Team of misfits, two debuts, frustrating Townsend and a match to forget

Oh bloody hell deja vu and all that,how we are expected to win when we pass the ball around till the opposition defence is settled then try and play through it.Did this bloke understudy avb?

 

I take your point on the number of changes we made, Matt, and it's a good one. But I still believe the pitch was the BIGGER factor.

Teams/players in the EPL are pampered entities, and most of the lesser sides around the world will take the opportunity to do whatever it takes to attempt to level the playing field (excuse the pun ), including giving the groundsman the fortnight off.

Spurs didn't cope well with this tactic tonight, of that, their is no question. But we move on to the West Brom in the knowledge that we will be putting out a COMPLETELY different team.

Spurs have ALWAYS made wholesale change in the EL (group stages) against weaker opposition, so I'm not sure Pochettino has done anything new.

Yes, making 10 changes means your team may have some teething issues throughout the course of a match but given the gulf in quality between the two sides Spurs, I DON'T believe that was the deciding factor in the match tonight.

Listen, if somebody said we will pick up a hard-fought point in difficult conditions, away to PB, and return to EPL action against West Brom with a win on the weekend, MOST of us would've of taken that before kick-off today.

The effects of Everton playing a near full-strength team (in, all honesty, a more difficult game, on paper) will be shown on the weekend.

Only then can we judge who has come out of this week of European fixtures as the REAL winners and losers!

 

We need to get three points on Sunday and prove that we can win games after Thursday night football!!

 

Absolutely. The games against Arsenal and City are massive and we need to show we have learned from last seasons awful showings. Coys

 

Maybe we're not seeing the best Lennon because he does his best work playing wide right. Screw this inverted winger stuff and hook him up with a good Walker substitute. They made each other look pretty dangerous. Maybe Dier can provide that, but I've never thought Naughton was a long-term solution. Isn't it usually a matter of who the manager puts around you? And Poch is still putting pieces and parts together. So don't give up on Aaron. And Townsend may need to drop down in the selection pecking order.

 

Well we certainly now how to make our team feel at home lets see Fazio firsts game with hardly any training on a pitch if your a gardener you no it was no better than meadow grass we have better games he noes. Townsend had a ankle operation and hamstring before that this has put him back the 5 months he had been missing. He worked hard during World Cup with England to get fit, What happened next defied logic Potch played him on a plastic pitch that had me shaking my head sure enough he was rolling in agony and came of hes not run or played the same since apart from cameo game at West Ham. What hurts me our fans never look to see if he can take a knock if is speeds affected and dribbling and shooting if the answers yes to all these then something is not right. Tonight we seen what i fear is right is ankle operation is not right any slight knock hes in agony . This happened to Huddlestone and he was out 14 month 25 and 27 when he returned he got it right we flogged the only genuine passer in prem who can pass like a golfer with backspin. We have two of fastest wingers in prem both with problems Lennon 3 years groin and now Townsend ankle our medical record is shocking to put it mildly. We had Woodgate King Kaboul Bales ankles Sandro Huddlestone Walker Townsend Vlad Lamela. I hope Townsend is suffering like Bale did with confidants from losing is place hes only played one 90 mins in 5 month in Ufa Play offs to me Townsends like a boxer with one hand the others injured and it shows i was right about Hudds is last game was against Madrid second leg he starred on one ankle and had another op and long recovery lets hope i am wrong and its is head needs sorting because i no he has the skill. On Sunday we need speed because ex Everton Wesy Brom Ivine team will press us to death but sadly our runners are not fit for purpose we have to hope we get goals quick before there tempo chasing pressing kicks in or we could suffer again we need Lennon and Townsend Walker back fully fit and firing i no 100-% to beat this pressing Liverpool beat us with 3-0 we could not get out of our half. We have Yedlin next season and i hope we keep all our speedsters because i no i would not like to face them

 

Another factor in the display today was the winger/fullback combinations. Playing with two inverted wingers is fine when you have two marauding fullbacks to supply the width down the channels.

Naughton and Davies are both more conservative, ball-playing, fullbacks, rather than swashbuckling, adventurous types, which means that neither is REALLY suited to complimenting such a system. Especially whilst both playing in the SAME team (i.e. Naughton/ Rose could work, and so could Davies/Walker)

To be fair, I thought both made encouraging starts offensively before gradually reverting to type, meaning that when Spurs got into the type of advanced positions out-wide/centrally where you would normally see a Rose or Walker scurrying down the outside on the overlap, no such support was forthcoming. And when it did, eventually, arrive, it was usually so late in coming that Partizan were able to get adequate cover into those areas of the pitch.

Because a lot of Spurs' play was coming through the middle, Partizan began leaving their wingers further up the pitch ready to pounce quickly on the counter should our play breakdown. This also had an impact on the effectiveness of Ben and Kyle going forward.

