Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Tim Sherwood believes Mousa Dembele was good enough to play for Real Madrid and insists Spurs have still not found a proper replacement for the Belgian midfielder.Dembele spent six and a half years at Tottenham before leaving for Chinese side Guangzhou R&F in January 2019. He was a key part of Mauricio Pochettino’s midfield, but Sherwood believes his ability deserved recognition at an even higher level.Photo by Adrian DENNIS / AFP via Getty ImagesTim Sherwood believes Mousa Dembele deserved Real Madrid moveSpeaking on The Greatest of All Teams podcast, Sherwood reflected on Dembele’s qualities and admitted he was surprised the midfielder never ended up at Real Madrid.“He should’ve played for Real Madrid. Mousa Dembélé is still a player who Tottenham have not replaced. This boy can do everything,” the former Spurs boss said.Sherwood worked with Dembele during his time in charge of Tottenham and explained that the Belgian offered something that could not be measured purely by looking at goals and assists.“He gives you control as a manager when the ball goes into him. Paul, he plays as a six. He could play as an eight. He could play as a ten,” Sherwood added.“I used to sit down and relax. Have a cup of tea now, Mousa’s got the ball. No one gets the ball off him. No one can take the ball off him. He was a genius!”Former Fulham defender Paul Konchesky, who also appeared on the podcast, agreed with Sherwood’s assessment. He recalled how difficult Dembele was to dispossess and praised his ability to glide past opponents from central areas.Sherwood is not the first former player to question how Dembele never ended up at one of Europe’s biggest clubs.In 2024, Antonio Rudiger named the Belgian as one of the most underrated opponents he had faced, praising his strength and technique.Former Tottenham striker Vincent Janssen also named Dembele as the best player he had played alongside, despite sharing a dressing room with Harry Kane. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Greatest Of All Teams (@thegreatestofallteams)Why Tottenham have found Mousa Dembele so difficult to replaceSherwood’s comments raise an interesting point about Tottenham’s recruitment since Dembele left in 2019. Spurs have spent considerable sums on midfielders over the past seven years, but finding somebody who can influence matches in quite the same way has proved difficult.Dembele was not a midfielder who regularly contributed goals or assists. His biggest strength was receiving the ball under pressure, holding off opponents and carrying possession into areas where Tottenham could begin to hurt teams.That made him particularly important in Pochettino’s side. When Spurs were being pressed, Dembele could take the ball in a crowded midfield and find a way out, allowing the team to move forward without resorting to hopeful long passes.Tanguy Ndombele was one of the players Tottenham signed after Dembele’s departure, arriving from Lyon in 2019 for a club-record fee. He had the technical ability to beat opponents and carry the ball forward, but never established himself as the consistent midfield presence Spurs had hoped for.Rodrigo Bentancur later brought composure and control to the middle of the pitch, particularly under Antonio Conte. However, his role was different from Dembele’s, while a serious knee injury interrupted his progress.Tottenham now have two more midfielders who could help address that problem in Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes.Could Mateus Fernandes finally fill the gap left by Dembele?Fernandes was arguably Tottenham’s standout performer in Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The Portuguese midfielder impressed with his passing, defensive work and ability to retain possession under pressure.There are certainly aspects of his game that bring Dembele to mind, particularly his confidence when receiving the ball in tight spaces. However, fans need to not get carried away after one impressive performance which is not enough to suggest Tottenham have finally found a player capable of matching the Belgian’s influence.Tonali offers something different, with his passing range, positioning and ability to dictate the tempo of a match. Together, the two midfielders could provide Tottenham with greater control, even if neither develops into a direct replacement for Dembele.Tottenham do not necessarily need to find another player with exactly the same attributes as Dembele, provided Roberto De Zerbi can build a midfield that offers the same level of control, frankly, Dembele was generational and it’s hard to find a player who ticks the same boxes.READ MORE: Mateus Fernandes stat shows he is Tottenham’s new press-resistant Mousa DembeleThe post Tim Sherwood says former Tottenham star should have played for Real Madrid appeared first on Spurs Web.