Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has admitted that he struggled to "understand" why Tottenham Hotspur head coach Jose Mourinho made the decision to leave Matt Doherty on the bench during Sunday's 1-0 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion.
Mourinho opted to deploy a 3-4-3 formation once again on the South Coast, with French midfielder Moussa Sissoko taking up residency at right wing-back, much to the surprise of Tottenham's supporters, who watched their side fall to a second successive Premier League defeat thanks to Leandro Trossard's 17th-minute winner.
The Portuguese chief's decision to start Sissoko - a box-to-box midfielder - in a defensive wide role came as a major shock, particularly with Doherty, who has proven himself to be one of the very best players in operating in that role in recent years, available for selection.
It was a surprising move and one that left Richards confused.
“What I don’t understand is that Spurs played with a three at the back,” Richards told BBC Radio 5Live. “And they played Sissoko wing-back.
“I know he has done well in a wide right role, at times. More with a four at the back and four in midfield.
“But you have Matt Doherty sitting on the bench there. What’s going through his mind? I could understand if they were playing a four at the back.
“At Wolves, he played wing-back and he was very effective from the wing-back position. It wasn’t just Spurs looking at him. Loads of teams were looking at him.”
Richards' claims about Doherty have come less than a week after former Republic of Ireland international David Connolly admitted that he feared for his fellow countryman's future at Spurs, following the 3-1 defeat to Liverpool at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last Thursday evening.
Connolly told RTÉ's Game On: "For one of the goals, Mourinho was screaming at Doherty. You could see his body language.
"I just can’t see it working out for him at Tottenham. They played with wing-backs ]against Liverpool] but Doherty was on the left.
"Whenever I’ve watched him for Tottenham, and obviously I want him to do well because I want him to perform well for Ireland, I really don’t think he suits them.
"I don’t know if Mourinho suits him as a personality either. I just worry about him at Tottenham. I don’t think he’s suited there."
