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Watford v Tottenham Preview

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The distance from Wembley to Watford is around 11 miles; the distance between Tottenham and Watford is three points; a home win for Watford by 10 goals will put them in seventh and we’d drop to eighth.

I can confidently predict that’s not going to happen, I cannot so confidently predict us winning.

Watford under their highly rated and sought after manager Marco Silva have been playing some of the best attacking exciting football in the whole of the Premier League, and the results have followed accordingly, but their preference for attack has also cost them dear against better teams.

The Hornets will be coming into this game after playing well, but losing 2-4 to Manchester United in midweek, 3-0 down they recovered to 3-2 and were pressing high and hard before conceding a 4th late on.

Earlier on in the season they lost 0-6 to ManCity, it was a salutary experience and Silva has worked hard since then to get the whole teams closing down and workrate to a higher level, in many respects his impact and his methods of improved fitness along with a high pressing workrate mirrors Pochs’ early impact.

But they also now have their injury problems with the highly rated Isaac Success, Nathaniel Chalobah, ex-Spur Younes Kaboul, Will Hughes, Craig Cathcart, and Tommie Hoban all out, and its doubtful Kiko Femenia and Miguel Britos will be fit for selection.

As so often happens, these injuries have brought about a chance pairing that’s been looking strong and it will be here that they’ll be looking to impose their game on us.

The pairing of Abdoulaye Doucoure and Tom Cleverley in central midfield is a strong one, Cleverly has really started to getting back to his best which once had Fergie saying he was the best CM’er in the PL; he has been on a bad journey since those days, but is probably now playing some of the best football of his life.

Both work hard to run beyond the defence and get into the box when they attack down the flanks; we’ll have a real battle on our hands to keep them quiet.

As for us, the good news is Winks will be back, Lamela could possibly start depending on how he came out of his re-appearance as Eriksen is clearly desperately in need of some respite, but the odds are Poch will think this is a game we must not lose and its too much of a gamble to play Lamela from the start, but could and should replace him with Song.

Watford are a physical side, I expect to see Dembele and Winks in midfield with Dembo playing a more withdrawn role, Dembele is still trying to find his form, which so far this season has eluded him.

A draw here is a minimum, a win would be a big shot in the arm, the corresponding game last season ended in a 1-4 win for us; I can’t see that happening this time, although I do expect the game to produce goals, it may only be a score draw unless Harry is back to his best and we are far more ruthless in front of goal and take our chances and don’t miss 3 or 4 clear cut chances as we did against Leicester.

We have not lost to Watford since they’ve been in the Premier league winning 6 and drawing two; now is not the time to do so, a loss to Watford would make a ‘difficult moment’ into a full blown crisis and hopes of securing a top 4 finish would take a huge blow, if not be another mission impossible, just as winning the league now is.

Poch has a couple of tough choices to make at left and right wing back, but given his recent rotations, I expect Trippier and Davies to start with a back three of Dier, Sanchez and Vert. A midfield of Dembele and Winks with a front three of Eriksen (should be Song, but we will see), Alli and Kane.

Tottenham should be playing like they have a point to prove, if they don’t and we start slowly or concede early, chances are our heads will drop and this could be another long disappointing game.

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Off the reserves bench again.