Tottenham Hotspur 20/21: José se foi.

DJnVa

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Regarding the actual match, it's 0-0 at the half. Spurs pretty much dominating, even with Dier playing (just teasing @Zososoxfan!!). Bergwijn hit the crossbar, and was taken down in the box on what looks like it should have been a PK, but not much happening yet in final third outside of him, but the field is definitely tilted. At least, up until the stream went out in the last few minutes of half.
 

Kliq

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I have it on good authority that Gareth Bale came on, scored five goals, Poch came back and beat the shit out of Mourinho and Spurs all gave him a big collective hug like Randy Savage reuniting with Miss Elizabeth at WrestleMania 7.
 

veritas

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Shifting to a back three would definitely be a departure for Mourinho. But I don't think he has ever regularly fielded a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 team with two wingers as attack oriented as Son/Bale and with two fullbacks as attack-oriented as Reguilon/Doherty. His preference has generally been to have one winger and one fullback more defensive. So continuing to play 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 while replacing his harder working winger (Lucas) with Bale, while also replacing his stay-at-home fullback (Davies) with Reguilon, would be a very big departure in its own right. I'll guess we'll find out!
Yeah I agree, I really don’t know how Doherty and Reguilon are gonna be on the field at the same time in a back four. This would all be great in a back 3 but I don’t see that happening. They only have 3 CBs. And it’s not like they even have a good defensive midfielder who can drop into the back line.
 

DJnVa

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Minchev scores for Plovdiv. Davies is beaten to a flick-on from a corner and Sanchez is beaten to the ball by sub Minchev who heads past Lloris.
 

Kliq

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Tottenham has drew a penalty, Kane converted, Plovdiv player also got sent off.
 

OCST

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I have it on good authority that Gareth Bale came on, scored five goals, Poch came back and beat the shit out of Mourinho and Spurs all gave him a big collective hug like Randy Savage reuniting with Miss Elizabeth at WrestleMania 7.
Lloris hit Son with a folding chair. It was awesome.
 

DJnVa

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Plovdiv down to 10 men, and Ndombele has scored.

The red card/PK was from a Plovdiv player using his hand to keep ball out of goal. Like a keeper. Like, it didn't just hit his hand. He stood in net and batted it down.
 

Zososoxfan

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SocrManiac

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Please know that I went back and forth on posting this. I apologize if this offended anyone, and if there's a rule on whether this is an acceptable usage (i.e. a quote), please let me know.
Sorry. I’d been drinking.

I absolutely accept my responsibility for inappropriately using the word a couple of years back. What rankled to this day was the high horse I was preached to where I was told nobody in Europe actually uses the word when I’ve been hearing it from friends and family for years. I haven’t watched the documentary and really don’t have plans to, but to know that Jose apparently uses it when experts here claim it’s a Reddit-only thing... Yeah.
 

DJnVa

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I haven’t watched the documentary and really don’t have plans to, but to know that Jose apparently uses it when experts here claim it’s a Reddit-only thing... Yeah.
Jose is on Reddit???????????
 

swiftaw

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Bale is going to wear 9, he previously wore 3 and 11 for Spurs. Surely he must be the only player in the PL since they introduced squad numbers to wear 3 different 1-11 numbers for the same team.
 

coremiller

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He also wore 16 when he first came into the squad.

The only players left from Bale's last season with Spurs are Lloris, Kane (who was 19 and played 6 minutes that season), and for the moment Danny Rose (who was out on loan in 2012-13 but had of course played for Spurs with Bale before that year).

Lamela is the only player left of the 7 players Spurs bought the summer they sold Bale (Lamela, Soldado, Paulinho, Eriksen, Capoue, Chiriches, Chaldi).
 

SeoulSoxFan

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What a crazy match. One of the worst halves I've ever seen Tottenham play, followed by Kane and Son connecting over and over again.

First time in EPL history a single player has assisted on 4 goals by a teammate.

Also, I'm convinced GLC should start every possible game from now on.
 

Gunfighter 09

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What a crazy match. One of the worst halves I've ever seen Tottenham play, followed by Kane and Son connecting over and over again.

First time in EPL history a single player has assisted on 4 goals by a teammate.

