West Ham v Tottenham derby day

Heading into the fixture away at West Ham in what in recent times as become a derby almost as fierce as that mob down the road its fair to say that Spurs season has yet to ignite. How the Hammers would love to dampen the low burning flames already. Probably only versus Dortmund and Everton has the football resembled that of much the most parts of the last two seasons.

Back to basics

On other threads I have stated we look like a side in between systems which has led to the inconsistency and points dropped. Players somewhat being shoehorned into unfamiliar positions such as Son at left wing back last week to justify Alli coming back into the side followed by Trippier replacing him in a similar role.

Many on the forum have called for a plan B and C over the last years so I'm not knocking that but it feels like change for changing sake at present likewise with some strange rotation policy where players surely cannot be fatigued just yet. Dembele the one that springs to mind being benched last Saturday only to start midweek home to lowly Barnsley.

I've always stated to the disagreement of one or two on here that a good side should have an almost constant spine and a default 11 and system to revert back to when things are not going as well as would liked to get the lads back on familiar ground.

I'd be looking at the squad and thinking what's my best 11 in a tough away fixture in what almost feels like a must win game if we are to remain on the coat tails of the two Manchester clubs..

For me we have to revert back to a flat back four as we know whichever system we play we rarely concede more than a goal per game- its the getting the goals at the other end of the pitch were struggling.

Kane would be first on all Spurs fans team sheets. Then you look at where else the goals may come from. Alli with 20+ goals last term would have to start. Son likewise. Eriksen the creator in chief is the heartbeat of the side and when he plays well normally do Spurs hes getting around 20-25 combined goals and assists per season so the supporting three is an easy pick.

Behind that its two from three out of Wanyama Dier and Dembele in which any combination works for me but I much prefer to see Dembele start the mans world class.

Obviously a back four would mean leaving a big name centre half out or a big money one at least. We know Jan and Toby as a duo work which would be hard to leave out Sanchez given his price tag and early promise out but he is young,raw and a little rash but has time on his time with plenty of game time available in the cups and as a back up rotation option once the team is in full flow.

My team to start
Lloris Aurier Davies Toby Jan. Dembele Dier. Eriksen(left) Alli (10) Son(right). Kane.
Subs. Vorm Trippier Sanchez Winks Llorente Nkoudou Sissoko

 

If we start to include a player because he has a high price tag(Sanchez)we will create problems,also the problem with Eriksen is every other team in the PL know how to stop Spurs's playing, man mark him and we have a supply problem for Kane and the other's to score so we need another play maker to step up!!! apart from that a good kick in the backsides for the Wet spams and 3 more points in the bank....COYS..

 

So 2-3, always good to get a win over the scummy spammers especially after bottling it there last year.

Cruising 0-3 just needed to close the game down, so we switch off and make a pigs ear of it.

Still 3 points was the main thing.

We have not improved from last season at all imo, there's not enough about the squad and the team/club don't seem to be chomping at the bit from the off to better last season at all seems very going through the motions.

And I'm sick of seeing that waste of 30 mil Sissoko jogging around with the control and touch of an oak Tree with out the sending off we start with 10 everytime he lines up.

 

We didn't look great early on, then struck like lightning, with Kane's great early season form continuing. He's had no luck and with some we would be closer to the Mancunians and Chelski Scum.

Three away on the bounce, so let's focus on what we've got to do, or rather set ourselves up to cope with the
5-5 formations that we will typically face at Wembley.

I'm with Felon, Sissoko is a serious embarrassment. He's the worst we've had in recent times, closely followed by Soldado.

If you play 3 at the back, you really can't play attackers as wing backs. As soon as Sissoko went there today I was really worried, he can't attack, so he definitely can't defend.

Deli looked better, still a little lightweight at times, but two great assists tell it all.

Being risk averse, I'm for 4-2-3-1, with Dembele and Wanyama preferred.

Bench looks better.

COYS

 

That's too harsh, Sissoko had a relatively okay game...could have had 1 or 2 assists. The price tag is what it is, before Aurier exit; the team looked solid...with Sissoko playing in his natural midfield position. Today was Sissoko's best performance in a Tottenham shirt, for a derby game the team did well. Aurier needs to play intelligently, especially after he's just been booked.

