Agreed. But don't underestimate what a decent CL run can do for club profile. Even finishing top of the group we were handed is a massive statement of intent. If we can emulate the class of 2010 and reach at least the QF, it is the perfect message to be sending out to potential targets ahead of moving to a new stadium. My growing concern is that, as per the past few seasons, Poch won't have a clarity over how seriously to pursue each competition and we'll fall just short in all of them.
Why can't you win the PL or CL? It's November. No team won anything in November (except the Scottish League Cup probably). After beating Real Madrid, the outlook was very different. So many things can happen - especially in the PL and especially to City, who have previous for going into hiding after being declared world beaters.
I think too much is drawn from a bad day against an Arsenal side pumped up in much the same way as Liverpool were last season when they beat us. Sure we miss Wanjama and we miss Toby every team would, but to think that this spells out our season is way to simplistic in my view. Dele is a flair player his game depends on flicks and quick ball distribution people have been on his back all season. I think you expect too much. In hindsight I think Dier Hard was right, we should have played Winks from the start, we badly missed his distribution and he would have helped to put a better gloss on Dele's game. I think Dave is a superb player but we are always going to miss Toby. Trippier is an anomaly but Spurs are a unitary team and today that unit was not firing. On top of all that you have to give credit to a superb display from Arsenal, they didn't let us play, breaking up every move we made. Finally when your star striker is not 100% that means those half chances that he would normally swallow were either missed on did not materialise. There is a long way to go in this season. if Arsenal play like that every week they will be in contention for the league, but they wont will they. United look strong going forward but they still have weaknesses at the back. Chelsea could challenge if they get on a run, City will not keep their present standard going IMO, Spurs are not out of this by a long way and today they will have had a reminder of just how good you need to be if you are going to challenge. First we were never going to even get in the top 4 because of the Wembley factor, now we are not going to challenge because we can't beat the top 6. Funny how we can beat Real Madrid at Wembley though. Does that bollox both ideas in one go? Come on MP shut these doubters up, you know you can
City look better than last season in every department. We don't. We've regressed in RB and CM due to Walker's departure and Dembele's decline. This, combined with playing at Wembley means that there were seldom few Spurs fans who would've predicted a title run at the beginning of the season, let alone now. The top 4 as it currently stands is the one I predicted at the start of the season and I see no reason to change it. We cannot hope to compete with yours and City's squad depth and are trumped by chelsea purely by experience and the fact that we're not playing at the Lane. Top 4 and a trophy while players like Aurier settle in and Winks improves was the most optimistic I could be back in August, and I maintain that doing so would be a magnificent achievement.
Think I made my position perfectly clear. Our form has deteriorated since the Liverpool match, it wasn't good against Palace, lost a two goal lead against West Ham, were lucky in the CL all culminating in the EXPECTED defeat today. I see no fence. Look at Son's interview after Palace, even he admitted we should have scored more.
Why do you keep mentioning the West ham match...IT WAS NOT OUR FIRST TEAM? We deserved to lose today and DESERVED to beat Madrid...where we played REALLY WELL. So we did no play well v Palace and won...played ok v United but lost and but for 2 appalling wrong decisions today would have got an undeserved point. Seriously mate ... when you make me look positive you really know you are going a bit OTT! Night all
Straight question: Short of winning every single match we play in every single competition by a 4 goal margin, what would actually make you happy? I don't mean to be rude, I'm genuinely trying to understand your point of reference.
All teams get judged on their most recent performance/result. One minute your team are world beaters, the next they're lacking commitment, effort, out of form etc..... The reality is that the demands of our league, CL, cup competitions, international games takes its toll on all teams. Every team (even City) will have ups and downs. More than ever it's an endurance test. There is more than six months to go - nothing is decided now.
I've said what makes me happy. I'll repeat, good form goals well worked, NOT offsides, deflections, handball goals, own goals and the like. Goals like those mean that our forwards aren't in good form, that the luck like that won't maintain and more likely as not true form will become apparent sooner rather than later as bad form like today. I felt it more than bloody obvious that with our pathetic win over Palace who are bottom and with no sign of improvement anywhere that we were going to lose today. What also irks me is that some of you can't see it coming and that you're happy with these scratchy wins. Maybe, just maybe I can see bad form coming through the matches and results quicker than some of you, I don't know but I don't like wins which are not properly earned and scores which don't reflect the true form of the team. Does that answer your question? I would not be happy winning by out of the rules goals, it means that they shouldn't have stood like our offside against Madrid. Now maybe, just maybe Arsenal's form will dip because they had two offside goals today and any Gooner supporter who is happy with that way of winning against any team is a bit of a prat. Their goals should not have stood but where were our forwards, no goals today, one against Palace, only one GOOD goal against Madrid, come on.
Thanks Ginger. Now you can all tell me what an idiot I am, give me your smart arse remarks but I'll ignore them because I'm not interested in arguing, ok. Have a good Sunday.
The hurt is real. As much as I would have liked a draw at least, I wasn't expecting us to win without Victor, Toby and a fully fit Kane. The joy I take from this result is that Arsenal had a pretty much full strength squad, actually played arguably their best eleven, raised their game and still only managed to win by some questionable discussions. With Lamela and Rose on the way back and the winter window comming up I believe we will end the season much stronger than we started. Gooners can brag all they want right now but they know we are on the rise and that this win was against form. A much more important win for then than a significant loss for us. Bring on the CL.
I'm not aiming this post solely at you LockStock, but I keep seeing Spurs fans talk about the questionable goals we scored. Whilst I am not disputing the nature of both goals (though the second one was certainly a lot tougher to call, we're talking millimetres here), surely the bigger issue is your team underperforming on the day? Your big players didn't step up, which is telling in a big game like yesterday, and collectively, you didn't play with the same aggression or zest that is generally synonymous with your current team. I don't think anyone can dispute that, based on how the game went, the three points rightfully belong to us. But this talk about all these incidents appear to be distracting from the underlying problems for why you lost yesterday. I could just as easily say that we had two poor decisions go against us when we lost to City two weeks back. Doesn't change the fact they were the worthy winners and we deservedly lost the game. I'm not a big believer in this "decisions even themselves out over the season" mantra, but there are situations that go for and against every team. It happens. Sometimes you just need to deal with that situation. Like the Mustafi goal for example. Davinson Sanchez's tackle on his namesake was totally legitimate. However, if the referee then gives a free-kick, you have to begrudgingly accept the decision and defend the set-piece. When Ozil crossed the ball in, offside or not, Mustafi was in between two men who, not only were taller than him, but were not tight enough to him at all. That isn't good defending.
I don't think most of us would disagree, you deserved to win but I think your team has more issues about big players not turning up than we do. You don't play like that all the time do you? If you did you would be challenging for 1st position not 4th. Getting back to yesterdays game you do your own team an injustice if you do not take into account that Arsenal prevented Spurs from performing by their high degree of pressing in fact by using the very tactics that we have used in our recent success.
You should be a Spurs supporter Brunel because I agree with all of that. Evening themselves out is, as you say, irrelevant. I look at the NATURE, the MANNER of the win and can see when weaknesses display themselves in the future. Better to win from strength and not from luck. I'm VERY relieved we qualified for the last 16 early when we were on form rather than the dross we're dishing up now.
