Article by James LingfieldAs it always does, we have seen thrills, spills and everything in-between from the soap opera that is the Barclays premier league. In typical spurs fashion, we’ve experienced everything we can as Tottenham fans from ecstasy to despair. In the eyes of some, even previous to yesterdays defeat to Newcastle it’s been a lukewarm start that needs to be turned around quickly, but for others, it’s been a very good start that, if we can continue, will produce a fine season.
Differing from the style of football that we have become accustomed to in recent years, this season looks to be the dawn of a more defensively solid spurs. Having conceded just 6 goals this season, something that can be bettered only by Southampton, teams have had to work incredibly hard to breach our backline. Much of this can be accredited to our French keeper Hugo Lloris. His unorthodox methods has given this ‘sweeper keeper’ 7 clean sheets in his first 10 league games this season. Speaking on Sky Sports Fantasy Football Club, Spurs skipper Michael Dawson said that Lloris was the best keeper he’s ever played with and said that his speed of his line gives the Spurs back line a real confidence. However, our back four has guarded the French captain excellently. Looking organised, strong and compact, it normally takes a bit of magic to beat Jan and Co. It must be said that Verthonghen and ‘Mickey Daws’ could arguably be the best centre back pairing in the premier league. They’ve dominated their box and provide the fall backs the security to fly up the pitch knowing that they’ve got two world class defenders ready to cover them.
Having to compete in the Europa league means that a possible 21 extra games may be added to the already action packed schedule of the premier league. For many, this would stretch their team to the limit, but Spurs now have one of the best squads in the league in terms of depth and the additional fixtures are not seen as a burden, but a chance to experiment with different systems and players. Having at least 2 Premier League quality players per position, AVB has the unenviable task of squeezing in all of our vast variety of talent. Also, many players who were on the verge of slipping out of the first team picture have turned out to be one of our most valuable assets. For example, after loan spell after loan spell, Andros Townsend burst onto the scene both domestically and internationally with a scorcher of a debut goal against Moldova. His recent vein of form has been has kept the likes of Aaron Lennon and £30million acquisition Erik Lamela out of the side. With an average team age of around 25, the future looks bright for AVB’s men.
However, this season has not been without its blemishes and yesterday was one of those. We have faced many criticisms, from both the media and opposing teams. We seem to have changed a lot from the fast paced, end-to-end team of the Redknapp days. There are a lot fewer 4-4’s and more 0-0’s at White Hart Lane this season. Despite the much needed sure-up of the defence, we have been lacking any type of penetration of the opponents back line. Even though we have almost 60% average possession per game, the second highest in the league, we have scored just 9 goals, the 3rd lowest in the league. In the Spurs line up there seems to be no one who can find a little bit of magic to prise open a stubborn defence, much like a certain Welshman used to do so often for us in the past. It’s essential that Spurs find the key to unlock defences or they will find themselves slipping down the table faster than you can say “Roman Pavlyuchenko”.
Even the most die hard Spurs fan must be concerned at the lack of goals and the taking of just one point from the top ten this season. However, we have undoubted offensive quality that are so close to clicking and when they do, we will be a match for anyone. Keep the Faith!
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The game on Sunday was not lost because of Krul's goalkeeping it was lost through sloppy defending in the first half. Dembele was very poor. He is not a holding midfield player. He gives the ball away too often. He is better further forward running at defenders. Spurs immediately improved when Sandro came on. I thought that AVB's team choices were poor. Sandro or Capoe should have played from the start with either Dembele or Paulinho. Defoe came on and did nothing, Lamela woild have been a better choice because he can dribble into the penalty area which is good against packed defenses.
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