The players CLEARLY didn't feel comfortable playing on the pitch ,either, with so many mis-placed passes being made in the final third of the field.
There was a number of times that Spurs players found themselves in good positions in the oppositions half only to needlessly squander possession.

Another thing the pitch played a part in was the TEMPO of our passing which after the first 15-20mins became a little too slow and ponderous to really open up the opposition. It was as if the players were so concerned with making sure their teammates could control the ball, that they stopped putting any kind of zip into their delivery.

 

Looking at the starting line-up I thought it was a strong second string team but never a team that looks likely to score a lot of goals with the likes of Lennon and Townsend and no real creativity in the team, I still believe that Lewis Holtby has been sacrificed from the team in order to give Paulinho an opportunity and a place within the squad but the difference between the two players in terms of enthusiasm, commitment and heart couldn't be greater. Good to see the new boys on the pitch, id like to see a bit more Fazio and Jan together to see if they can form the strong defensive partnership that we desperately need. Sorry Kabs, you can captain from the sidelines since to so many these days the captain isn't important.
As far as rotation goes its always a tough call at this stage of the season, im not sure about having the policy of a clearly defined first and second team, but I do believe that every player needs time on pitch to keep them match fit and sharp at all times, every player out there tonight needed the run and will be better for it, its a long season with lots of cup games to go. Although the game wasn't much of a spectacle and the result wasn't what we all wanted I still think the approach to the game and the rotation was sensible, and an away draw and clean sheet isn't too bad. Again, rotation and how to rotate the squad is a very tough call for MP

 

We have an excellent creative MF perfect for these games his name is Lewis Holtby.

 

Agree, the effects of starting this comp with very strong teams while looking good in the group stages can just as easily backfire as we've seen before with Spurs playing important league games straight after, as I've stated in another post its a tough call, yes there are a few of our better players that at this stage of the season could use a bit more time on the pitch and probably wouldn't be any worse for wear playing a couple of games a week so early in the season, particularly players that haven't found top gear yet but overall there is also a greater risk of going too hard too soon with unnecessary injuries and burnout.

 

Not sure about the pitch been the blame for our shoddy, tempoless passing .. If so we must have played on a lot of meadows in the last 12 - 18 months ..

 

MP needed not to lose. He successfully accomplished that in both of terms: result and injuries to key players .
Partizan did not deserve our A squad.
Our B team could have done better, but Poch cannot be held responsible for individual performances. Not yet. He is still learning his personnel.
Ramos is right again. Having two defensive full backs cannot promote productive attacking style. But - see my first sentence here
The football in the 60-ies employed different tactical schemes with lesser passing and pressing. That game could be played on dirt (nor really, but you get the point). Current EPL football is general and MP system in particular need quality pitch to be fulfilled. We will have full advantage at WHL later.

Poor play yielded solid result. That is how I can sum it up.

 

Think its a great point to be fair considering the team we put out haven't played too often together and two debutants and not a lot of game time between them. Disappointing for the fans who went over really and not keen on the first whole inverted winger thing in general. The prob when u make wholesale changes is the lads must look around and think '' the gaffers just chucking us all a game here. We are the stiffs!! '' must be difficult to motivate themselves...

 

I definitely think the weather played its part in this, you could see some of the players lost their bearings and the Yes or No vote must have been playing on their minds.
The inverted winger system needs time it will work by the time the stadiums built im sure of it, just like Kyle Naughton will become top class.
Patience is needed they have had to play on plastic pitches and a meadow during a transitional period.

 

Also not a fan of inverted wingers especially if those wingers are Lennon and Townsend, if I had my way Townsend would not ever be allowed anywhere near the right side. Im hoping Poch has seen enuf too. Its ok if you have someone like Bale who can smack one in or actually do something with the ball, as much as I think the squad players need a run in these games at least play them somewhere the might be useful.

 

I've said on other sites that I wish Poch well, but I really don't know why so many people seemed to see him as the Messiah, based on one upper mid-table season at Southampton. It was only when 'his' team at St Mary's was in the spotlight a few weeks ago (when just about everyone seemed to be about to jump ship) that it became clear to non-Saints fans just how many really good players they had - half of them have gone now, but they've still made a better start than Spurs! Like several posters on here, I find the slowly slowly sideways backwards football so far horribly reminiscent of AVB's never ending borefest, so please prove us doubters wrong Poch, before the early season goodwill evaporates into a winter of discontent.

 

I remember watching Dinamo Zagreb against Real Madrid a few seasons ago - first game of CL and Zagreb gave a really good show just losing 1-0 - the last game they lost 7-1 at home to Lyon. We were Partizan's Madrid and they played their hearts out on a poor pitch, so nothing for us to be ashamed of.
As for changing 10 players - why only 10? Winning our home games will be enough to take us through so why not use the squad in these three away games.