Tottenham fans are already starting to come back to an old Dejan Kulusevski realization

It is undoubtedly wonderful to see Dejan Kulusevski back on the pitch and healthy for Tottenham Hotspur, because for more than a year since his knee injury at the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season, there was a very real worry that Kulu would never play again.

Kulusevski returned a couple of weeks ago to place the icing on the cake of a 3-1 win over Coventry City on Monday Night Football, which was Spurs first of the 2026/27 season. He had a great run in which he looked like he did not lose a step of speed since his injury, which was a stunning and highly positive development. A couple of weeks later, he even had a nice shot on target against Crystal Palace.

But Kulu could not spare Spurs blushes against Leeds United. The Swedish international came into the game in the second half to try and spark an attack that had been atrocious since Mathys Tel's injury, with none of Dominic Solanke, Omar Marmoush, or Mohammed Kudus looking capable of saving the game for the team or providing any sort of end product.

The thing is, though, neither did Dejan Kulusevski. He was as bad as the rest of them, and he really struggled to beat his man or put in a decent cross. Kulu wasted some great positions with cowardly passes backwards, stagnant dribbling, and inaccurate crosses.

Before Kulu's injury, he was actually under a lot of fire from Tottenham Hotspur fans, who saw his production waning and were worried that he simply did not have the level to be more than a good hand or even a quality rotational player for the team. He simply did not look like a star player and was actually part of the problem as to why Spurs finished 17th in the Premier League.

It's only been substitute appearances for Kulu since his injury return, but after watching Kulu struggle to put in a decent cross or make something happen late in the game, Spurs fans are remembering that while Kulu is a quality player and someone they love, he's not remotely a superstar. He's not going to be the savior of this team all of a sudden, even when he is 100 percent healthy and ready to start games for Tottenham.

Spurs are going to need to find their solution somewhere else. Kulu can help as a role player, but anyone thrusting bigger expectations on him is simply not being fair to who Kulusevski is as a player.