People are complaining about the 'discipline' issues and we do have to be careful / cleverer as a different ref and lino might have viewed matters differently, despite them being minor stuff. However, both incidents also demonstrated commitment and excellent team spirit. I wouldn't be too quick to judge Alli and Walker - just a shame that Alli will miss the Chavs game.
For me I like this Spurs team more than any other in all my time supporting Spurs. I don't think it's the best skill wise or the team with the most quality but what it does have is have everything I want a Spurs team to be. We have lots of young English players. We work bloody hard. And we are no longer a soft touch. As Gary Neville often says in commentary, Alex Ferguson would say "it's only Tottenham" and generally we would roll over for teams. I just don't see that happening with this team. Of course we are on a great run now and there will be a bad patch, it's inevitable. Possible Chelsea could turn us over next week. The real test will be how we react to this. I think Harry Kane epitomises what this team is all about, he could easily have let his head drop when the goals weren't going in at the beginning of the session, but he kept at it and he's reaping the rewards of all the hard work now. I don't really think we will win the league but when you look at it why not? It's so open and all the teams above us we have played we arguably could/should have beaten all of them.
"People are complaining about the 'discipline' issues and we do have to be careful / cleverer as a different ref and lino might have viewed matters differently, despite them being minor stuff. However, both incidents also demonstrated commitment and excellent team spirit." Consider them to be failings that can and should be corrected in the quest for an even better season. Similarly for Lamela when he goes flying in. No problem with commitment, but it needs to be tempered with control.
I'm sort of convinced that Poch has assembled a really likable, honest group of keen players too. I genuinely think that almost all of them come across as Nice Young Men. Every time I slagged off Lamela it felt a bit like kicking a puppy. He was obviously trying so hard to fit in and make it work and would celebrate goals more than anyone. We have a really good blend of young, malleable, keen hearts and minds (and legs) with commitment to the cause right now. It's exciting.
As much as I rate Alli I think the hype is a little OTT and it is almost like every match it's his MOM award to lose. Dembele was clearly MOM today I don't think many would argue with that.
Agreed. I've been one of Dembele's biggest critics on here, calling repeatedly for him to be sold on in the summer. MOTM without question; he was utterly superb defensively and going forward. When he's on the ball and in full stride he can be mesmerising. All in all, delighted with the performance as I saw this as a potential heartbreak against a team who probably have (had) the best away record in the league, but they just couldn't cope with us from the minute that first goal went in. Absolutely imperative that all essential players remain in London for Thursday's game. I don't want to see Kane, Eriksen, Lloris, Dier, Son, Dembele, Toby, Jan, Walker or Rose anywhere near an airport until the KO stages.
He had the same problem on the WBA board when he tried to Wum them about Berahino!...complete silence!.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...in-confrontation-outside-White-Hart-Lane.html FFS, why can't these ****s just enjoy football without getting violent? Hope the guy gets caught and has the book thrown at him.
Terrific performance ! only thing that spoilt it for me (watching while at work in Australia) was Jim Beglin co-commentator gotta be the worst there is. Anyway, Dembele MOTM for me just beating Eriksen. I thought Walker, mistake aside, was back to his best, signing Trippier seems to have given him the Kick up the arse he needed ! If we play like this against the Chavs I think we'll win although with Alli banned Dembele will probably drop deeper to allow Lamela back in the 3 behind Kane. TTID
The first 20 minutes was one of those chippy periods we’ve seen a lot of this year. They happen when the other team presses aggressively, since we almost always do the same. It’s hard for anyone to hold on to the ball. Dembélé for MoM because he’s the one who always seems to shine in those stretches, to the point of making the other team look foolish. That stretch was also nouveau AVB: we tapped the ball around the edge of the box till we lost it. Then we changed quite suddenly to firing the ball at the goal any time we had a chance, and a few times when we didn’t. Doing that gives your luck a chance to work for you, and ours shortly did. Alli took a shot that was probably a no-hoper considering a defender was on top of him, but it ping-ponged to Kane. I love how routine he makes those chances look, getting his body between the ball and the defender and giving himself all the time and space he needs. Brilliant overall effort. I think Alli gets an assist for Kane’s first goal, since his shot rebounded off him last before it fell to Kane. Our great Dane picks up a couple of assists, and Son gets one as well. Selection dilemma vs. Chelsea: Mason or Son? I actually think Mason is a shade more deserving, based on his level of play, but I expect Son to start. As unfair as it may be to Mason, Son is our big signing and probably our second biggest goal threat. Conventional wisdom is that you don’t risk hurting his confidence. Well, we started the season fairly well and have improved quite steadily from there. What club is this, again? It’s so very un-Spursy. I agree this season will depend on how we react to the inevitable downturn. Last year one bad game always meant a run of two or three more. Teams that win things have short memories. They get good performances after bad ones. Bilic had a revealing comment when he said that we were faster and stronger. It’s one reason we were effective against Arsenal. The last thing a team of small players long on technique want to face is a considerably bigger, stronger and more aggressive side who have some quality of their own.
I'd like to see Mason next to Dier against Chelsea and the front 3 unchanged from today. This means Lamela will start from the bench but to be honest Chelsea have really struggled going forward this season and I think we can do without his extra defensive work unless we're holding on to a narrow lead with 15 minutes to go or thereabouts. Dembele next to Dier is a little bit too static, and I'd also like to see the Belgian wreak havoc further up the pitch against a shockingly weak back line. I'll happily fly out to Azerbaijan and play instead of Kane if needs be. At 28, I'm supposed to be at the top of my game but I peaked at 14 to be honest.
You understand why Hazard said that Dembélé was the best not so long ago. Opta stats, sometimes way off but often right on the money, rate Dembélé as the seventh best player in the league this year (with Eriksen 12 and Kane 15). That’s about right, I think. When both sides press, especially, he is immense. I thought it was a subtle good sign that he didn’t get called for (m)any fouls yesterday. Officials have a habit of flagging him for being stronger and more technically adept than his opponents. I agree your comparison of Kane to Lineker doesn’t look so wild at this point. My comparison of him to Dirk Kuyt, on the other hand...
