With a comfortable and professional Tottenham Hotspur showing dispatching Marine in our FA Cup tie at the weekend, our Premier League match with Aston Villa has been officially postponed following their Covid outbreak, so on Wednesday evening, we will now welcome Fulham To White Hart Lane.
As fans will know, the Fulham clash (originally scheduled for December 30) had itself been postponed following their own outbreak of Covid, but I think most would accept this is a sensible reshuffle at this stage as I don’t believe Villa are even back in training yet as their positive players continue to self isolate.
Fulham should be reasonably well rested after their own break but they will have sharpness issues and some players may well be leggy after their Cup clash with QPR required Extra Time, so what we can expect from them in what will only be their second game of 2021 is anyone’s guess.
As for us, Gareth Bale has minutes under his belt once again after Marine but I wouldn’t expect to see Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg back just yet after his nasty shin collision. Giovani Lo Celso remains out.
We should be confident of all three points here as we look to keep the pressure on at the top of the table.
Fulham
Win
Draw
Lose
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Danny thanks, again for the thread
This (I feel) is an unexpected bonus for us, many of our main stays have been rested Fulham may have lost their recent upturn in form.
At one stage I thought we’d end up with a back log around March /April time when many other competitions are getting interesting.
I must give credit for the fast thinking of the powers that be on this one.
Would love to see a few of the faces from Sunday at least on the bench for this one.
I think Fulham are ripe for the picking.
Let’s give them the full ham.
Yes the PL management have done a sensible thing in replacing Fulham game for Villa.
What we need is another professional performance from spurs players, a clean sheet and 3 points to take us 3rd place in the league table. I expect Dele to start as he did better in last game, Jose will be watching him a bit more than other players, so an improvement again in his ability and attitude. Spurs win 2-0 COYS
Some job the PL have in scheduling fixtures… At least we don’t have to deal with yet another postponement.
3 – 0 …. and still in the mix.
Thank you Danny for another match thread v Fulham.
We have to go for a win, as every game so that we can keep the pressure up/on those sides all around us.
As a football fan, I feel for the predicament that Fulham find themselves in, but as a Spurs fan we must be ruthless and get a good win.
Geofs normality prediction is good for me lol! COYS
It’s a tough one… Personally, I feel that the games should go on, and if a club doesn’t have enough senior players to field a full team, they should have to play the kids. And if they don’t have enough kids to play, they have to forfeit the game.
It would be an extra incentive for players and club staff to look after themselves.
Now I understand the downside of that, if your club is the one being affected. Certainly for smaller clubs with smaller squads, it’d be hugely unfair to risk relegation just because the club was hit with a Covid crisis.
This being said, these clubs also voted in favour of playing, knowing that risks were involved this year, because they wanted the money.
I also find it hugely unfair on clubs like Spurs, to have to deal with last minute postponements, changes of opponents, and the potential for fixture pile ups just because of what’s going on at other clubs.
Either way, someone is getting screwed. But getting screwed because your own players/staff made mistakes is one thing; getting screwed because of events happening elsewhere, outside of your control, is even worse IMO.
BS …. Due to the virus most people on the planet are being affected one way or another. The game of football, and its millions of supporters, are just a part of it. We can complain and argue about what we think should or should not happen but it is just a waste of breath because it what it is. For example, we could moan about some people ignoring the rules, not doing the right thing, and behaving selfishly. But most of us have lived long enough to understand how human behaviour works, or doesn’t work.
Geof…so true that post of your, here in is the saying “there is always one” maybe in this instance thousands but who’s counting. COYS
Not a bad point BS.
Just wondering if the affected rather than infected team would have any imput to the re scheduling process, as for example we technically have the Villa game in the pipe line, I wouldn’t want us having this foisted on us on the week of the League Cup Final, or the latter stage of the other Competitions if we’re lucky enough to get through.
Surely the rescheduled game should now have to suit our timetable to a degree.
Who knows,
Looking for a good positive performance on Wednesday.
COYS.
The way it now is in the UK. I think the only logical, sensible and fair solution would be to abandon the season all together, across all leagues.
Unlike last season, it doesn’t look logistically possible for this one to resume at any time, if it were to be halted. As I presume that the Euros will still go ahead and be played during this summer. When the hope will be that there is a much tighter control of Covid-19, after the mass vaccinations have been undertaken…
But, it’s still all so unpredictable, isn’t it?
Geof – Of course many people are impacted, and just to be clear, my previous post wasn’t meant to say that football should go on at all costs. We’ve debated that on another thread and I agree, football is a non priority.
I was just commenting on what I think is a silly rule for this season, which says that if a PL team has less than 14 senior players available for a game due to Covid, they can request for the game to be postponed.
If PL football is going to be played this year, I think the games should go on as originally scheduled, no matter how many players a team has at its disposal for a game.
Niall – we have no say in when our postponed games will be rescheduled. That’s the PL’s responsibility. The most we can do is argue that we already have a very packed schedule with our EFL Cup, FA Cup and EL commitments (Jose has already started doing that), and hope for the best.
