Although he missed a large chunk of the last season due to injury, only returning to the Tottenham squad for the final few games, Aaron Lennon will undoubtedly have been very disappointed to miss the cut for Roy Hodgson’s Euro 2012 squad.
This disappointment will have been compounded by the knowledge that although injury limited him to only 23 league appearances, he did manage more Premier League minutes than James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ashley Young and Adam Johnson, all of whom were included in the squad.
Furthermore his statistical record of creating a chance every 41 minutes of Premier League football was bettered only by Young and Johnson making his omission all the more surprising.
Indeed, Tottenham’s finest form of last season was during the period where Lennon was available, starting on the right wing opposite Gareth Bale, with Scott Parker and Luka Modric in the centre between them. Lennon’s pace and trickery were as dangerous a weapon as any as Tottenham made a serious challenge for the Premier League title.
It is no coincidence that the marked drop in form towards the end of the season coincided with a period on the sidelines for Lennon, forcing Modric out to the right wing and thereby disrupting the balance of a midfield which had been so successful.
The 25 year old will however be keen to move on from both the disappointment of missing his country’s trip to Poland and Ukraine and that of losing out on Champions League football to rivals Chelsea despite his side’s fourth place finish last term.
The diminutive winger has so far featured several times in his club’s pre season tour of America, narrowly missing an opportunity to score the winning goal as his side drew 0-0 with Premier League rivals Liverpool in Baltimore.
Nevertheless, Lennon will be relieved to return to the starting line up for his club and will be hoping for a season without any further injury worries during which he can make an impact on both the Premier League and the national side once again.