Match Day Thread Tottenham Hotspur v Middlesbrough

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PleaseNotPoll

PleaseNotPoll

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May 31, 2011
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Saturday 4th February 5.30pm
Premier League
White Hart Lane​

Well we've stretched our unbeaten run to ten games, but that's three consecutive poor performances.
A dour, toothless draw at the Stadium of Light isn't a disaster, but we need a big improvement for this one.
Chelsea host Arsenal in the early game, so whatever happens there could set the tone.
A win's a necessity, regardless of that result, though.

Boro's recent games haven't really gone their way, but the results have all been tight.
Draws and marginal victories have been the order of the day, for the most part.
West Ham's 3-1 win at the Riverside bucked the trend, but even that was only down to an injury-time goal.
They'll be keen to stifle the game and nick something from this one.
Their sort-of-rivals doing so on Tuesday will have given them hope, too.

Here are the highlights of their recent FA Cup 4th round tie against Accrington Stanley:
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Boro were promoted as runners up last season, so there's no corresponding fixture.
Here's a game from about a decade ago, instead:
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The game at their place this season was somewhat mixed.
A comfortable first half wasn't taken full advantage of and they were allowed to get back into it.
Son did the damage for us, scoring twice and having an obvious penalty waved away.
Gibson got one back, but they ran out of steam and didn't threaten late on.

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We have no suspensions for this one, but we do have a few injuries.
Reports suggest that Rose could miss around a month of football, so he joins Vertonghen and Lamela.
N'Koudou and Trippier are also doubts.
Boro have no suspensions either, but Ramirez, Chambers, Husband and Friend are all doubts.

Lineups for each side's last league game:

Spurs: Vorm; Walker, Dier, Alderweireld, Rose; Wanyama, Dembele; Son, Eriksen, Alli; Kane.
Subs: Lopez, Wimmer, Carter-Vickers, Davies, Sissoko, Winks, Janssen.
League form: WWWWDD.

Boro: Valdes; Barrigan, Espinosa, Gibson, Fabio; De Roon, Clayton, Forshaw; Traore, Negredo, Stuani.
Subs: Konstantopolous, Ayata, Leadbitter, Fischer, Downing, Bamford, Gestede.
League form: LLDDLD.

Referee: Mark "****ing" Clattenburg.

TV. BT Sports 1.

Should we stick with the same system that we used against Sunderland or switch to three at the back?
Did Son do enough to keep his place or should he return to the bench?
Is our bench balanced enough or should we look for different options?
 
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More than formations imo is starting fast and putting Middlesbrough under severe pressure. The importance of an early goal cannot be overstated. Failing to score in the first half just fills the opposition with confidence.
 
I'm going to this with my cousin and it will likely be my last time at the Lane unless I can sneak one in later this season, though I expect demand will be high.

So if you see an obnoxiously drunk man with an American chap hanging off one arm somewhere in the South Lower, come say hi!

I'd like to see 3 at the back again, and am wary of Traore after he was a seriously impactful sub against us at the Riverside earlier in the season. Not sure what he's done since mind...
 
Rose out is a massive blow. Fortunately the only really tricky fixture he is likely to miss is Liverpool away. We're very lucky that much of February is taken up by cup games.

I like Davies but Rose has been on another planet this season.
 
So after 70 minutes of football when you haven't managed to break down a defensive team you start to throw everything at it, in an attempt to score that winner: bringing on extra strikers and the like. Why don't we start like that and if we break them and go two up , then we can revert to ''normal'' set up.
 
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Blue and White said:
So after 70 minutes of football when you haven't managed to break down a defensive team you start to throw everything at it, in an attempt to score that winner: bringing on extra strikers and the like. Why don't we start like that and if we break them and go two up , then we can revert to ''normal'' set up.
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It certainly wouldn't have hurt to try Janssen and Son up top against Wycombe - after all, the more ways to change things up we have, the less predictable we will be for opponents.
 
Tottenham news conference
Tottenham v Middlesbrough (Sat, 17:30 GMT)
Posted at13:09
Mauricio Pochettino is the next manager up to speak.
He has some bad news regarding Danny Rose's knee injury.
"Danny had a scan yesterday now we need to wait until Monday to see the specialist".
It is thought he will be out for a month but we are told Jan Vertonghen is better and starting to run.
Hugo Lloris trained yesterday and today and will be available to face Middlesbrough on Saturday.
Pochettino adds, "Erik Lamela's progression is good. Day by day he's getting there. It's important to be cautious but positive."
 
Doesn't look like we'll be seeing much of Lamela for the rest of the season. Mystifying how a 6 week injury basically mushroomed into 4 months. It's a shame as I think performances such as the dismal draw on Tuesday highlight how much we miss his urgency and energy. Even if he doesn't score the most and can't pick out a keyhole pass, the affect his attitide has on the rest of the team is tangible. I'm convinced that Alli and Eriksen raise their games when he is playing alongside them.
 
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C.Kane said:
Doesn't look like we'll be seeing much of Lamela for the rest of the season. Mystifying how a 6 week injury basically mushroomed into 4 months. It's a shame as I think performances such as the dismal draw on Tuesday highlight how much we miss his urgency and energy. Even if he doesn't score the most and can't pick out a keyhole pass, the affect his attitide has on the rest of the team is tangible. I'm convinced that Alli and Eriksen raise their games when he is playing alongside them.
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I'm hoping that he'll be back soon and he's just been hit by a ****storm of misfortune that he's getting over.
The trio of cup games could give him a chance to get back up to speed, if he's managed properly.
 
humanbeingincroydon said:
It certainly wouldn't have hurt to try Janssen and Son up top against Wycombe - after all, the more ways to change things up we have, the less predictable we will be for opponents.
Click to expand...
Could give it a go against Fulham. They both started in the Boro game at the Riverside and we looked good.
 
PleaseNotPoll said:
I'm hoping that he'll be back soon and he's just been hit by a ****storm of misfortune that he's getting over.
The trio of cup games could give him a chance to get back up to speed, if he's managed properly.
Click to expand...

Is he even back in light training yet? If not, there's no chance he'll be able to play in those games. Last I heard, he is still keeping Fazio company while he receives physio treatment.
 
C.Kane said:
Is he even back in light training yet? If not, there's no chance he'll be able to play in those games. Last I heard, he is still keeping Fazio company while he receives physio treatment.
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Pochettino said 2 or 3 weeks today, which I've just seen.
That would be around the same time as the cup fixtures, sort of.
 
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