White Hart Lane can be a hostile place for any visiting team. However, saying that, it can also be a terribly hostile place for Spurs. With just over 36,000 fans right on top of the pitch, 32 thousand of them being spurs fans…the pressure is on. With recent lacklustre performances at the Lane it’s not hard to work out why the atmosphere is not what it was. Luckily, we’re away at Swansea on the weekend, but first we travel to Turkey tonight to play Besiktas in a Europa League clash to decide who comes top of the group.
After two dodgy results against London rivals Chelsea and Crystal Palace we’re once again struggling to find form, floating around mid-table, as we have been for the majority of the season so far. After failing to score since we beat Everton we are struggling to be optimistic for the games ahead. Although, on a positive note, we’re not at home.
Pochettino expressed his views about the pitch at White Hart Lane earlier in the season, claiming it’s too small. That’s not great when your own manager is moaning about something that can’t be changed. The question is, why are good performances at home so rare these days? Is it due to the squad and tactics not being dynamic enough to fit a smaller sized pitch? One thing that Tottenham have always been good at is using the space on the pitch. Being able to play wide counter attacking football. We’re used to having wingers and full backs dedicated to spreading the play and creating space by making runs that stay wide rather than constantly cutting in. whereas for the last few months we’ve witnessed a bit too much of the inverted winger tactic. The idea when playing on a small pitch is to make space for yourself out of nothing, attempt to spread play and move the ball round. The current tactics and team seem to confuse themselves in the middle of the park. Overcrowding certain areas of the pitch whilst completely overlooking the wings.
Cries for Aaron Lennon to take to the pitch against Palace were answered far too late, the inconsistent winger has one thing constantly going for him. He’s a traditional ‘run down the wing’ right midfielder. Against Everton he set up Soldados’ goal and brought the oh so needed width. At this point in time Lennon is refreshing to watch compared to the likes of Lamela. The ability to beat players whilst staying on the right, and then looking for a ball into the box, whether it’s a successful ball or not, it’s still a chance created. It’s still a moment in the match where Spurs worked the ball into the box and didn’t lose it in a slow build up around the box and middle of the park.
The Spurs away fans are always in fine voice, making themselves known to the world from every compact corner of stadiums up and down the country. It’s the type of support and atmosphere that really is a 12th man. The very same atmosphere that has eluded the Lane and been replaced with tension and anger.
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