Why Spurs need Schneiderlin

Great three points to start the season and a relief to come away with the win after what was an average performance.

We can’t read too much into just one game, but what I did see was a lack of creativity and ability in the centre of the park.

Pedestrian

Watching the game a few times now, I could not help but wonder if a certain Mr Sherwood would be sat watching the game and seeing the same players who ‘were not fighting for the cause’ still on the pitch at the Boleyn Ground yesterday afternoon.

I was surprised how slow the build-up play was and I thought Capoue looked lost when the ball was at his feet and we needed the ball to go forward.

Eriksen had a poor game but I have no doubt that he will come good and that will happen if he is given a more ‘floating role’ as he doesn’t look comfortable on the left side and he failed to cause any real damage against the Hammers who were playing in their cup final!

The Schneiderlin Factor

We seem to have so many midfielders that I do wonder how long it will take Pochettino to decide which midfield will deliver us the best results this season.

One man who remains linked with Spurs, but a deal is looking less and likely, is Morgan Schneiderlin, and today, he showed exactly why we need him at the Lane.

He broke up play, got struck in, but most importantly his passing was quick, accurate and he got his team moving at pace and Southampton will rightly feel hard done to have come away from Anfield with no points. Schneiderlin also got himself into good goal scoring positions and his overall awareness of how to play in a high pressing; quick team was evident to see in my opinion.

I just do not think we have that in our team and it was certainly lacking yesterday with very slow build up play that made us frustrating to watch at times.

Holtby

Holtby made a difference when he came on and he looks like he will be an asset under Pochettino. I would love to see Holtby and Schneiderlin link up for the Spurs as both get stuck in but really move the game forward which there was a lack of yesterday from the starting midfielders.

Townsend also caused a threat when he came on and caused West Ham more trouble than Lennon did during the game. Football in the Premier league needs to be paid at pace with good passing and movement and once Holtby and Townsend were on the pitch, I felt that really improved and Schneiderlin would fit into perfectly from what I have seen of him before and today.

Hod and Harry are back!

So, after a good three points and last season’s West Hammer Horror shows put to bed at last, we now move on to Thursday in the UEFA and then QPR in the league.

Being at WHL, I expect to see a fast paced performance and a lot more pace throughout the team.

Hopefully Harry and God will go easy on us and not haunt us. I fully expect us to take three points from the hoops and with a good performance to boot.

Time to move on

I think Levy will try and get Schneiderlin and may even throw in a player to try and get the Saints to finally part with the player, and there is plenty of dead wood to be shifted.

Yesterday showed that Dawson does not feature in Pochettino’s plans, but we have been here with Dawson before and he won’t give up that easily and just move on.

Kaboul was poor last season and played poorly yesterday, giving the ball away and to be honest, I think he was one player that Sherwood had an issue with and I don’t blame him. His lack of effort is worrying and what he was doing with the Captain’s armband, I really do not know. Lloris should take the armband against Rangers in my opinion.

Lamela still looked like a lost soul which was a shame as he did look good in pre-season, but I think he will come good starting with our next games.

Adebayor was annoying and I still worry about where the goals will come from although I was pleased that young Dier started and got the winning goal.

It is always positive to win any game and on the first day, the result is more important that the performance but I do expect to see a more coherent team next time out.

As ever, COME ON YOU SPURS!!!

 

well written.
i wish we'd get schneiderlin.
sandro, paulinho, chiriches, bentaleb should be loaned out.
kaboul to be sold if we get musachio.
i feel dawson should be kept.

 

Don't need Schneiderlin....we already have players as good or better in that position.Watched him last season and today against Liverpool and he looked incredibly ordinary. However, having seen Depay's performance against NAC and the continuing embarrassment that is Lennon, we must buy this player. Similarly Kaboul should be docked wages for his performance at Upton Park and if Mousacchio is not coming another target must be identified at once. Am I the only one who did not see much evidence of this much vaunted high pressing game? I thought we were lucky and generally it was the same old **** as the past two seasons.

