Vital Spurs Debate Section

Match Thread – It’s Football But Not As We Know It – Spurs Prepare To Blow The Bubbles Away

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Tottenham Hotspur’s players now have a solid 90 minutes under their belts as we look for real match sharpness and fitness as we bring the 2019/20 Premier League campaign to a close, and next up on Tuesday evening we find ourselves back at White Hart Lane as we welcome the bubble blowing brigade to our pitch.

With only a point to show for mixed efforts against Manchester United on Friday evening, manager Jose Mourinho will be hoping for a return of all three points in this fixture – there might not be any fans, but the bragging rights are still available and that Champions League place is still within our grasp at this stage and that has to be the aim despite the season we’ve had.

West Ham...

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With West Ham playing on Saturday evening, from a recovery front, that extra 24 hours could massively play in our favour. With no crowd and piped-in noises, it’s still going to be a strange watch, but the players should be better adjusted now – so hopefully three points.

In terms of team news, we will welcome back Dele Alli from his suspension and we might have Lucas Moura back as well – both will be boosts on a goalscoring front.

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  • Hot Tottingham says:

    Thank you Danny…

    I’m going for a Spurs win of course.

    Spurs 4-0 Irons!

    Harry 2 goals. Son and Dele, 1 each…

  • Spurfect One says:

    Expect us to sit further and further deeper as the game progresses.

  • DoncasterHotspur says:

    Looking forward to more fast moving, quick passing, free flowing football from Spurs playing perfectly in the image of their manager. On the other hand maybe we’ll see long balls lumped up to Kane with Son and Bergwijn desperately trying to break free from their defensive duties to support Harry.
    Even though we are up against a relegation threatened team, I still expect West Ham to have more of the ball. We may win, it could be a draw and we could lose this one. Under the current management each result is equally likely. Jose out COYS

  • 123spurs says:

    Tactics should be to suit the players younhave not players playing tactics that dont suit them.

  • Hot Tottingham says:

    123. Players at a top PL club such as Spurs. And, whether they are on 20 grand a week or 200 k a week. Need to be adaptable and flexible to any/all managers tactics. It’s a two-way affair.

    Having said that, there’s a good reason why managers will choose certain players over other equally good players in us the supporters eyes. It’s why most if not all will buy new players in asap to suit them and their tactical ways. Jose hasn’t yet been in the position to buy players at Spurs. But the man is no fool and he has many players at THFC that he wanted when at other clubs. (Dier being one of them). He knows what he wants from them and what they can or cannot do.

    And for example I’m pretty sure he picked both Dier and Sanchez vs MU (over Toby and Jan) for the very reason that he felt they were a better choice for his tactics that day. Dier and Sanchez being both younger and faster for a start. And, to cope better with MU’s speedy attack.

    Tuesday vs an inferior WHU will see different tactics and maybe a couple or more changes in the team. Despite what DH and SO have written.

  • Hot Tottingham says:

    Correction. Jose did of course have the January window to buy in…

    I will add that despite what any of us think about him, he has had a very strong reputation for being very adaptable with his tactics. Changing key players at half time and altering his formations mid game etc. We have already seen this at Spurs.

  • El Jefe says:

    Even though Wet Spam should make it hard for us given their relegation scrap – looking forward to this one and seeing some good attacking football and hopefully some goals on top! I think the CL is beyond us, we might get EL though but that is a whole poisoned chalice in itself.

    Would be nice to see us dominate them and get the right result whilst also keeping a clean sheet – a very rare occurrence this season and even last – you cannot win games if you keep conceding regularly.

    I have faith in our attackers – think we have real quality up front with the likes of Lo Celso, Dele, Moura, Bergwijn, Sonny and HK10.

    Central midfield if we can add a good DMC I think we’d be OK aswell with the likes of Sissoko, N’Dombele, Winks, Fernandes, Dier and Skipp.

    It’s the defence which really worries me and our lack of clean sheets over the last 2 season’s confirm this and ram the fact home – we only have Aurier at RB who is a liability, at CB we have the ageing pair of Toby and Vert’s, the error prone Davy and the young and in-experienced Tanganga, Dier has been covering there in some games but for me is not the answer at all especially long term and Foyth will never make it as a Prem CB – too small for starter’s! At LB there’s a bit of hope with Davies who is solid and Sessegnon who could come on eventually and be a top player – here’s hoping but has much, much to learn first of all!