Good thing we have a coach who evaluates our players according to how hard they work on the field not how flashy or superb their touch is. Anyone who objectively looked at his performance today and knows what kind of a player/position he plays would give his performance a 6 out of 10. Yes, he was at fault for the first conceded goal; that can happen to any player. With Waynama and Dembele out, Sissoko is a decent replacement while Winks gets fully fit.

 

I thought we were very poor, even at 3-0 up, just that the spammers were even worse. Apart from the goals, even Harry and Dele Alli were much below standard, and JV was hopeless at times. Most of us were probably screaming for Poch to take Aurier off after the yellow card, it was plain to see that the ref wouldn't tolerate any more from him.
As for four at the back, it has to be with Dier in the middle who then slots back to transform us into three at the back and two wing backs when we have the ball. Poch - pick two out of the three CBs and rotate them all you like, but don't play them all at once!
If the day comes when we field Aurier and Rose, we need to be prepared to play with nine men for the latter part of the game. Tripper and Davies might not be of the same quality but you are pretty sure that they will be not be seeing red.

 

Fair point Remy. I watched it back and he did put in a shift. Just need some end product now, like a goal perhaps.....COYS.

 

Well said and fully agree. Sissoko never gets in my team in front of Wanyama or Dembele but he has been decent most games that he's played this term and likes to drive the ball foward with a bit of pace. I wont say too much because i cant say i trust him enough that next game he might have an absolute shocker, but he has been holding his own in a role that suits him much better. The player is definitly putting in more effort and maybe a few fans should get off his back.

 

For god sake people would clap an actual donkey in a Spurs shirt and tell us about the potential it's got on here and many other sites.

Wake UP - for 30 million pounds even in an inflated market (and price is very relevant in terms of performance - ie you wouldnt pay Mercedes prices for a Citroën performance) Sissoko is shockingly bad.

For the second most expensive player in the club and the wages he's on he's getting game time not on merit just because we have injuries Onomah has more about him.

He should A never have been bought B sold on summer just gone and C not be inflicted on us ever again!

 

Anyone else watch Hernandez yesterday and still baffled why we werent in for him?
How good an option would he of been for us?

 

There are many players whom we could have signed, Hernandez was actually considered. Same as what happened with Morata a few seasons ago, no one wants to come in and be a second option behind Kane. I for one thinks Llorente will do just fine for the team. Only option we're missing is a pacy winger who can exploit the space behind defenses and able to dribble past fullbacks 1v1. Would love to see Levy go all in for Demarai Gray, this kid has the potential to be a game changer.

I believe the way we are setup with the 3 former Ajax CBs, allowing Dier to be our CDM...allowing our wingbacks to push forward and put the ball in the box. Davies has been outstanding thus far this season, Trippier who has more quality in the final 3rd needs to be more direct; as we have seen his quality before.

 

Felon only an ass would follow a donkey even in a Spurs shirt.
Cant argue that the man was a poor buy and for ridiculous money but with our best MF pairing of Wanyama and Dembele out hes filled in well and has put in a decent shift.
A player price tag will inevitably follow them around like a bad smell but after the dust has settled a player can only do the job he's asked to do.
I wont have a problem if Sissoko moves on and im not trying to stand up for a player who i dont truly believe in as a first team player but he did have a good pre season and has been a lot better than some have given him credit for so far this year.
For me its interesting and just another case of fans spending more time on social media unloading on certain players than they do watching the actual games regurgitating the same old **** as everyone else.
If i ever saw an actual donkey in a Spurs shirt i might actually clap it especially if it could fill in on the left, interestingly a donkey needs to have a passport to enter the UK so you might even be right.

 

The thing is he may have played better than before, but before he was total s***e, now he's s***e. I watch his every move and whilst my brain may be conditioned to only pick out the bad bits, there are enough of those to justify the stick he gets. Why did we purchase him? No goals, can't remember any assists, don't want him as a holding midfielder, the few chances he's had he's squandered. He just doesn't look like a top flight footballer.
Lets hope it's a real confidence issue and that Poch has taken it upon himself to prove me/some of us wrong. Fingers crossed.

