Remember the good old days of pondering if Jake Livermore or Tom Huddlestone could carry the can in defence for a couple of games?
When I hear Ange talk football I always have a smile on my face. As far as I am concerned he is the best possible fit for a Spurs manager you could imagine. To Dare Is To Do is his philosophy. He is at one with Danny Blanchflower one of our most intellectual players whose famous quote I don't need to repeat here. One of the major reasons I am a Spurs fan is Blanchflower. Conte is the antithesis of my beliefs about football for example. Football is so much more than just the win. Winning is the driving force that makes you want to play and watch but if that is all you look for then you might just as well roll a couple of dice. The movement of the ball and the movement of the players. Trying to get both to be in the right place at the right time is, when it comes together, the real joy of football. Nicholson, Burkinshaw, Venables and Pochettino have given such moments. Spurs look for the skillful players who can make this sporting ballet happen and right now we have a manager who wants those talents to flow and express themselves on their way to trying to win. The best example of all this, for me, is the great Dutch team of the 70's. They never actually won the world cup but we all knew who the best team in the world were, the one we all wanted to watch. When the late great Terry Venables England manager beat the Dutch 4 - 1 that was a moment to remember. It wasn't just the win, it was the way we won. The double strike force of Shearer and Sherringham produced some magic moments. Spurs first half against Villa with a makeshift team was as I said, some of the most exciting football I have seen from Spurs in a very long time. I hope Ange is with us for a long time because the journey wherever it leads, will be well worth watching.
Can you imagine how good it will be when the squad members can come in and play the same system as the first 11.
He was a proper player though. I could watch montages of his all day long. So aesthetically pleasing to watch in his prime.
Saw this on Twitter (refuse to call it X) and even cynic old me likes hearing this. Ange Postecoglou: “We need to be scrutinised. I need to be scrutinised, I need to be questioned. That's what tests my resolve. I ain't going to change but bring it on. It doesn't just test me, it tests the players, it tests the club. How resolved are we about doing this? Look at all the top teams, they've all been through the process through the tough times.” Ange added: “I have a real strong belief in what I do and where the team is heading and I'm just not going to waver from it.”
Couldn't agree more. Managers actually make little difference to outcomes with money being the major factor. So I definitely prefer someone who plays the right way, whatever the result.
Learning to lose in a system and how to overcome it is just as important as learning to win in it That's ultimately where Conte failed, as he refused to learn when his system was obviously breaking down in no small part due to his tinkering with what worked in the previous season - which meant the players couldn't learn as they were doing the Vaas monologue from Far Cry 3 every week
His passing ability was fantastic and the way he struck the ball, with power, keeping it low, was quite unique. Probably a lack of half a yard of pace prevented him being a top, top player!
All hope is gone for today, I fear. Damage limitation at best - although I would still expect decent commitment from this group of lads. Worst case scenario is almost over-commitment - and an over-zealous ref & VAR - and we find ourselves a man or two light. It's probably going to be messy anyway, but that could take mess to a whole new level
Looking forward to this one! Play like we did in the first half against Villa, but not be wasteful. We could put this to bed by half time with 3 goals. We just need to stop them scoring 5 goals in the second half. Cometh the hour, cometh the man.
Loving the optimism (which I normally have in abundance..) but I am a tad anxious with this one. Hopefully my City supporting neighbour (since he was wee small lad I might add..) will go missing this week!!!
I think our recent run of results against them has been largely down to the fact that Pep had no idea how to shackle Kane. Without him I can't see us troubling them too much especially without Bentancur or Maddison. This run of games is Lo Celso's chance to step up and finally be counted. He was good if not spectacular against Villa although that was his first start in the PL since 2021 or something ridiculous like that.
I went for breakfast at my favourite cafe this morning ,it's run by a group of Juventus fans , they reckon we should do Citeh no problem today , they also said the same about the Champions league final and Newcastle away last season Good job the coffee and eggs are good or else they would get the swerve from now on
I agree about Lo Celso as he had a solid game against Villa, so much so that the usual crowd sitting around us were all a bit bemused when he was taken off!
