Lucas Moura for Son, worked fine. I don't think Winks for Lamela made any difference at all. Rose for Kane was a bit weird but I think the intention was to go three at the back and close off the game. Left us a bit disorganised in the penalty area for that last corner though. Poch is routinely criticised on here for not changing things though.
Lamela caused them quite a few problems and should have been left forward to keep some of their players back. I’m not a massive fan of Winks. He’s just OK, but not the standard we require if we want to be serious challengers As soon as we started to try and shut the shop up, I could see it coming
Typical, me and Lady C go and see Sicilian Ghost Story, while at the same time a Lombardian Horror Story unfolds...
Seriously? Moment he was taken off for Winks everything changed. The balance was gone, just like against Liverpool we had 3 CMs, one CAM and one winger. It resulted in us having zero threat down the right, allowing Inter to become more attack minded seeing as they didn’t have to particularly worry about defending on one side of the pitch. Add in then that Winks is just a god awful player and thus it instantly weakened us regardless of how stupid the formation went. I don’t think it’s a massive coincidence that we were relatively comfortable up to that 72nd minute yet the moment that change was made, Inter began fighting back.
Take your point, RCL but my issue is less with 3 games and more with the repeated failings over many months. I just feel that there are worrying signs on the pitch and in some of the management comments from Poch. Would rather we stop the rot now rather than further weeks and months down the line.
Over achieving? What's over achieving? You set your own standards..not what the media or stereotypes set. Then when you reach them standards you grow, plateau or regress...we are not over achieving..we are regressing because our standards have dropped therefore its a backward step. Plus I don't think our team works very hard of late either...did you watch the press 3 seasons ago? Did you see the Pool players pressing compared to ours? That's how we were pressing 3 seasons ago. It could be a phase and it could be any of the events we have all collectively mooted however we need to stop living in a mythical world when it comes to the greatness of our best XI. We do not press..we are the worst of the pressing teams but 3 seasons ago we were the best and ahead of Pool and City in the manner we were executing the press.
It's not office work..it's football it's about passion and drive....it's like being in a gladiator arena without the threat of being killed instead you get paid millions and you get thousands and thousands of people chanting your name throwing roses at you and naming their kids after you..and carrying you on their shoulders...it's not office work where I missed my deadline and now I'm unhappy because I've been called in for a disciplinary...you're such an apologist for the players...you on the payroll? If a footballer feels like he's been treated badly because he got subbed in a game at HT..he needs to take up Ballet and anyway...it's not just the players...Poch needs to start learning the art of in game tactics...he's been here long enough.
And by rushing himself back before he was ready (in order to try to win the golden boot) he probably cost us points at the end of last season, compromised his England form and has been a shadow of his pre-injury self.
I don't like posting in the immediate aftermath of a defeat particularly one like last nights, but sitting here this morning, it really doesn't feel much different. I do try and see the positives and whilst there weren't a whole lot of those there were one or 2. Lamela was a positive and the decision to sub him was definitely a key factor that allowed Inter back into a match that for an hour (the last 25 mins of the first half and first 35 of the second) we were dominating. Aurier possibly had his best match in a Spurs shirt? And when we were in control Dembele showed glimpses of the player we know is in there. Now the negatives - 2/3 substitutions, Winks looks lost, and Rose for Kane, I don't get that at all, at that point in the game don't piss about with the team structure, if you wanna make a change thats fine, but swap like with like and send on Llorente who at least might have won a header - something Harry did a number of times whilst defending set plays. Not sure what is up with Davies at the moment, but in a side where very few are showing any form he is pushing Dier very close for just who is playing the worst. Jan had as a poor a match as he has had for a few years, Vorm inspires no confidence though he wasnt really at fault for either goal. I agree with Dierhard that 4231 is the way we need to play and we need to ready for Brighton on Saturday the amex is no easy place to go, and some changes must be made, if Wanyama is fit he should get a game, I would send Dier, Vertonghen and Kane away for a 10 days R&R they need a break even if its only 10 days then back in training for the Barcelona match.