 

So we seem to be plodding along so far without hitting anything like top gear , a typical Spurs start under Poch I would say .. Up to last year our seasons had the same trend , sluggish start , motoring through the middle then a stuttery finish .. last year we seemed to banish the last part and finished like a train .. Was hoping we'd start a bit better this season , maybe continue where we left off to a degree but it hasn't happened ... So it's a typical enough start by us , hopefully we can grind enough out of it to hang in there untill we click into top gear ... Will need to up it quite a bit next month or it could get ugly , had a quick look over the weekend and we have a tough run of games coming up after the Bournemouth game .. Real Madrid home & away , Dortmund away , Liverpool Man U & Arsenal league matches in the middle of them so a testing period for sure and one that will tell us where we are for the season ahead ... Really need to win our fixtures against Nicosia , Huddersfield & Bournemouth to build confidence and momentum before this period starts ... C.O.Y.S ....

 

For me Wembley is the focal point now and learning how to win there. We've not been great, two points from nine, no goals from Kane and only two goals to show for our efforts. We won't achieve anything with that sort of form.
I feel our tempo has been poor, no pace, no pressure play on our opponents - what has happened to our high pressing game. I think I favour 4 at the back, as it saves worrying about having Son or Sissoko covering as defenders.
If we can get Harry firing and we add some much needed pace, we might just keep that top four spot in sight, whilst we work out how to really win at Wembley....

 

Well we all knew this Wembley bollix was happening this season and even the most optimistic of fans couldn't expect us to repeat our home form there ... The fact we had our best ever season at home last season makes it even more difficult .. We do hear plenty saying it doesn't matter where you play , a pitch is a pitch and while in theory it makes perfect sense we all know it isn't true ... It was always going to be a tall order to get close to last year's home form , even if we were still at the Lane but trying to do it somewhere else was probably mission impossible ... We as fans will have to remember that as the season unfolds , I know it won't be easy if things go shitty but that's the way it is this year ... Hopefully we'll be back where we belong next season without too much damage been done in the interim ...

Im not sure we need to be playing all our games with 3 center backs either .. Surely we don't need 3 center backs 2 full backs and a holding central midfield at home or away against lesser sides and in some cases much lesser sides ... I suppose results will dictate all these things , there won't be too many complaints over how we set up if we come out the right side of these games ...

Early days but lots to ponder and difficult to know how it will turn out ... C.O.Y.S ...

 

Completely agree, Wembley has been another obstacle we have to overcome. Our form last season at the Lane was impeccable, unfortunately I doubt we'll be able to replicate it...here's to hoping we can build confidence in the next few games - barring the ones against Madrid (we'll be lucky to walk away with 2 points in my opinion).

My main and probably only criticism of Poch is waiting until the 7oth minute to execute plan B - against Swansea, Llorente should have been on the field by the start of the 2nd half. We are dealing with a few injuries, but we have enough talent on our squad to break down a team like Swansea at Home.

In terms of which formation we ought to favor, when playing lesser sides...the back 4 is more preferable; but I do believe the main reason Poch hasn't implemented it, would be because Davies and Trippier tend to get caught defensively in that formation. When we had Walker and Rose, they had the strength and pace to match the other team's wingers.

 

Team tonight V Apoel Nicosia

Lloris Aurier Alderweireld Sanchez Davies Dier Winks Sissoko Oakley-Booth Son Kane 4-2-3-1

Lloris Alderweireld Sanchez Davies Aurier Dier Winks Sissoko Walker-Peters Son Kane 3-5-2

Thoughts gentleman what's your preferred starting XI

 

When I saw that Trippier was left wing back I was f*****g horrified. Should have been Dier in the back three, Davies at wing back, or start with a back four.

It felt unduly laboured in the first half and we were lucky to be ahead, no thanks to another Lloris distribution howler. When will he learn.

Once we withdrew Aurier and switched Trippier it worked better.

Thank heavens for HK.....top man.

6 from 2, goal difference 5. Need to take a point from Dortmund, beat Apoel again and we should be there....So not needing a point from RM....Easy!

COYS

 

Strange line up I.m.o , taught it was very cagey looking considering the opposition ... Ugly enough performance but great result ..

Lol , strange game sometimes .. C.O.Y.S ...