I’LL WERN MY SPURS

Timo insists there’s more to his game than goals

TIMO WERNER says he wants to be judged on more than just his goals in a Tottenham shirt.

Werner became better known for his high-profile misses than his success at Chelsea, where he was also constantly caught offside.

But the 27-year-old arrived at Spurs with a new outlook on his contribution to the team and believes his work rate, assists and creating space for team-mates is vital.

The Germany forward has joined on loan from RB Leipzig and if the six-month audition goes well then Spurs have the option to sign him permanently.

The incentive is clear for Werner, who worked hard on his debut at Manchester United on Sunday.

He provided an assist for Rodrigo Bentancur’s equaliser in the 2-2 draw, but could not take either of his two clear chances.

When asked whether Chelsea fans saw the best of him during his two years at Stamford Bridge, Werner said: “That’s hard to say.

There was always criticism of my game there.

“At the beginning I also started like I did here, from the left side. I think a lot of people wanted to see me scoring more goals.

“But at Spurs, with the tactics we have and the way the manager wants me to play, I can bring a lot to the group, also with my assists and maybe by not being the main man who scores the goals. To make deep runs to create space for the others and like on Sunday to create an assist.”

Werner scored 10 goals in 56 Premier League appearances for Chelsea over two seasons but, more significantly, played a part in them winning the Champions League in 2021.

The jibes were always about his finishing and being offside – but he thinks some of the criticism is unfair from his time at Chelsea.

Even Ange Postecoglou (above) admitted that Spurs would not have been able to sign their new man had it been going well for him in the Bundesliga. Werner said: “I think now I’m a bit older, I see how important assists and deep runs are for the team.

“I also want to score goals but it’s not the main part of my game any more. I can bring so much more, especially in this kind of tactic for the group.”

Werner said he was happy with his Spurs debut, and he insisted his return to the Premier League is bigger than just wanting to get back into the Germany squad for a home tournament this summer.

He added: “First of all, it was not the main point of coming to Spurs, to go to the Euros. Of course it’s a big event you want to be part of but I wanted to be part of Spurs.

“When I spoke to the manager, I wanted to be part of this group, I wanted to be part of playing for this manager, these tactics.

“That was the biggest reason for coming to Spurs, not playing the Euros, although that’s a big thing and where you want to be.

“We wanted to get the three points, that’s the only not-so-good thing but we had a very good game.

“It’s not easy to win at Old Trafford and I’m very pleased with my game. I enjoyed it and with the assist it was a good debut.”