We won`t be changing 10 players in one window, so for me you start by removing the proven dross who will be never good enough and keeping the previously proven quality that could become good players under the new manager. I class the proven dross as Aurier, Sissoko, Doherty, Sanchez, Dier and Winks. These 6 should be top of the list to be moved on, everybody else has either potential or proved their worth previously and should be given another chance under the new manager, the only others to be moved on should be those with limited time remaining on their contracts. So 6 definitely need to go and maybe a handful of others due to contract situations. A lot of work to do whichever way we cut it, and the biggest challenge will be replacing the irreplaceable and Kane`s 50 odd goal involvements.
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Villa had plenty to play for, just not in terms of where they're going to finish this season. A number of their players have points to prove and Dean Smith has them happy and motivated, when Grealish is on the pitch. Our lot were at the opposite end of the scale when it comes to the team talisman. One cared, the other didn't.
Danny once said "let the fans in free and charge 'em to get out!" I suggest letting them in free and letting them out free if we play crap!!!!
Has Moura fallen out of favour with Mason? Has been as consistent as anyone this season and never gives less than 100%. Clearly wasn't a Poch favourite seeing as how he got treated for singlehandedly getting to the CL Final, but Mourinho had faith in him. When you see the half-assed dross on display last night (and too many other games this season) its difficult to undestand.
The bigger picture, though, is that if Mason is trying to rebuild a speck of confidence in the players he needs a settled team to do so, and on top of that Mason prefers Bale to start if he can It's one of those things where if Lucas starts, people demand Bale If Bale gets a few games, people wonder where Lucas is Last night was the interesting one, though, as Bale started on the bench as he isn't fit enough to pay three games in a week yet Bergwijn got the nod even though he's shot of all confidence since copping a pile of racist abuse for missing a sitter against Saltypool
I don't think they're competing for a place, though. Bale, Bergwijn, Moura, Lamela and Son are after two positions. Alli's up against Lo Celso and Ndombele, unless we change the system.
I get the criticism for starting Dier over Rodon, which I truly don’t understand, but Alli has been better if unspectacular. He’s definitely played better under Mason than at any point over the last few years aside from his brief spark when Jose came in. Lucas played at 10 a couple of times recently but it’s not his natural position. Winks starting I got too, as Mason clearly doesn’t trust Tanguy and GLC was probably in the same boat as Bale re. match fitness. If it comes down to Winks or Sissoko I know who I’d rather see start, though I know that’s personal preference. I saw Devine in one or two preferred starting XIs before the game but I don’t think that was ever realistic.
Lucas was drifting in and out of positions for a spell and done pretty well in the games towards Jose’s end. He was arguably one of the few form players upon Mason’s arrival yet hasn’t come off the bench in 3 of Mason’s 5 league games in charge.
I'm a fan of Moura and I think he should've started ahead of Bergwijn or even Son against Villa. I disagree with the way that he and Vinicius have been sidelined, while players that haven't done anything have got time. Kane, Son and Hojbjerg have been overplayed and others have been feeding off scraps.
This is very like 2012 to 2013 where the Spurs squad had a number of good players but there was an imbalance in it and then Bale was sold for big money. The question this time is can Spurs spend any transter revenue wisely? It was a bit of a mess back then - at least in the short term. Some of the signings went on to prove their worth, some didn't. The team is less than the sum of its parts at present. Some pruning is needed. Like Leicester when they lost Mahrez and Kante, it's about who you bring in and having the right manager to get the squad to where it should be. They did pretty well - and they are a smaller club with less money at their disposal.
Leicester are vastly overspending though, to be fair. They're getting tons of money for some of their players, but their position is completely unsustainable. Wage bill higher than your revenue? Time for another bankruptcy. As for the team being less than the sum of it's parts, I think that this season shows why that is. Started well and were going well, but couldn't rely on rotation, as the squad is heavily unbalanced. Mourinho didn't trust the backup for a bunch of players, so he burnt out key parts of the team and it all fell apart. Key to the rebuild is squad balance and a vision for the team moving forward, from top to bottom. We need a balanced, functional side with sensible, appropriate backup. Don't play wingbacks? Don't ****ing buy wingbacks.
I'm sure at some point the thinking was for 3ATB, which certainly suits Reguilon, Aurier and Doherty while also allowing us to play Davies in the back three, but then somebody realised our midfield couldn't control a drugged tortoise on a leash and the idea was quietly sidelined Of course, the fact our midfield has been unable to control games since late 2018 probably should have been noticed sooner...
The other theory is that we got Doherty to play as an advanced RB in the lopsided back 4 style we used for much of last season, with Davies nominally at LB. Then we got Regulion, one of those long term targets the club likes to buy sometimes even if the manager isn’t 100% on them (like Bergwijn), who was too good not to play, so we had to go to a more traditional back 4.