 

Fully fit Capoue would have been picked for France in Brazil ahead of Schneiderlin to start with. Same goes for Kaboul too. Secondly Capoue played as a Centre Half yesterday for an Hour following Naughton red card. Pochettino was able to make his 3 subs thanks to Capoues versatility. Bentaleb was our holding midfielder and guess what?? Bentalebs passing ratio per game is far greater than Schneiderlin. Is Schneiderlin a huge improvement on Bentaleb or Capoue? Definitely not. Arsenal looked at Schneiderlin because they have no holdung midfielders and they could not sign Khadeira. Funny enough Khadeira would cost just about the same amount of money as Schneiderlin. Having Holtby and Schneiderlin in the middle of the park would be as appealing as Freund,Leonhardsen and Sherwood once upon a time.

 

This game was almost a replica of our first game last season against Cardiff away.

 

You are so right my friend on every single point!!

 

Attack looked flat and lacked that clever through ball in the final third or even the odd one-two to outwit the defence - so nothing new there and not sure if Lamela has the experience and guile required to make it work.
Can't believe the "clever" players we had in recent years and now gone that would've had us easily challenging for the title today - Modric, Berbatov and Van der Vaart. Eriksen's the nearest thing but he's a kid and not as constant.
Wish him well, but it's back to the drawing board once more with Pochettino

 

They have gone because they were clever and at the same time with exceptional skill levels. Apart from VDV of course. Going to Hamburger SV is hardly a great idea.

Pochettino to be fair didnt look lost or out of ideas yesterday and I think played his cards right. Still Paulinho, Sandro, Dembele, Chiriches, Vertonghen, Chadli yet to appear.

it was a London Derby and West Hams biggest game. Man City and Liverpool didnt look very convincing today either. Its important to get over the first ten games without or maybe with absolutely minimal damage.

 

No Schneiderlin needed in my view. Bentaleb was impressive yesterday. Capoue was solid too.

 

What great supporters you guys are! Nothing like beating your players down after a win!

The way I saw the match - Wham played long balls forward, and they used their midfielders to clog up ours; so, naturally, MP played the defense back.

For the first 15+ minutes our midfield look good (great for their 1st match); then, Wham started popping the ball over our midfield making us drop back. When Naughton was wrongly sent off, we had to to sit back more.

Once we put fresh legs in and they were down to 10 also, the midfield opened backup. At that point, we started attacking more freely.

Today, Liverpool played better soccer as they used all 11 players on the pitch. This allowed Southhampton to use their midfield more creatively - thus - allowing Schneiderlin and Wanyama to contribute more.

Everyone sees games differently, and by writing articles/comments stating how you perceived the game, the readers can enjoy good banter, but centering your opinions on who needs to be bought and sold is a useless and destructive debate.

Writing about your perception of the player's failures and the club's poor player management only serves to build fan, coach and player discontent.

Stop feeding your ego by trying to play the expert player analyst, and before you hit the 'post' button picture yourself making these comments directly to the players and coaches you are talking about!

If you had the balls to actually make the insults to the person you cut down so freely as an anonymous pundit, you'd probably be picking yourself off of the floor after being rightfully decked.

Then, while picking yourself off of the floor, you'd hopefully experience the shame and embarrassment you deserve. Maybe at that point, you'd realize that you aren't the expert as you currently perceive yourself to be!

Quit beating down the players and club that you purport to love!

 

well said.

the team is as good as any other top team out there. though with a new CB and the players get to understand MP's philosophy, we will be flying!

better days ahead!

COYS

 

Comment space used in a correct manner with sensibly picked words should always be apprecited.

I could never understand fans demand of Spurs turning up like a well oiled lawnmower and cut the opposition reducing to the grass level.

The opposition should not show any resilience just lie down and die. Allow Spurs score 12 goals.

