Killer instinct lacking at the Hawthorns

There will be those that will no doubt moan about today, but playing a West Brom team who put the Gooners to the sword was never going to be an easy task.

Spurs started the brighter and played the ball around nicely at times but West Brom were firm and hunted in packs. In fact they played a similar set up to Chelsea last weekend and spurs will perhaps have to think about how they combat such tactics.

The Spurs goal was sheer class. The ever excellent Alderweireld played a ball over the top which Alli ran on to and volleyed home to put Spurs 1 up.
After the goal though, Spurs switched off and started to become sloppy with the ball. West Brom sensed this as an opportunity and restored parity through Maclean.

Kane had a great chance to put Spurs ahead but miscued under pressure. In the last 10 minutes, the baggies put the pressure on and only a wonderful reaction save from Lloris kept Spurs level.

With City losing at lunchtime and United also drawing at home, there was a chance for Spurs to really close the gap and put pressure on the top of the table.

Although 1 point is perhaps 2 dropped, let's not forget that this was the type of game that we were losing 2 and 3 seasons ago.

Disappointed? Of course because I want Spurs to win every game. We are however now unbeaten in 14 league games and that is no mean feat in the modern premier league.

Teams will drop points over the festive period and there will be some strange results as there always is during what I call the football silly season!!

No reason to be too down today. No defeat again and a point against a very hard team to beat.

That killer instinct to kill teams off could do to be worked on .

As ever, Come on you Spurs!

 

Another Draw better than a loss but more concerning is the bookings now we lose players for the next match..

 

Created hardly anything again today. Not good enough, pooch has no idea how to break teams down that don't play out from the back. One game plan and no other real clue! #**** #anotherseasondownthedrain

 

Sooner we lose, the better IMO, get rid of this record. Youve gotta sacrifice a point sometimes to pick up all three - as Mourinho said, ten draws gives you ten points, but five wins and five losses gets you fifteen.

 

8 draws out of 15 in an unbeaten run really takes the shine off it

 

I think the amount of draws may take a bit of the shine off things but to say that this is another season down the drain is an over reaction and that's coming from me, the ultimate Tottenham nay sayer!!
Arsenal lost at West Brom and we drew. Yes, ten draws only gets ten points when 5 wins get 15 but from a morale point of view, surely not losing is not a bad thing.

I agree to a point that we do need a plan b in these games but we are hardly poor or in some sort of non existent crisis.
We need to kill teams off and I'm sure Poch is working on the training pitch to get that sorted.

 

Been saying it for a while but there's not enough goals in the team as a whole at the moment .. The rest of the team have to get 30 - 40 goals at least between them if we,re only playing with one up top and thats assuming he or they get 25 - 30 themselves ... For me its hard to see where they're coming from to be honest .. But we have to keep things in perspective , its been an excellent 15 games in terms of performance really especially comparing it with last season and its early days for a lot of the squad .. We certainly look to be on the right road but have to keep moving forward in terms of individual development , developing as a team and developing the squad .. Some people prob getting a little carried away with this unbeaten run and it shouldn't be knocked but it is 6 wins in 15 which isn't a great ratio by any means and should also be kept in perspective .. All in all its been a very promising start but there's a long way to go and it could yet go either way , as i said in an earlier post its impossible to predict what's going to happen next .. Always hopefull but never confident .. C.O.Y.S ....

 

I do think a draw is a pity given that United and Citeh dropped points. However, 14 unbeaten and we move on. This run is not a bad thing; it keeps the morale and will continue to give us belief!

Now we must take 3 points against the Toon and convert these irritating draws into wins.

 

For me we need to win three out of the next 4 PL games, to show we are contenders....that takes us into the New Year in contention.....then it's down to DL.
COYS

 

Can't believe some of the comments on here, the sooner we lose the better? when we have just got the record unbeaten?? isn't this a good thing that we are making progress and being hard to beat and not losing?? jeez! maybe you want the old Spurs back where we would of got beat a few seasons ago after caving in to the pressure! also Poch doesn't know how to break teams down? unbelievable!! Woolwich lost to WB last week so they are no mugs, they defend as a team and park the bus! would you rather us be like Chelsea at the moment?? there is no pleasing some people! we are building a foundation to be hard to beat and then to build on that for the future! yes we need another striker and maybe another midfielder but we are up there for once in the mix! would we not of taken only losing one game all season and being in the mix for top 4? we could of lost that game today easily but we were resiliant which shows we are no pushovers, we would of felt worse if we had lost! i am happy we are making progress and the team is hard to beat! lets be positive! Coys.

 

Lack of tactics and lack of options will be the down fall yet again.

Lets take the 8 draws if you lose 5 of those and win 3 your better off points wise. So being unbeaten when drawing the majority isn't a great feat imo.

Our play only works when we are firing on all cylinders, if we're sharper than the opposition and can stay at that level. The minute we aren't we are very predictable and cannot break defences with tactical changes etc to force wins.

Typical Spurs always teetering on the brink of doing something then when given opportunities to capitalise we cant sieze the initiative.

