Tottenham’s midweek action against RB Leipzig was an utter waste of money for the home fans who filled the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Lilywhites fell to a bitter 1-0 defeat against a team that had a back four made up of four full-backs and a 19-year-old defensive midfielder.
However, you wouldn’t know that from what Julian Nagelsmann, the Leipzig boss, had been in the build-up as little was said about his defensive injuries. On Jose Mourinho’s side of things, though, the fact that he’s without Heung-Min Son and Harry Kane has been mentioned at every opportunity.
Regardless of who Tottenham are without, though, there was no need whatsoever for Mourinho to start his side in a rigid 4-4-2 and allow Leipzig to have possession of the ball before playing needless long-balls over the top of the Bundesliga outfit’s defence when the ball was recovered.
There were chances for the Lilywhites, Steven Bergwijn forced an early save out of Peter Gulacsi early in the first half, Lucas Moura then did similar early in the second half before Giovani Lo Celso and Erik Lamela had free-kicks stopped later in the second half when Spurs were 1-0 down.
The way the game went, though, there was only one team who deserved to win it in north London, and if anything Leipzig fans, the few that they actually have, will have come away from this clash questioning how on earth they only won the game 1-0, as Timo Werner, despite his penalty, missed a hatful of chances.
Is Mourinho an out-dated manager?
Yes
No
Whether or not the Lilywhites can turn this around in Germany only time will tell, but there is no way that they manage it if Mourinho lines them up with the same woeful 4-4-2 and plays the same long-ball turgid football that led to them falling behind in the first leg this week.