Outplayed, but don't push the panic button yet: Spurs 0-3 Liverpool post-match thoughts

Our first big test of the season came against Liverpool this afternoon but ended much the same way as last season’s meeting between the two sides as Liverpool comfortably brushed us aside. A lacklustre performances, yes, but it’s too early to be panicking.

Second Best

From the first minute we were on the back foot today. Balotelli missed a free header in the opening moments and we struggled to really make our mark from thereon out.

Balotelli on his own could and should have scored 3 but we had a couple of good chances of our own, namely from Chadli and Adebayor. Sadly those misses, coupled with a soft penalty, ultimately led to defeat. Moreno’s excellent goal sealed the victory for Liverpool.

They were simply a class above today. They imposed themselves with their pressing game, quicker to every ball and stronger in almost every area.

It’s a humbling loss, one that shows us just how far away we are from where we want to be but it would be premature to read too much into this result.

Levy gets his fair share of abuse for sacking managers too early and so it’s only right that we remain patient and allow the manager the time he needs get us to where we can be. The game against QPR has already displayed some improvement on last season.

Soft Centre

Liverpool outclassed us today but nowhere more so than in midfield. We have plenty of options in central areas but it’s fair to say we’ve not replaced Modric, not in the slightest. We lack somebody who can pick up the ball and run with it, as well as quickly transition defence to attack.

Liverpool had that today and we couldn’t match them. Maybe Bentaleb could be that player in the future but he’s not ready, not yet. Dembele showed glimpses in his first few months at Spurs that he could be the new maestro in midfield but he too is not that player.

Without a leader in midfield that can dominate games we’ll continue to struggle in games like this against good opposition. Hopefully Pochettino can develop Bentaleb or Dembele into the player we want, but for now it’s definitely an area for concern.

Patience Is A Virtue

A bad day at the office but its early days. Liverpool were much the better side today but they are also a good benchmark. Rodgers’ first season at Liverpool wasn’t outstanding. His first few months in particular were less than impressive.

Today they played as a team. They were that bit quicker, sharper and everything they did was automatic. That’s what I’m hoping we’ll achieve under Pochettino. The signs are there, we just might need to be brace ourselves for a few more rough defeats before we get there.

 

We do have a leader in Sandro and we do have someone who can carry the ball in dembele. Now I will make this clear ANYONE including poch who thinks bentaleb and capoue as a pairing are better than the above aforementioned are *****s end of. That is where the game was lost as soon as the team sheet was handed in. I've said all along that top 6 is a realistic target and unless by tomorrow we sign a cb winger and CF I stand by that

 

We don't look like we learnt the lessons from playing top 4 teams from last season. Midfield was weak, none of our players looked confident in trying to take on the opposition where in contrast Liverpool when they had the ball looked dangerous and had options.

For all the money spent in the last three windows we don't look any better. Liverpool do. How can they spend it that much better than us. I know we need to give Poch time to stamp his mark on the style and squad but I know I'm not alone in thinking we look further away from the top 4 than at anytime in the last 5 years.

I hope I'm wrong......

 

Last week I dreamed Andros Townsend was the subject of a 12million bid by Southampton , how funny is that !
and then I dreamed I was at a match where he was brought on as a substitute while Sandro and Paulino were
on the bench > Funny the things that happen in nightmares
Last night I dreamed that Tottenham played the two worst teams in the division and won , and everyone in the club , the supporters and the press were saying that Tottenham were a top 4 side !! I must get my problem seen to .
I,ve been a white hart lane regular , for over 50 years and I,ve seen some of the best players in the games history
but its also true that I,ve seen some of the most rubbish players we can all imagine , Andros Townsend is a lucky man , like wise the dope called harry , The reason that I cant get excited about our new manager is that he sees things in those two fools that I don't and I,m sure many supporters agree !! COYS

 

Not even slightly convincing. Spurs or this blog. What signs are "there" exactly Socrates?

 

I think Tottenham players just wanted a goal against Liverpool. That's 3 games now without a single goal, whereas Liverpool scored 12. I think today showed Liverpool are a class ahead and don't look any different without Suarez.. Arsenal are the weak link in the top 4 chain and they can be taken out.

 

what a load of ****, how is this any different than the last 2 *****s in charge of our club. Its just humiliating, AGAIN! High line will not work, we've tried it its ****! Chelsea tried it they were the worst they have been in years! Just goes to show what a pile of **** we have running the club! How could they buy in to this philosophy AGAIN! Wrong decision levy AGAIN you ****ing little *****. just GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Certainly no need to push any panic buttons, and today as last week, was never going to be a game that defines our season.
I said before this season stared that I am excited about the new manager and what he can get from the players, but is also said that the top six is the best we can hope for, and today has reaffirmed that opinion.
It will take longer than a few games for MP to get it right and he will have learnt a lot about his team today.
The pace of Liverpool was too much for us today and our build up play was far too slow. Against QPR, the possession football worked, but you may recall in one of my previous blogs, that you need to have a plan B, and today we had none.
The back four is still frail and I simply cannot understand why Kaboul keeps getting picked. There are no excuses for a performance like he gave today, failing to make a challenge of any note and constantly passing to the opposition. That is not about tactics, that is about the attitude of the player and it was poor last year, and was diabolical today.
Rose played okay going forwards but is still naive in his defending but is showing improvements and thankfully he won't come up against Raheem Sterling every week!
Lamela still looks much more confident but ran into blind alleys today and it will take time fir him to become the finished article. I am still excited by him as a prospect though.
Both Lamela and Chadli need to be getting out wide much more, and where we were full of width last week, today the team was far too narrow.
I have backed Townsend many times, but his performance when he came on today was not good. He runs into so many dark alleys, it defies belief. He must learn to get his head up if he is going to become the player that I believe he can become, but he was poor today.
If you remember last week, I talked about the consistency of Adebayor and today he showed again tha when the going gets tough, he gets going anywhere except where he should be.
Eriksen has not even started this season yet. I think he must still be on holiday. He had shown flickers of what he can do, but failed to impose himself on the game again today. I wonder whether a goal may help?