 

On the balance of play we didn't deserve to win, how many chances did we have? not enough. WB were much more dangerous and had the more attacking threat that's why i will take the draw! it was the same against Chelsea and Swansea we didn't play well but got a draw, some people will look at it as not winning enough but that is what Chelsea are doing now and im sure we would rather draw than lose like they are? i agree with you felon i think a lack of options will see us come up short again this season, a case of Levy not giving the manager the tools to do the job! we have been there before a few times! we needed a striker to give us another option but failed again and i still think we are missing a pass master in midfield that can spray balls around and supply defence splitting passes to our one forward to get attacks going quicker imo!

 

I have to disagree about lack of tactic. Did you notice Lamela on the left and Eriksen on right side? I am sure you did. In the game when crossing deemed to be the effective way to go around the bus parked, Poch did away with inversed wingers and used center part, where Pulis had high density, much less. The problem, though, was that similar approach against Spurs defense was much more successful for Baggies.

 

Well its barely a major switch up is it? Eriksen is not a pacey winger to stretch play or get behind is he?
And Lamela improved or not rarely has the intelligence to influence a game.
So the outcome as per is lack of cutting edge

 

To drop two points when leading is a disappointment for sure but to be honest we were poor today and Brom played really really well tbf. Always difficult place to go and Pull is sets his sides up so well and given they beat arsenal recently its a point gained on our display.
Having said that I've said all week that we need two signings and the quality of them signings will determine our destiny whether that will be top four or push for an open title as the league has ever seen.
Nothing has changed after today's game for me...
Having said that I was disappointed with the lack of options on the bench today hence only two sub's, Son since his injury has been really poor and finally hate to say it but HK now for two games really poor and holding onto the ball too much. I don't mind him missing chances but especially today when the ball got played into him keeping hold when surrounded loosing the ball turning into traffic instead of using those around him.
Toby was class again as was dembele. Onwards to the next game!

 

Nonsense to blame poch today. We were full strength just didn't perform.

 

It depends who you beat. If we had won today and against Stoke and Swansea yes we would have nore points but we would be worse off against Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea if we had lost other 5 matches. I for one will be more than happy to go rest of season without another defeat. Cannot understand why we would want to lose any match.

 

To be honest I thought the side was pretty poor today by our recent displays, albeit in TERRIBLE conditions.

With the way the environment was (i.e. the crowd, the strong winds which suited WBA more than it did us) I think Spurs can be reasonably pleased to escape a difficult ground, at the best of times, with a point.

Weather aside though, I believe the lads lost too many 50/50, 2nd balls and failed to press with the aggression or precision that they have shown for most of the season.

After the goal from Alli, I was hoping to see the team push on, establish some type of control through possession, and show a REAL appetite to hold onto our lead.

What I got instead was continuous turning over of the ball, countless concessions of CHEAP FK's, and a lack of the battling qualities required to win, whilst not quite being at your best, away from home.

Listen, the conditions were DREADFUL, and that enabled WBA to impose a %'s type of football, through which they enjoyed their fair share of success.

A LARGE part of that success was aided by Jan Vertonghen who, despite being in SUPERB form this term, had the type of day that he won't be telling the grand kids if he can help it!

Shaky, indecisive and flimsy, the Belgian looked more like the man who has flattered to deceive over the past 2 years, rather than the one who led Ajax to numerous titles in the past.

With the winds being the way they were, today was about getting the ball wide, putting bodies in the box and ensuring we put some quality/ challenging deliveries into the area.

WBA did that, and like I say it suited their style of play down to the ground. Spurs, on the other hand, tried to play their usual game.

And on the occasions Rose & Walker did get into advanced areas of the pitch, both fullbacks struggled either to beat their man, or struggled to deliver anything with the required quality.

Eriksen, who again has been excellent this season, was lucky not to be hauled, instead of Lamela, I thought. While Harry Kane maybe should've done better with the a clipped ball over the top from Dele Alli just after the restart.

Lloris deserves a mention after an impressive display. His pointblank save from Olsen was a thing to behold, and he appeared back to something like his commanding best after a difficult match against Chelsea.

So to summarize, given the level of our performance today, I think we can be generally pleased to keep our unbeaten run intact. The Hawthorns is ALWAYS a tough place to go and win (as Arsenal will testify), especially with the conditions being as they were today, as well as the way the game unfolded.

The crowd smelt blood after they equalised, and the atmosphere grew more intense, as a result. The ref came across as a bit of a 'homer', in truth, and in years gone by this would have been a game we WOULD have lost (as Matt, has already pointed out). So to claim a point, I think is progress.

ON TO THE NEXT ONE...

 

Average display and we never deserved a win here, no penetration and not enuf creativity or guile to open them up and really threaten the goal. The game was set up and played the way that TP wanted it played. However we did fight this one out and although we weren't at our best we didn't deserve to lose either. Fair result. Some interesting results today but I still think we are on track for a top four place if MP can keep them fit and fired up.

 

Absolutely right Tommo. Did you watch Shaquiri for Stoke. That quality of play is missing, being able to pick a pass is vital to make that vital difference between being there or thereabouts and being serious contenders. We need someone to compliment Eriksen. We live in hope....!