I don't see it quite like that. We are not quite good enough to get more than 85 points yet. That's all really.
The fact that only one substitution gets used when we are losing, and when the team are tired, is quite telling. The squad clearly isn't strong enough at this point. January can't come soon enough, and I don't want to hear any excuses for no transfer activity. Kane needs a potent and solid backup. When he is tired, it shows. We had the right idea with Janssen so clearly Pochettino sees it. The same plan just needs follow-through with a different player perhaps. (Calvert-Lewin and Joshua King are good examples of backup options that clubs below is manage to have. Similar level would be fine for us.) We also need CM DM options. Winks and Sissoko pairing is not quality enough to carry the team for an entire season. Winks is only slightly better than Carrol who we moved on for not being good enough. Sissoko is a good squad player to play next to a better CM when needed. Considering the injuries, and the makeshift solutions we've implemented, we've done very well to arrive at this point with the tally we have. It's painful to see Pochettino tactically out-foxed though. Their gameplan worked. Well played Wolves.
To be fair, Trippier has been very average this season and has been exposed on several glaring occasions. He’s also extremely frustrating to watch when he goes backwards 99% of the time. It’s no wonder some fans are taking things to the extreme with their views. I don’t think trippier is a bad player at all. But even despite Auriers recklessness at times, I’d still pick him or KWP over Trippier. I just feel their pros outweigh their cons.
Said it in the pre-amble. Perhaps manager and squad should be reading our match threads. That this type of result follows the pattern of a particular type of opponent when there are particular stakes, is nothing new. What I think is needed in the squad (and no, I don't mean buy X new players in Y transfer window blah blah) I doubt is going to happen, because the manager would have made it so long ago.
The good news is that the brewery at the new stadium appears to be well advanced because the bottling plant seems to be working rather well. #sayitbeforethewumsgetachance.
Havent seen the game so i cant really comment on it but if it is a tiredness factor, i think poch needs to be managing the squad better. You know you have one of the shortest rest periods this christmas and when you are tonking teams 6-2 and 5-0 (5-2 by 60 odd mins and 3-0 at half time) you can be resting some of your stars and less deep positions. Where was llorente yesterday? Wasnt even on the bench. Lastly its only one game, you have actually done brilliant to take as many points as you have, its only because liverpool have been so strong it looks as bad as it has (and also cause you were 1 up)
Alistair Gold summed it up pretty well https://www.football.london/tottenh...tlessness-nkoudou-sub-never-happened-15609861
Spurs and Wolves had the most PL games in the shortest period. Could throw in the League Cup NLD as an extra burden, but not enough IMHO to use the increasingly tedious "tired" excuse. Yesterday was all about mentality IMHO, nothing else.
First up, hats off to Wolves. Set up well from the start, gave us a competitive first half and then did a number on us in the second. The introduction of Costa was a game changer and we never got on top after that. Their fans, on the other hand? A chant about the ref being one of our own after ten minutes, when he's barely made a decision? Really? Made plenty of noise, which is to be expected, but were also trying to provoke people outside the ground. Not impressed. Our performance left a lot to be desired and a depleted squad isn't enough of an excuse, for me. Moura's **** on the left hand side anyway, but for that to be our only substitution is appalling. Anyone could see that the game was getting away from us and that our fullbacks were getting slaughtered. They needed additional cover and Trippier needed to be taken off, as he was all over the place after getting flattened just after the break. We've had a good first half of the season and an impressive December, but our squad needs tweaking in January. We've got games on Tuesday and Friday and a number of our players look knackered. If we're not going to use some of the players that we've got, then they need to go and we need to bring people in. If we can't sign anyone, then we need to recall loanees and give them a shot.
Poch says 'we are not machines' Yes we know that mate...it was you saying that we could be though...most of us know that the squad quality needs improving. Yes I really enjoyed watching us thrash a few teams but when it comes to being winners...them results don't buy you excuses for a debacle like yesterday. Well done to wolves blah blah blah...but truth is Poch got outdone by a new comer...can't allow that...we don't display the finer qualities of winners...Liverpool are...every season it's someone...this season it's Pool. I know, I know...we are trying to be 'organic' We might win a cabbage for our efforts but no more
Interesting that you mention the Wolves fans and their behaviour. I use entrance N, and on exiting, there was one of our fans with blood pouring out from his forehead. I didn’t see what had happened, but as I passed him I heard him telling the Police that he’d been set upon by a couple of Wolves fans, one of whom had head butted him.
I use the same entrance and saw the same thing, plus a few mouthing off randomly on the way to the station. I'd have probably have been more pissed off if I could understand a word that they were saying. Not seen any other violence during the time at Wembley, at all.
So if City beat Pool and we get back to winning ways...it's back to 6 points. Tbh...theres a good chance of that happening. So not everything is totally lost...yet!
Trouble is I think Liverpool will pick them off, they are better defensively currently than City, and I think they will be too open and that will play into Klopps game plan
Kicked off a bit with Chelsea last season. One Chelsea fan got battered after the game but he had it coming after walking amongst Spurs fans chanting Chelsea songs. My cousin had a full can of beer lobbed at him up Wembley walk before kick off as well
Yeah Pool are looking like a real complete side this season. The additions of VVD and Alice has made a huge difference to a defence that was usually letting them down so often. Can’t help but feel we’d be in a similar position if we’d plugged the glaringly obvious weaknesses in CM/ DM like they did with CB and GK.
Funny. I've always thought Wolverhampton has the strangest of accents in the whole of Britain,or the world. I noticed the amount shots on goal against Chelsea today....0. Zilch. Did they want Chelsea to win I wonder?
