05 Feb 2021 09:33:31
OK lads, I'll probably get pelters for this, but after celebrating in suitable style last night I have had what I think is a bit of a mental reality check this morning.
I was absolutely delighted that we beat Spurs last night. Although I also like Tom went with a 2-0 victory to us (we had beaten them twice last season before our £200 m spend, and they had lost Kane plus last two games), and given the number of chance we created we should easily have got this/ Yet I had expected a very tough game as so much riding on it in terms of possible top 4 finish and was getting nervous as kick-off arrived. Unlike Jose, whose post-match interview was delusional, I thought we were by some distance the far better side last night, if especially in the first half, and Jorgi and Kova did play well in midfield, as did the phenomenal Mount, while James at wing-back and Silva - when on - where also stand outs for me.
But…this was a really, really poor Spurs performance with a side in absence of Kane that looked to have almost no creativity at all from midfield, although Lamela sparked them a bit in second half there. Spurs had lost their previous game against Brighton, and now 3 league games in a row for first time I think since 2012.
Don’t get me wrong, I was delighted with the win, and thought we generally played with good shape, looked comfortable, and the passing was a bit quicker and more incisive than in last two games. We created a lot of very promising attacking moves. But, and I was saying this in live chat during the game, we lacked much threat in their box, looked generally pretty toothless up front with Mount looking the most likely to get a goal. We so nearly conceded an equaliser several times in last 15 mins or so, and only eg Vicinius nodding wide and Son snatching at his shot stopped this happening.
A win's a win, but apart from the penalty, we only had one shot on target for all our possession. The three goals including the penalty we have scored in last 3 games have all been from defenders. We failed to score against a Wolves side that have conceded in their last 14 or so, and they hit our bar. Burnley are far weaker than they were last season. Spurs are currently in a slump. All 3 of these teams we beat home and away very comfortably indeed last season. This season we had only lost to one of them, Wolves through that ghastly breakaway 95th minute goal, something that they were only a fraction of an inch from repeating at the Bridge if only a fair bit before the end.
So I do think we’re looking more solid now with tweak to our formation TT has made, Jorginho settling this down a bit at the back (albeit against sides that have offered v little in way of attacking desire or menace), and hugely hope like all others that we are on upward curve again. But for this to be good enough to get us Top 4 we have to be getting more shots on target and scoring from a good percentage of them. So how to fix the attack?
What answers would you send to TT on a postcard!?
KTBFFH.
05 Feb 2021 10:23:44
Use Werner as bait in a part-exchange for Haaland.
05 Feb 2021 10:28:36
We are currently seeing a manager getting the basics right and starting to get his ideas over to the players.
The more creative element which is needed to start delivering more emphatic results requires a higher level of confidence than we have currently.
That will take time, weeks rather than the few days he has had so far.
In the meantime grinding out results where neccessary is the way forward.
05 Feb 2021 10:44:48
Fantastic post JBS and a very good summary of last nights match. Shame about the score line.
Obviously work needs to be done on our finishing and I would like to see take on more shots rather than try that tight last pass.
I also couldn’t see the point in so many first half crosses.
The Spuds being without Kane was a big plus for us but in the first half it was like us moving and passing around statues. They were woeful.
I think we will win on Sunday but there manager is some one I have a lot of time for. His team keep a good shape and generally work very hard at keeping that shape even when moving across the pitch.
Even know there league position would suggest otherwise, I think they are a far superior side to Burnley.
We don’t have to play with a back three in every game and this would have been a game I could have seen us reverting to a back four but with Silva now out (probably for two weeks) I guess we will keep the same shape.
Anyway, as long as we win who cares!
COME on MY MIGHTY BLUES.
05 Feb 2021 11:37:22
Thanks Tom, and yes I think Sheffield have looked much more resilient in recent matches. Beatin Man United away a huge confidence booster for them plus keeping City who've been scoring for fun of late down to 1-0 quite impressive too. So, yes, on paper we should win easily given their league position and our very comfortable 4-1 win against them at start of November but we've been struggling to take chances recently so.
Might be a good message to put on postcard to TT MDW! Werner may come right, we all still hope sobutor might be that he would be better off in less physical Bundesliga. Physicality would not seem to be a problem that would worry Haaland.
05 Feb 2021 13:18:04
Like so many comments on here, Werner needing to settle, going thru a tough time. etc etc is wearing a bit thin for me. Imo the boy has been involved in one passage of play since arriving last summer v Newcastle away, that even resembled he knew what he was doing where he wanted to go and what he wanted to achieve. Other than that he has been dire. Taking a ball up to a defender dropping the shoulder one way whilst stepping inside to your stronger foot and cracking the ball off the CB does not constitute good football. Since his arrival he has mirubbish, mis passed, mis controlled, fresh aired, frequently ran the ball out of the park, and gave away cheap fouls, not forgetting ribbing his hair with eyes bulging in wonderment as to what is actually going on he has been absolutely average.
05 Feb 2021 14:39:43
Great post and I have to say I was coming here to say the same thing.
This was a very weakened Spurs team without their best player in Kane and without their best LB.
Yet we weren't able to make a lot of chances. I think the poor playing conditions played a part but I think we could play a bit differently.
I'm not sold on this Kova/ Jorgi pivot and I think they'll be vunrable against better opponents.
I don't think Alonso is good enough to start despite his goal against Burnley.
Werner needs to be benched and used as a sub to maximize his usefulness. He hasn't been able to get it going and I don't think he will turn things around suddenly.
But for me, we are getting the points and that's what matters. We can surely get better and that remains to be seen.
05 Feb 2021 14:44:25
Werner is not a machine he is in a new country new team all new team mates new and harder league suffers from vertigo in the middle of a C.V. and probably in a strict bubble and now after a few months has a different boss and is very much in the spotlight after a bad run of form
I'm no shrink but I would say that. That is a very tough upheavel for anyone and yes he's paid millions or whatever
I don't know what your jobs are but could you imagine immigrating now with what's going on trying to find your feet like werner who I don't know might be a soft sort of fella confidence wise
with all that pressure I say cut him some slack until things start getting back to normality because he is a very good player and more importantly a ordinary fella like the rest of us not a robot.
{Ed001's Note - one of the Wolves players had to watch the birth of his kid online the other day because his wife gave birth back home in Portugal. She wanted somewhere she felt safe due to complications with their previous 2 others. That same player has been out of form most of the season. Is there likely to be a correlation between the two things? Yes.
How many other players are struggling due to similar circumstances affecting them? Werner in a new country, away from his family and not able to visit or them to visit him, has a very good reason to be struggling. They are not robots. They are human beings with emotions and feelings that have an affect on performances.}
05 Feb 2021 14:58:03
That's what I was trying to get across Ed fans don't think these guys have lives feelings or emotions
Outside of the club. I really feel for werner and havertz and ziyech and others you can tell they want to do well but as I said we don't know what's going on in there heads while they are at work because that's all it is employment not a sworn declaration to die for the cause as some people think
Anyway well said enjoy your weekend.
05 Feb 2021 15:08:48
Absolutely correct Ed001.
I would also like to point out that this is a very favourable run of games for us and we can probably get 9 points from them. So for me, the same problems from before are still there and will probably come back to haunt us again against better teams.
05 Feb 2021 16:06:36
What problems Ash.
05 Feb 2021 16:13:34
I'm just glad you say spurs jbs.
05 Feb 2021 17:25:01
Lack of finishing in the final 3rd, soft midfield with limited creativity and limited physicality, lapses in set-piece defending to name a few Gola.