    As I’ve stated the last couple of days on here we need to concentrate on defensive players all summer – ideally 3 need bringing in – a DMC, a RB and a LCB. If we want to achieve something next season it’s imperative this happens. Where the funds come from I don’t know – there’s only so much you can get for KWP, Rose, Foyth and CCV – who are the main names on my sell list and not surprisingly all defender’s – simply not good enough and need getting rid off ASAP to help build a small kitty. Vert’s may well be off aswell with his contract ending in a few days so we are desperate for good defensive players – hopefully we can work some magic and get them in!

    I keep banging on but the stats don’t lie – if we don’t get them in this summer – next season is a write off for me – that said JM has already indicated that there will be additions and I fully expect most if not all of them to be of the defensive type – thank GOD!

  • 123spurs says:

    Of course HT to some degree, but you also have to play to the players strengths,

  • 123spurs says:

    What tactics were used in 2nd half against MU as we didn’t have a shot on target? That’s pretty embarrassing from the manager and the players

  • Niall D says:

    EJ 100%in your, analysis re player recruitment. Which I’ve already said. I think much of my issue with Tottenham this season is that we don’t dominate teams for the complete game. When we got a win pre Covid it was almost like smash and grab. I suppose you take what you can. COYS.

  • block 108 spurs says:

    Fridays match was a game of two halves, in that we changed tactically and gave up the attacking intensity we had in 1st half. We know that when HK10 is back in with DMF looking for the ball….

    Against the spammers, they will always up their game as playing us is like their cup final, as we have witnessed them winning at WHL etc. many times over the last few years. So we should stick with the attacking game, score 2 or more then defend a bit more solidly keep a clean sheet to see out the game.

    Defense is a liability, Aurier too many mistakes, lost the ball 4 times and gave Utd dangerous crosses and passes into our box. Sanchez a nervous nellie, Dier head case under pressure, Ben is the best of them. Jose will bring in Toby, Dier to DMF or as sub. So attacking play is our strength fast moving counter attacks are very effective. COYS

  • BelgianSpur says:

    A lot is being said about Jose’s tactics, but I can understand where he is coming from.

    We’d been leaking goals at the back and on a horrendous run of form before the restart. I completely understand why Jose would want to sort out the basics first, be hard to beat first and foremost, and once a healthy foundation is in place, build on that offensively.

    We need to learn to walk before we run, that is the reality of where we are now. And the decline started under MP.

    Add to that the fact that all of our attacking players have either been out for months and aren’t firing on all cylinders yet, or currently injured, and I just don’t know how anyone can be confident that we can just take the game to the opposition and score plenty of goals.

    I am all for being positive when the conditions are right, but currently they’re not right.

    Personally, if we can be solid at the back and tidy in possession for 2 games in a row, that would already be a step in the right direction. Baby steps.

    When MP first arrived, we also had a period where his priority was to fix our defending. It puts unrealistic expectations on our strikers if we need them to score 3 or 4 goals every game, in order to have a chance to win. We were one soft penalty away from winning Friday, and we drew against a team that had been on fire before the lockdown. It’s not the worst result in the world.

    Let’s see how we set up against West Ham, but I personally would be disappointed to see us ship away goals against a poor Hammers team, regardless of the result. It’s time to start rebuilding from the foundations up, and until we can consistently defend well, I can understand how that will remain a priority for Jose.

  • Hot Tottingham says:

    Joses 1st game in charge was WHU, away in the PL.

    We won that match 2-3. We had taken a 3-0 lead early into the 2nd half if I remember well. And they scored 2 late goals.

    I can remember thinking that to give away those two late goals from a 3 nil lead was not a typical Jose team thing to do. But he hadn’t had any decent time with them before that match. And our defence was being very dodgy up until he arrived. But we did put on a very attacking performance that day.

    This time around and after a 3 month lay-off, surely things are different. And I believe that our defence looked a lot better organised and stronger vs MU than it was pre the break. So maybe we can expect a better and more difficult to beat Spurs, post lockdown and for these last few PL games.

    Or, maybe this is wishful thinking on my part and that we are just doomed to mediocrity… Oh no!

  • BelgianSpur says:

    I think that’s a fair assessment HT.

