Adebayor the enigma (Video)

At times he is devastatingly effective, yet sometimes he is non-existent. Often he seems to look disinterested when not in possession of the ball and only seems to play to his best when he is required to prove his worth. This is the enigma that is Emmanuel Adebayor, a striker accused of only playing to his potential when he needs a new contract or a transfer. Is this statement harsh or is there some truth to it?

His ability as a player has attracted clubs such as Arsenal, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Tottenham to sign him during his career to date. These are all top level sides, with no shortage of attacking options, so they have all seen attractive attributes in the Togolese striker.

Whilst Arsenal fans will accuse him of lacking any loyalty or respect, especially after celebrating the way he did when he scored for Manchester City in their match against the Gunners, there are others who will say that he has been forced to move to pastures new. Robin van Persie had the No 1 shirt at the Emirates, whilst Sergio Aguero forced him from the Etihad to Madrid. Whilst playing quite often at the Bernabeu during his loan spell there, he never really managed to convince Jose Mourinho that he was better than Higuian or Benzema, and so once again was looking for a new club. Tottenham came calling and he was happy to accept their offer, perhaps because he believed that he would be guaranteed a regular first team spot.

He has done reasonably well since joining Spurs but still doesn’t convince on a regular basis. The latest evidence of this was during Thursday’s Europa League match against Basel. A half-hearted and languid display was rounded off by a very casual penalty in the shootout which sailed over the bar. A cheeky grin as he walked away from the penalty area will not have pleased Spurs fans, who were probably hoping to have beaten the Swiss team. Now he will have to attempt to score some important goals in the final games of the Premiership season to help secure them a Champions League spot for next season.

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