Not a name most of Spurs gand would like to see on a comment box but Aaron Ramsey as a player was very grateful for the 3 points admitting its always very difficult to perform in the first few games of the season. Most of the players are not fully fit and some coming back from The WC at the end of a 10 month football season only to start another one.

Players we have are more than capable players. I personally believe we have a squad much more settled than last seasons. I disregard football media and pundits opinions usually. Definitely recommend it to all fans too.

 

I fully agree with this posting. I have read other reviews of the Hammers game and dont understand the satisfaction by some with the way Spurs played. I was thinking all the time "where is the Pressing Game" our new coach was supposed to apply ? Slow build up as last year, no real fight and steel in the team. Naughton, Lennon and Kaboul must be shipped out and together with them Dawson, Chadli, Assou-Ekotto, Soldado and Adebayor. I know it is not easy to find clubs for these 8 players, but I hope we will get rid off most of them as they are not "top 4 players". I think it is so easy for anyone (included our new coach and the Chairman) to understand that we dont need these players, when watching and analysing the Spurs games.

 

I think we were good without being great yesterday. We struggled at Upton Park 2 seasons ago (remember Sigurdssons scrappy equalizer and Bales late wondergoal in a game that looked lost) and lost there last season. Yesterday we played 10v 11 for most of the game, had a legitimate reason for failure this time but came away with a hard fought win, like good teams do.

As an outsider looking in, I don't personally feel we need Schniederlin, with the players we already have but if Poch wants him to impose his style then I wont turn my nose up, Schniederlin is a brilliant player.

I think we need Holtby in a deeper box to box role like where he was excelling in pre season. I think we need to find a way to get Holtby Eriksen and Lamela all on the pitch at the same time.

I have high hopes for Townsend and Chadli under Pochettinos system but think Lennon's better days are done as think the other two at much younger actually contribute more to the team (Townsend under Poch anyway).

I want to see a player in the same mould as Eriksen and Lamela come in though, so that we have 3 players who can change games from any of those positions in a floating role. I wouldn't bother with Memphis Depay as think hes no better really than Townsend, in that he has pace, potential and a decent shot on him, but at this point in his development I don't see much more than that, he looks a convential winger and could see him being a sulker as wouldn't take to being benched.

I think we should go for Roberto Firmino from Hoffenheim, who clocked 19 goals and 13 assists last season in the Bundesliga and DFB Pokal. The kid looks REALLY special. He's young and has far more all round class than Depay. He looks a star in the making and already looks to be at a level where he can come to the prem and start changing games, can't believe we aren't all over him.



If it was me with the money from what Ive seen, I'd get Musacchio and Firmino and would happily go into any with:

**********************LLORIS***********************
*********MUSACCHIO***VERTONGHEN************
WALKER**********************************ROSE***
**********DEMBELE********HOLTBY***************
LAMELA************FIRMINO*********ERIKSEN***
******************ADEBAYOR***********************

Whoever we bring in, theres plenty to get excited about at Spurs and I am actually looking forward to the season ahead rather than just waiting forward to it being over like under Sherwood.

PS in disagreement with the article, Capoue and Holtby were good yesterday, and Sherwood never gave either a chance last season, if he'd have got his way neither would even still be at Spurs, as he loaned out Holtby when he couldn't sell him and tried to sell Capoue altogether in January.

 

The result was the main thing yesterday, it is a difficult fixture and there was added pressure. We went down to 10 very harshly dug in and went on to win.
I am the first 1 to say we dont have enough quality in the side and would like to see a number of players that imo are not good enough go. I have realised though that under Arry we had a collection of 4 worldies come together at the same time with a good supporting team and a manager who was sensible enough to get them expressing themselves. We were spoilt and i believe that with a bit of investment then we would have kicked on. The prudence and dithering from Levy at that time has caused what has happened now and why a number of fans are unhappy.
Since King, Modric, Vdv and Bale have left we have failed to replace with anywhere near the same quality and due to this and poor choices of managers we have since lacked intelligence, pace, guile and an identity in general.
To return to that level we need to buy players of a higher standard than squad at best problem being the chairman wont bite the bullet and do it, the long winded buy young build up sell means the team will always struggle to be coherent as all are at different stages of development and the turn around of managers and players is detrimental.
I have a real problem with the whole transfer policies of the club and i think that enic/levy have well over stayed their welcome.
Having said that i have accepted we just arent as good as we were we missed the boat at that time, but to move forward i think we all need to be more behind the team and manager and make Supporting Spurs a happier past time. We are contributing to strangling the team we need to be more patient this season and give Poch and the team every bit of support we can and a chance for them to gel and grow.