    I also expect us to be better organised at the back, now that Jose has had some time to work with his players.

    Going forward, I don’t expect us to hit our full stride this season. It’ll take a few games to get Kane going, and by the time he’s fully fit and sharp, the season will be over.

    Looking back at the score sheet from the WHU game, Son, Kane and Moura scored that day.

    Moura is currently injured. Son only just recovered from a 4 month layoff. Kane was out even longer. Bergwijn, the player who’ll most likely line up in place of Moura, was also injured for several months.

    Can we expect the same attacking fluency this time around? Who knows what we’ll get, but I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect it.

  • jod says:

    As BelgianSpur says our strikers are a long way from full match fitness and consequently we are short of firepower. The one bright spot is Bergwijn is looking like a really good prospect. We’ll just about be up to speed when the season finishes and there’s absolutely nothing the manager can do about that. Maybe with Ali back he can be more effective as a number 10 than Lamela was, although I still wonder if three in midfield isn’t a better option. Given where we are in the league and the time remaining champions league is looking a slightly forlorn hope, although it partly depends on whether its fourth or fifth. Personally if we can’t make champions league I’d rather miss out on Europe altogether. I’d agree our defence is looking better, but signing a left footed central defender has become a priority. Jose says we’ll give Vertonghen another year but he looks like the premier league is now too much for him physically.

  • TK says:

    I’ll be happy just to have our Spurs survive the ignominious Mourinho era. Reminding me of the George Graham style of play. Sit back and let the other team dictate the flow of play. Possession means having the opportunity to lose the ball. Better for the other team to have the ball so we can’t lose possession. Ugly game for a game that is meant to be beautiful and flowing. José shares George Graham’s lack of heart. This is anti-Spurs footie. No thanks. Go away, José. vai embora!

  • TK says:

    I never shared the extremely negative feelings about DL that some others have expressed. But knowing that DL hired José, I no longer can defend the man.

  • Hot Tottingham says:

    I can’t agree that Jose has a “lack of heart” TK.

    Jose is very passionate about his football and he certainly doesn’t hide it. He may be a very pragmatic tactician, believing that a strong defensive unit is crucial to a consistent and winning team but he does also like his flair players too. And this is no different to all successful coaches.

    And even though we did give up possession to united, play deep and with an emphasis on standing strong defensively to then hit them on the counter. We did have our fair share of goal attempts, when considering their superior possession percentage. And, in spite of what some have said, we didn’t park the bus against MU and hope for the best. And we did play to win. I thought that given our forwards obvious lack of fitness and very limited (non-existent) attacking options from the bench, that Jose mostly got his tactics right vs MU.

    I agree with BS. Now is not the time for “the beautiful game”. But that doesn’t mean that our flair players can’t and won’t shine at any time. But we will just have to wait and see.

    There’s not much point in wishing Jose gone right now. That would be damn foolish at this time.

  • wentworth says:

    Jose has been a poor appointment epitomised by the awful showing against United. WE were so lucky not to get hammered (thanks to Llorise). Boring, defensive approach and he always has excuses. We had 5 subs and only two were used. Kane was nackered and never had a shot. Aurier and Dier disasters waiting to happen. Winks ..weak and ineffective. Davies a squad player. We need to start attacking instead of sitting back playing boring football. We used to be a fast flowing, inventive, attacking team with 70% possession. We have become a negative, defensive outfit struggling to keep a mid table place. Just not good enough Jose.

  • Hot Tottingham says:

    Well, Jose has just expressed how happy he is that all our attacking players are available for tomorrow. (Minus Parrott of course). This is a first since he arrived.

    He pretty much echoed what I said in my last post and one wot I wrote yesterday. In that they are all players that he liked very much when he arrived at Spurs. And then with the addition of Bergwijn. I mean these are all flair players that can turn it on. That is; Kane, Lamela, Dele, Lucas, Son and Bergwijn.

    And although I expect us to hold strong defensively as we did vs Man United., I fully expect us to give West Ham United plenty of problems from our attacking point of view.

    And you never know. We may well knock the relegation threatened, little cockney sparrows, out of sight.

    1-0 will do……..We desperately need the 3 points.

    But who wants 1-0?

    I’ll raise my 4-0 to 5-0!

    Up the Spurs!

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