leaves Stellini with a very tough call to make as both more than made their case for Tottenham's upcoming games against the likes of Chelsea, Wolves and AC Milan. Whoever he does side with for the London derby against West Ham, it could very well drop a big hint over the preferred midfield two until Bissouma returns and increases the numbers in the middle.
In terms of trying to pick the ideal combination, Hojbjerg and Skipp already have an understanding of playing alongside one another after doing so in the opening months of 2021/22. The pair were regulars in Nuno Espirito Santo's Tottenham team and they kept their partnership going in the first couple of months of Conte's reign until Skipp was forced into the treatment room through injury.
Sarr, in comparison, only has six appearances to his name in a Tottenham shirt and the vast majority of those have been for limited minutes. He did, however, start the North London Derby alongside Hojbjerg and he also got 25 minutes next to the ex-Southampton man in the away games at Crystal Palace and Leicester City.
In total that may not be a lot of time alongside each other but they already have knowledge of each other's game and that will only grow and flourish with the more minutes they get together. As Hojbjerg and Skipp perhaps have some similarities in terms of their attributes and what they offer the team, Sarr could be the one edging ahead in the race to partner the Denmark star.
The Senegal ace certainly offers something different to Skipp as he is more dynamic, with the 20-year-old also a very good carrier of the ball and having a likeness for a shot from distance. It will be incredibly harsh on whoever makes way on Sunday to accommodate Hojbjerg but there will be plenty more opportunities over the remainder of the season with a lot more games to come and the fact Spurs have a midfield shortage as things stand.
Tottenham may have to do without their first-choice midfield pairing for what remains of the campaign but the next few months will give fans a tantalising glimpse of the future, something which Sarr and Skipp very much have a huge role to play in.
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