Four key takeaways from Juventus

Article by Steven Benton

Even though it’s only pre-season, there is still plenty to evaluate from yesterday’s match in Melbourne against Juventus. It’s at least more to analyse in either half than Tottenham’s entire performance in last year’s inaugural fixture at a friendly tournament in Munich. Just to jog your memory, Spurs squared off with Real Madrid in the Audi Cup and didn’t put together any sort of attack on a hot evening at the Allianz Arena. That result happened, but the season turned out to be a successful brick in the new foundation, so it seems this season is off to a good start. Mauricio Pochettino is very pleased with the performance and despite the result, Spurs supporters should see this off as an 'A' performance as well. Here are four important takeaways from the first International Champions Cup match in Australia.

1. Janssen and Wanyama fit in the system and will get better.

The two new arrivals fared well in their first starts in Spurs' gold kit. Vincent Janssen played as the lone striker until he was replaced in the 63rd minute. He had a early chance to connect with a Tom Carroll cross just before the half-hour mark but Juventus put it behind for a corner. In the 56th minute, Janssen collected the ball and was able to set up Erik Lamela who missed the far post from 20 yards. Victor Wanyama was one of two starters that played the entire 90. He provided defensive pressure and assisted Lamela’s goal in the 67th minute. After winning a tackle in the midfield, Wanyama pushed the ball forward where it took a tap off Janssen’s replacement, Shayon Harrison, into Lamela’s path, giving him the opportunity to send it home. After playing a few games at Hotspur Way and now one prime time fixture under their belts, Janssen and Wanyama are adapting to Pochettino’s system and it looks like it’s working. Janssen found it difficult to get forward against the tough Italian defence, but had a lurking presence in the box and was unselfish with the ball. Wanyama was patient with timing his challenges and was able to open space up for the team to move forward in the second half. The two will be tested again on Friday when Spurs face Atletico Madrid. Pochettino will likely give the starting thumbs up to both of them.

2. Lamela continues to shine.

When it comes to goal scoring, Erik Lamela is like Haley’s Comet. He’ll pop one in every five games or so, but when he does, the momentum is with him the entire match. It was no different for him today. He got his first chance as a sub 10 minutes into the second half when Janssen set him up after poor defensive play by Juventus. Lamela went on to miss from 20 yards out, but would score less than 10 minutes later when he received a pass from Wanyama. The ball clicked off Harrison and fell for Lamela to tuck it away. Lamela wasn’t finished yet. In the 80th minute substitute Joshua Onomah sent a pass to Harrison, Harrison set it up for Lamela, but the potential equaliser was blocked by Neto. Lamela gave it one last run in stoppage time when he provided the ball for Harrison, but Harrison’s shot was knocked away. Lamela has expressed his happiness at the club and motivation for the start of the new season, so expect to see plenty of performances like this from the right midfielder this year.

3. Development players show pros and cons on both sides of the pitch.

Pochettino selected a young squad for the clash against the Zebras, with Kieran Trippier being the only defender with first team experience. The inexperience of Dominic Ball and Cameron Carter-Vickers was exposed early when Ball was unable to handle a tricky pass from Ryan Mason. The pass was stolen by Robert Pereyra who surged past Carter-Vickers and assisted Paulo Dybala for the first goal of the match. In the second half, subs Harrison, Onomah, and Winks all showed good form to put Spurs back into the game. All three development players worked together in the 80th minute to set up Lamela’s near equaliser. Harrison almost tied the score in stoppage time with a sliding effort at goal. Expect to see some changes in the back four for Friday. Kevin Wimmer will probably get the nod along with possibly DeAndre Yedlin and Kyle Walker-Peters.

4. Ryan Mason still needs improvement.

The midfielder got the start and had the honour of wearing the captain’s arm-band, but his performance yesterday was again below par. In the sixth minute, he poorly placed a back pass for Ball causing a loss in possession and a goal for Juventus. His struggles continued in the 18th minute when he was guarding Medhi Benatia in the box. A poor clearance from a corner caused a cross to be swung in towards the two, but Mason lost it in the air letting Benatia head in his first goal for the Italian side. Mason arrived in Melbourne looking to win a place in Pochettino’s XI for the start of competitive football, but those plans might now be set back. He certainly looked average when compared to the efforts of Wanyama. Pochettino confirmed that midfielders Nabil Bentaleb and Alex Pritchard have no future with Tottenham, so Mason must be hoping his Spurs career doesn't take a similar turn.

What did you make of yesterday's pre season efforts? Let us know below.

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