Wales boss Robert Page has given his honest verdict of Joe Rodon, after Wales' 2-1 victory over Austria on Thursday, as they moved to within one game of qualifying for the World Cup finals in Qatar, as well as giving an update on Ben Davies' return to N17. The Tottenham duo both played 90 minutes in their country's first match of the international break.
Rodon produced a solid display, making 17 clearances, winning all of his aerial duels and blocking three shots. Davies also played a good game on the left of a back three, but this isn't the case for both of them when they are playing for Spurs.
Whilst the 28-year-old is playing regularly, alongside Eric Dier and Cristian Romero, Rodon is struggling for game time and has made just eight appearances in all competitions for Tottenham so far this season. Questions are being raised as to why, especially as Harry Winks and Pierluigi Gollini have both recently admitted that the defender is one of the last on the training pitch.
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His work ethic is clearly not been enough to gain him regular game time, which isn't being helped by the solid form of the back three in recent games. Spurs currently sit fifth in the Premier League and are just three points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who they will try and overtake in the final nine games of the season after the international break.
Wales have another international game to play before the break is over, a friendly against Czech Republic on Tuesday night. Whilst the 24-year-old will be hoping for some more game time for his country, Davies will not be involved in the match.
That's because football.london reported on Monday that the defender was returning to the capital as a precaution, after feeling tightness in one of his quad muscles in his thigh. Page has given an update on Davies' injury, emphasising the precautionary action.
"He has had a lot of football in his legs, and it's not so much an injury but a precaution. If we keep pushing him then he will break down and I think we owe [it] to Tottenham. They've been great with us, and it's time to show that respect back," Page explained.
This is likely to go down very well with Conte, who will be heavily reliant on Davies in the final stretch of Spurs' season. Not only is this because the Welshman is producing solid performances for the Lilywhites, but also because of the Italian's lack of options in his position.
The 28-year-old has taken well to playing on the left side of a back three, a position he also plays in for his country. Davies is dealing with much of what has been thrown at him defensively, but also working hard to make an impact in the attacking third of the field, where he can.
Rodon, on the other hand, is finding it harder to break into the 52-year-old's regular XI. However, after his solid display on Thursday night, he earned some praise from the Wales boss, who also explained that Conte had seen the game.
"I know Antonio Conte was watching last Thursday. And rightly so, he was very complimentary about Joe's performance. I thought he was outstanding," the 47-year-old admitted.
"To come in off the back of not playing at club level and to give that level of performance was a credit to him. It shows he has looked after himself. You know if you are going to be a Tottenham player you have to be fit at this moment in time. I know that for a fact.
"But it's not the same when you are not playing. You can do all the training in the world but if you are not playing then it's hard to give a performance like that, so Joe deserves an enormous amount of credit for that level of performance. It shows he looks after himself."
This supports the 24-year-old's teammates point about his hard work on the training pitch. If Rodon can get more game time against Czech Republic, then he may feel he deserves a chance in the final couple of months of the season at Tottenham.
However, Conte has previously admitted that the defender is Dier's understudy, which makes it even more of a struggle for the 24-year-old to get minutes on the pitch, with the Englishman arguably being Spurs' most consistent defender this season. Rodon will just have to continue his hard work in the hope that he is given an opportunity before the end of the campaign and if he does get the chance, make sure he is ready to impress.
If the Wales international doesn't get given match minutes by the time the end of the season comes around, he may start to question his own future in N17. At just 24, Rodon still has many years of his career left and he may feel that a move away is what is best for his own progress.
This will then leave Conte, Fabio Paratici and Daniel Levy the decision of whether he should be loaned out or moved away permanently, with further questions raised over where he could move to and if it is a permanent exit, how much for. Therefore, it is a big couple of months for Rodon's Tottenham journey and only time will tell if and how it ends.