Depending on how we fare in the FA Cup and EL, some mid-week slots may open later in the season, but if we continue to progress in all competitions, there are only 2 options:
– Either the PL have to extend the season (to allow any postponed games to be played then), which isn’t going to go down very well given that the CL and EL finals are already scheduled for mid/late May, and the Euros begin soon after (national team managers would lose it);
– Or force teams who have games in hand to play 3 games in a week, which would put us at a massive disadvantage.
Either way, as unfair as it would be to force a team to forfeit a PL game because of Covid, it would be arguably even more unfair to impose either of those scenarios on our club.
As far as I know, City and Spurs are the only 2 teams in that situation, are we are currently the only teams left that both have games in hand and are still involved in 4 competitions.
However, we’re even worse off than City. Firstly because our season started earlier than theirs, given our EL qualifiers. Secondly, because the EL knockout stages start at the round of 32, unlike the CL knockout stages which start at the round of 16. We effectively have 2 more European games than they do to reach the final of our respective European competitions.
The discussion going on regards “closing/suspending the season” is really a debatable subject and does bring some very good posts regards it, BS for example a very good post, but what is the solution? to be perfectly honest here I have no bloody idea.
Another question and I believe it is the main one, how many clubs will survive with out any sort of income? if we suspend this season, I believe the landscape of Pro-football will look so very different.
I also believe this Pandemic has opened many eye’s to how reliant football is on “big money” not just the fans income, so maybe a re-think is required on how our football clubs are run/operate.
Somehow to carry on with this season the players themselves have to take a lot of responsibility for what is going on, the Clubs/FA etc have to really lay down the rules, no hugging/goal celebrations etc, punish suitably, those who break the rules, note it is not all just a few numpties, but all the players themselves have to talk to their kin about their responsibilities also.
Will those couple of points work, I really do not know. COYS
PY
Your final paragraph says it all . Responsibility has to within the clubs and somehow enforce players to abide by the rules . Huge fines ought to be applied to the guilty players .
We not only saw the reaction of fans massing outside grounds to wave to their team but also ( understandably ? ) reaction by some of the teams to their unexpected victories in the clanging rooms .
There is a growing argument seen in social media that soccer ought to be temporarily stopped considering the large number of positive tests .
I agree with BS that matches , if scheduled , ought to be played . If players are selfish enough to ignore national guidelines then tough. Putting out a depleted side and losing will perhaps focus their minds !!
…..in the changing …
HT
That could be a moot point re the season.
I already thought that the Euro stuff was a step too far.
Even just to do one euro game in a neutral location.
But the way things are going either to have a break or a postponment may be the only option.
PY as far as celebrations are concerned, I suggested earlier that in the current climate it perhaps should Warrant a yellow or even a red card, it would soon stop the “space invaders”.
Even to do it retrospectively, where it doesn’t affect that game but does have some influence on the next.
Allan – you assume it’s always the players who don’t respect the rules. I am not saying that they are all beyond reproach, don’t get me wrong. Some have not followed rules and are to blame.
However, as I said in another thread, it could just as easily be club staff who are responsible for a Covid outbreak at a club. All it takes is a club physio, for example, to break the rules, and half the squad will be infected.
Respecting the rules has to be a club-wide responsibility, certainly the players,and coaches, but down to the canteen staff, kit men and all people who are in direct contact with the players. And by extension, the families of all of those people too.
That’s a lot of people to keep under control.
People break rules! It’s a given. They always have and they always will. It is not possible to control everyone. That’s why crime exists. Example; people have always hugged for many reasons …. comfort, love, jubilation, support, (scoring a goal), etc. It’s a natural emotional reaction to situations faced in life. And now everyone is expected to stop. Seriously??
The way things are at the top of the table these kind of games are as much about goal difference as they are about points. GD could be crucial at the death.
Belgian S ref 9.31 post .
Totally agree with your comments and it is difficult to know how someone has become infected although the 3 people I know who have had Covid can identify the carrier .
The problem with football is that the face of the sport ( esp . The Premier ) is extremely high profile with players getting huge salaries and everything which goes with it .
When the general public ( may be many anti football people out there ) see crowds and players not social distancing and obviously flouting the rules gives them ammunition . Some would argue quite correctly .
To give you an e.g. the ridiculous celebrations after Everton had scored their 2nd goal vs Wolves last night was way over the top and IMO quite unnecessary . The players had no thought for the image it presented .
It must be the clubs , however they manage it , to be seen to be controlling their players otherwise the social clamour for stopping top flight football will gather pace and will force the league being suspended .
Goef I understand your comments however I’m afraid at present our natural instincts must be curbed and seen to be complient with the lock down rules .
… compliant ….
As to players not celebrating goals… It is in their DNA as footballers, and it is moot that this will curb covid. They already are in close contact in training and team tactical meetings / dressing room / in games, coach transport etc. so there is a massive chance for covid infection anyway. However I see the point of players setting an example to younger fans to social distance… but in reality this will have minimum effect sadly.
Spurs need to win tonight and a clean sheet as goal difference is going to be very important at season end.