There is no point hiding from the fact that today was not a great performance and I think we were all expecting much better, but better days will come.
The defence needs sorting and we looked short on firepower today against a fairly weak Liverpool defence which we certainly have the players to have troubled.

I still don't see a sudden influx of players, but I do think Kaboul should be sold as he has sown nothing that suggests he is playing for the team or the shirt.

Aside from the result, I still believe we have the right man for the job, and that this team will have a very good season. I still however believe that this season will not be a top four finish, but we may still get close. We will have to play much better than we did today against the top teams though and the next top four team we play I believe is Woolwich Wanderers. Perform well and get a great result, and happiness is full restored. Perform as we did today though, and questions will stArt being asked.


Come on you Spurs!!!

 

"We're not looking to see who they've got in their team because we know that with the ability in our squad we'll win the game if we play to our potential." Townsend needs to shut it before matches as it always comes back to bite you, and Moreno took a big bite! Send him off on his way. He has no end product. Lamela was so bad today I can't put it into words. Him and Soldado was a horrendous mistake and the reason why we're not as good as we should be. Liverpool bought excellent players with their Suarez money.

 

Did not take long to come out of the woodwork, with a knee jerk or tear jerk from a juvenile. No good , ditch, get rid, move him on, a waste of space, Levy out - - next week Pochettino out, You are the next wise one to inherit the Tim Sherwood bib. But in the meantime look in the mirror to see a Spurs supporter Hic Hic.

 

This is just one game. Let's see how the lads and the manager react. I do believe we need a change in our midfield. I like Bentaleb but I think Sandro has more experience and is finally feeling healthy. Don't think Kaboul deserves to be in the starting line-up anymore, with Chiliches or Fazio available. Ade needs to be more assertive as a striker, get in better positions and take shots for goodness sake. If not I wouldn't mind Kane getting a chance to show his quality against the premier sides. I hope this is a wake up call, and we can just build on it and get better.

 

I am no fan of levy and if you visit this site often, you will know that I don't hide the fact, but I believe we have appointed the right manager but we will have to expect things to go not as we would wish from time to time.
Today was far from our worst performance in recent times, and because we played so well last week, I think expectations have been raised higher than is realistic. We will be fine and sacking yet another manager is far from a good idea. MP needs at least three seasons to get us where we want to be.

 

3 seasons and players bought that Poch actually wants that are of the level needed to push on.

 

Same old, give him time but I hope we do a lot of business tomorrow. 5 out minimum and a top striker/CB for sure

 

We need someone who will get 20goals a season.Pocc will be sacked if he doesnt deliver with the **** hands baldini and levy keep dealing to the managers. Time they took a good look at themselves

 

Today was a bad day at the office. I thought 1st half we played ok and despite the 3 nil score line we didn't capitulate like last season. Kaboul is not good enough and although the penalty was soft in the extreme it was him that gave the ball away in the first place!! There was no width at all and none of the high pressing game we were told to expect. However lets not all go negative after 3 games. Yes there's lots of work to do and today showed just how far we have to go but it's a long season and a lot can change. Once the circus of transfer deadline day is out of the way the manager will have the squad he wants to work with and hopefully we will see his philosophy start to bear fruit!! We are all Tottenham till we die and we never do things the easy way but To dare is to do, or as I prefer Audere est facere!!!

 

Last week everyone saying Poch is great and we gna be challenging at the top, now all the doom n gloom so called fans moaning again! Liverpool are a couple of years ahead of us, Poch has only been at the Lane a few months ffs! He needs time which Levy must give him. I do agree however with some things mentioned...Kaboul was shocking, Townsend is so over rated. Lamela I'm still unsure about but he doesn't look a £30M player to me. Bentaleb is one for the future, not for starting the matches. Soldado is rubbish and needs to be sold! The Beast must start as we've no leaders in the team at all. I'll be glued tomorrow evening to sky sports for the end of the window praying for a decent striker at least! For now, patience is needed. Keep the faith. COYS

 

Sorry, but if the system fails then I can accept the "early days" excuse and that it needs to be tried and tweaked before it is right.

But if the potentially excellent players we have fail with poor skills, poor technique, poor decision making and poor attitude then to say it is "early days" is being disingenuous. Our players, in general as there are exceptions, are fragile mentally and lack grit and determination. They are brilliant and play to their ability when things are going well (eg at QPR) but when things start to go wrong there is a collective collapse. We struggled against West Ham and were lucky that they are even worse than us, but today we showed nothing deep down has changed.

Liverpool had both confidence and determination by the bucket load. Burnley and Leicester have that, too. But until we get some backbone along with our undoubted ability, we are in for another season of frustration.

 

Definitely need a leader and not sure who that leader is. A 20 goal a season striker is a must but we've known that for quite a few years now!!

 

The game was lost before we started our 2 def midfielders are not up to the task sandro is the best midfielder in the prem lge when it comes to disrupting the opposition kaboul is way out of his depth and rose spends too much time in the oppositions half instead of concentrating on his def duties and ade just don't have the skill pace or movement to play as a lone man and as for lamela I don't think he will adjust to the english game and how fast it is. build a team around erikson and buy a worldclass cf and cb