One can look at last night as an isolated case and look at individual players. I'd prefer to look at last night as indicative of a recurring collective problem. We have a habit of ****ing up big games where we're ahead or drawing and should win. I'm not going to blame any one individual as it's much more than that. The manager and players need to face up to repeating the Juventus loss at Wembley in the very next European tie we've played. We're ahead in a big game and need to manage it. In both games we manage to lose one goal and immediately fall apart and concede another in a matter of a few minutes. There's a lack of collective intelligence and leadership in the team in that situation and it's not just those games. This applies to players and management. Three times against Chelsea - the 2-2 at Stamford Bridge, the 2-1 league loss at Wembley and in the FA Cup semi-final we had them on the ropes. We were significantly the better team in all those games and were undone by flying at them and letting the game get out of our control. What's needed is cold clear thinking. You keep the team compact, keep the ball and behave as a unit. The whole team moves together and you don't let the game get stretched and don't allow the opposition space and time. Their first goal came from a huge space out on the left, allowing a free cross and nobody picking up Icardi. We were still committing 3 or 4 players to attacks, chasing a second goal against a team that were done. The only way that they were scoring was if we let them. We did it twice.......again. We all know that we don't have a captain/leader worth the title. It's time for that to change. Someone needs to step up and MP needs to get the message across about how to win these games , or at least get the draw. I want to see someone screaming at team mates to hold their position, organising the troops and demanding that what we have, we hold.
I agree with most of that but it doesn't change my view that Poch knows what he is doing and this is just a blip. His tactics have improved us enormously, don't panic because we narrowly lost three matches.
Perhaps Poch is getting fed up with so many people, hacks and fans, telling him that he has to win something, so he is saving his best teams for the League cup
Fine with all that apart from the last bit. True Leaders don't need to scream and anyone who needs to be screamed at to do their job properly shouldn't be on the pitch. The way to hold on to a lead is to play normally but take fewer risks so as to hold on to the ball more. That's why Winks for Lamela seemed a good swap to me.
Great post Brian, and more than any other that was the player we needed in the summer - but when did we last have a captain like that - Dawson maybe, or do we go back to Mabbutt and Gough - or maybe even Mullers! Don't get me wrong some great players have captained the side Perryman, and King were both great players who led by example rather than by bellowing instructions. But we need a leader now more than ever and I don't see him within the club at the moment.
We had more of the ball, including more of a threat, than when Lamela was on the pitch than when Winks was on. The moment Winks came on, Inter took control. That’s not a coincidence. Winks is dreadful, mate. Has no purpose being in this Spurs side. I’ve tried giving benefit of the doubt, especially now that Dembele isn’t at his best but he just offers absolutely nothing other than backwards passing. Not sure what it is he does in training to make Poch select him so frequently. Every time I see him play I get more and more gutted that we sold Mason to accommodate him into the side.
I'm going to disagree. My playing sporting prowess was rugby based more than football. When you're defending your try line with the opposition driving at it over and over again, I always found that vocal leadership, exhorting collective effort found that extra strength and determination. I'm no leader and in the last quarter was often so knackered that I could hardly speak but played with a couple of truly inspiring leaders. I'd find that extra 5% not to let them down. If they told me to do something, I bloody well did it. I did it for my team mates but even more so, I did it for them personally. When the call to give everything to hold the line went up, I'd even find the necessary to join in the shouting. There's definitely a place for shouting in a sporting environment. I recall Graham Roberts, Terry Butcher and Peter Shilton ranting at team mates. Gary Lineker recalls loving watching Butcher do it and the confidence it gave - "This bloke'll see us home." We badly need someone to do it.
Sorry Power you going to make me use some bad language now, but in recent years the likes of Keane, Adams, and Terry (who we all despise) have led teams to victory mainly because they played in good teams, but partly because they are all proper captains, people who made sure that the players around them were focused and if that meant balling them out then that's what they did and whilst we all love the players who have captained our side - in a show us your medals competition they all piss all over anyone we can put up.
I wouldn't argue with any of that. I just feel that our teamwork has been working fine without the shouting being needed. Elite sportsmen should have that attitude built in. My sport was rowing and if anyone in my crew started shouting I would be wondering why they were not using their energy to move the boat.
What I would do to have Sergio Ramos at this club. Bloke would whip every single player into shape, players would be too scared to give anything less than 110%.
