Totally agree. If that was a Liverpool game, pundits on sofas up and down the country would be waxing lyrical about how winning without playing well is the hallmark of 'champions' and a sign of 'real strength'. But when it's Spurs? Oh, those jammy bastards how dare they ruin the party.
MOTD 2 spent the best part of the summing up bumming up Traore , yes he played well and yes it was a good goal but they completely ignored the goal by Lucas, this was by far a superior goal, control, poise and power Also a special mention for the Spurs fans who kept up the noise throughout the game and turn out regardless ,COYS
This game was not about Spurs labouring to a win while not playing pretty football. This was about Wolves having nothing in attack other than plan Traore, and Spurs being clinical with the decent scoring opportunities they had. And on the latter, as I have said before : Possession may be nine tenths of the law, but putting the ball in the net is 100% of the score.
Having missed watching the game live, for once, I watched the highlights and the punditry. It was a bit like the days when you bought The Evening News. The report of the match stopped before the final whistle and was often left to look severely at odds with the result. They'd obviously decided that Wolves deserved to win the game, despite not being able to fashion more than a couple of decent chances out of a game that they dominated for large stretches. Even their goal was a bit of a freak, I'm not sure that Traore scores more than 1/100 or 2/100 from that distance. For all that we were pinned back, we fashioned pretty much the same amount of decent chances as them. That said, I'm glad that Chelsea and Sheffield United apart, we're done with playing the better teams away from home. We got overrun in midfield from what I saw and read. Much like United the other week, playing 4 forwards and only 2 in midfield just isn't going to work against such teams. This is especially so when those 2 players aren't great passers of the ball. Whatever issues we face, a midfield of Moussa Sissoko and Eric Dier is unlikely to be the answer on too many occasions. The forwards just got isolated for most of the game as we gave the ball away for fun. However, we do look like a team again. Players dug in and fought for a result,rather than collapsing as soon as we conceded. That's worth a very great deal and seeing the bench living every moment and the celebration of the winner, suggests that things are definitely on the up.
Jenas at least agreed with me about the amount of "hospital passes" that Spurs made in the game. If he can see it, then surely Jose and his coaching team know it too (so they can work on fixing it) .
I've just read Jenas' piece... https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/50803721 ...and it's pretty much spot on. Yesterday was a great result but it can't mask that central midfield is our primary problem.Strangely, the one time that we saw a more balanced line-up was Bournemouth at home, with Ndombele, Dier and Sissoko playing. I'd like to see that a bit more, particularly in away games. Playing lots of creative forwards is a bit pointless if we can't get the ball to them.
What do you mean? The 'champions elect' did show their class against Watford. They hung in there until they got and took their opportunity like true champions.
I'm glad Jose is persisting with Dier because on form he was a huge asset to Spurs. I remember thinking that he would be an England captain one day. He still has a presence that we have lacked in Spurs teams for years, the kind of player who can get others working and calm them under pressure. There is a lot more to Dier than the odd bad pass IMO. Sissoko is like a huge band aid popping up all over the park to help out and occasionally doing a Dembele impression with a surge towards goal. But agree neither are the creative midfielder that we need. NDombele is probably that player if ha can stay fit long enough. Then there is Lol Celso?
The midfield will look 50x times better when (or if at the moment!) Tanguy gets back fresh and fit. It’s felt for most of his appearances that he hasn’t been 100% and his constant niggles keep disrupting any momentum he tries to build. It’s concerning on that front that someone who as far as I’m aware seemed to remain injury-free in France, has come to the Prem and picked up 3 injuries already. That said, when he’s fit, he’s the perfect partner to Dier. All Dier needs to do when winning/ receiving the ball is look for Tanguy. He’s then capable of doing one of two things: Carrying the ball into the final third to then look for a pass/ shot/ cross or he’s capable of immediately playing the “Modric pass” as I like to call it, which is generally the pass before the assist, IE ball out to winger who crosses for Kane or ball through the middle to Alli who sets up one of the front three. Now if only we’d signed Grealish to have added some extra creativity from deep .
In a pivot of two, Eric Dier's lack of mobility is a severe handicap to the balance of the team. I like the guy and want him to be the player he looked like he was becoming in 2015/16 but for me, he's still a long way from that. I get that Jose sees admirable qualities in him but without a third body in the middle of the park, we get ripped apart too easily for my liking. Let's hope that current performance levels are rustiness that he will work off, as it could save us a tidy sum. However, if we can find and afford a more energetic alternative, that player would be where I'd spend my money in January...before any full backs or centre backs. A player like Kante, Ndidi or similar with Ndombele/Lo Celso would transform us.
Yes, his lack of mobility, lack of pace, tendency to give the ball away when pressured and his abysmal passing are all reasons for deep concern for me. We need a midfielder in the Silva mode. Quick, fast feet, excellent ball control even when pressured and an eye for a killer pass.
I'd like to think that in Ndombele and Lo Celso we've got deep lying creativity. Unfortunately, neither have been fit enough or settled well and aren't first choices but they should do, in time. Even when they do, we need someone to do the nastier stuff alongside them..more of a Fernandinho than a Silva. Mousa Dembele really had his best seasons when he had Dier (15/16) and Big Vic (16/17) alongside him. We need to replicate that to balance our attacking flair.
I have no problem with this 4-2-4 formation when played with the intensity and commitment of the Burnley game. I do however expect Jose to demonstrate his "special one" moniker and have other formations to play for the minority of games where the opponent is no Burnley (PL top 6 etc) . As for Dier, I hope for the return of the 2015-16 model just as I do for the 2016-17 Wanyama.
Dembele had that essential quality all our current midfielders lack, the ability to retain possession under pressure.
Isn’t Ndombele supposed to have good ball retaining ability? I think he’s struggling to adapt to the pace of the PL
I think he’s fundamentally not fit yet. That will impact his levels on the pitch. Once he kicks the injuries and has some time to get up to speed properly then I think we’ll see more consistently what we’ve seen flashes of already. Getting him fully fit has to be a top priority for Jose and team
Nothing special from what we’ve seen so far, although his passing is better than Dembele. Dembele was a one off to some extent. As Jenas, who played with him, said “You just cannot get the ball off him, he’s so strong”