 

Pluckyspur you are a total tit. I have followed spurs for over forty years and feel I have the right to voice my opinions without pricks like you telling me what I should and should not say. If you want a discussion on who gets decked......just say and I will be there.

 

Gaz, take it easy mate, we all support the same team. On to other matters, I do believe on yesterday's viewing it pretty much the same ole, same ole. We need another striker and another centre back. Dawson and Kaboul don't make it. It's kinda hard to write off last years acquisitions so early as none had prem experience. Anyhow the proof will be in the pudding as the season rolls on!

COYS!!!!

 

Quit e a few interesting comments here. But until the WC boys get back in full stride I think we should lay off who should stay and who should go and see what the season has to offer. I said after going to the friendly in Chicago, I really didn't see anything better than last year. I love Lennon, but after Walker went down, there didn't seem to be anybody connecting with him in the same way, and so he's seemed a little lost. I would have kept Caulker over Naughton, but that's life in the big city. Capoue seemed to be invisible yesterday, but maybe it's better to be quiet and get the job done than make glaring errors as Kaboul did yesterday. (But so does Dawson!) But most importantly in what I see, there's NOBODY who strikes fear into our opponents' defenses. I think we need two strikers if we intend to put more in than we let in. I'm sensing Lamela can fill the creative roll, with Soldato and Kane in front of him. Of course, Eriksen has immense potential. Oh for days of Blanchflower, Norman and Mackay patrolling midfield with the likes of John White and Cliff Jones up front. What swashbuckling days. The past few years, it's seemed too often as if we'd lost the swash and have been left with the buckle!

 

Why on earth do we need to spend near 20m on yet another CMF? We need CBs, Dawson injured & not good enough, Kaboul injury prone, Vlad injured, injury prone and doesn't want to play for Spurs, we will be in serious trouble if we don't get in a decent CB now. So back to Schneiderlin, not a bad player but we don't need him especially at the ridiculous money being quoted, he's not as good as Capoue.
A lot of mixed comments about the WH game obviously we all watch very different games, I saw a very tough away game where we were down to ten men after 30 minutes, I saw a team that didn't panic when put under pressure and remained solid and controlled. Someone said there was no real fight or steel in the team, rubbish, it wasn't the most polished performance and there's still lots of work to do but one thing we didn't lack in this game is the will to win. Poch could have taken off Lennon or Benteleb for Dawson after the sending off but he took a risk and kept it attacking by moving Capoue back instead. The reason we lacked creativity and ability in the centre was because Benteleb was the only one holding it. Agree with most that our attack was disappointing Lamela, Eriksen, and Ade will come good, a lot of people seem to be forgetting that this was the first competitive game of the pre/new season. Fantastic support at the game by the way.

 

Bentaleb??? What does anyone see in this guy? He stood and watched as West ham strolled through our defence before Lloris made a good save. I counted five times where west ham went passed him as if he wasn't there! No good for DM. He had the ball stolen and missed his passes. If we play like this again we'll get a proper spanking. Where was the pressing game? Out left side was breached at will. Rose and Bentaleb couldn't defend. Kaboul looked like the debutant. In fact Dier saved Pochettinho from an embarrassing perfoance. We got out of jail folks. Townsend and Holtby are headless chooks btw. No end product and all over the pitch. Word for Eriksen.. Toughen up princess. Spurs are very lightweight. Thank god for Dier.