Also, I'm convinced GLC & Ndombele should start every possible game from now on.
FTFY. I understand we are not looking at the final picture during this crazy run of matches, but getting the two of them out there at the same time has to be the answer against the best clubs. Playing each of them for a half made sense to me today. I will be quite pissed if Son & Kane aren't stapled to the bench on Tuesday.

I cant believe Soton just kept that high line up and waited to get smashed again and again in the second half.

We just cant have nice things. I have been disappointed in Dele's play and level of defensive effort for the last year now, but this is what we all feared with Jose's need to constantly have one star that he is fighting with in order to help him "lead" the squad. Our best case scenario here is that Levy isn't selling on a bargain and none of the big clubs are willing to spend high on a depreciated asset and injuries / fixture congestion force the two of them to work it out. We're along way from last December when Jose was telling Levy about how the only advice Furgeson gave him when he was at United was to 'buy Dele Alli".
 
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coremiller

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What a crazy match. One of the worst halves I've ever seen Tottenham play, followed by Kane and Son connecting over and over again.

First time in EPL history a single player has assisted on 4 goals by a teammate.

Also, I'm convinced GLC should start every possible game from now on.
Yeah that first half was dire. Then Ndombele with one great play springs a counter that Spurs convert, Mourinho with a shrewd halftime tactical adjustment (dropping Kane into the hole) and Southampton completely collapsed.

I really want to see a fully fit Ndombele and Lo Celso get a run of games together. Adding in the swap of Bale for Lucas and it will be a so much more dynamic side. They need to get Winks out of there, he brings so little to the table both attacking and defending.

We'll see what happens with Dele. The most natural setup for this squad looks like 4-3-3 or 3-5-2 and I'm not sure Dele has a natural position in those shapes other than the forward 2 in the 3-5-2, where he's probably fourth choice now (behind Kane, Son, Bale).
 

DJnVa

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The Spurs have like 4 games in 8 days--someone has to get a day off once in a while. I did hear that Dele wasn't given an explanation, but British football news/rumors are crazy, so who really knows? I assume he'll start and go 70+ either Tuesday or Thursday, then again on the weekend.
 

Zososoxfan

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FTFY. I understand we are not looking at the final picture during this crazy run of matches, but getting the two of them out there at the same time has to be the answer against the best clubs. Playing each of them for a half made sense to me today. I will be quite pissed if Son & Kane aren't stapled to the bench on Tuesday.

I cant believe Soton just kept that high line up and waited to get smashed again and again in the second half.

We just cant have nice things. I have been disappointed in Dele's play and level of defensive effort for the last year now, but this is what we all feared with Jose's need to constantly have one star that he is fighting with in order to help him "lead" the squad. Our best case scenario here is that Levy isn't selling on a bargain and none of the big clubs are willing to spend high on a depreciated asset and injuries / fixture congestion force the two of them to work it out. We're along way from last December when Jose was telling Levy about how the only advice Furgeson gave him when he was at United was to 'buy Dele Alli".
Really odd to see an EPL club not adjust to this. I was cackling to myself the whole time then started to empathize with players.

That goal in first half shows exactly why they bought Ndombele. Strength to gather the ball and shrug off defender, the skill on the turn, then spraying it to out to Kane.

I could watch this on a loop:
View: https://twitter.com/thespursweb/status/1307654619661848576
Agreed, that's just an insane play. TBF, Tanguy wasn't doing much of that last season. I think the UCL run put the Farmers League meme to bed a bit, but I really doubt doing this in Ligue 1 is similar to doing this in a physical and congested EPL MF. If Tanguy keeps doing this, fuggedaboudit.

Yeah that first half was dire. Then Ndombele with one great play springs a counter that Spurs convert, Mourinho with a shrewd halftime tactical adjustment (dropping Kane into the hole) and Southampton completely collapsed.

I really want to see a fully fit Ndombele and Lo Celso get a run of games together. Adding in the swap of Bale for Lucas and it will be a so much more dynamic side. They need to get Winks out of there, he brings so little to the table both attacking and defending.

We'll see what happens with Dele. The most natural setup for this squad looks like 4-3-3 or 3-5-2 and I'm not sure Dele has a natural position in those shapes other than the forward 2 in the 3-5-2, where he's probably fourth choice now (behind Kane, Son, Bale).
Dropping Kane into the hole seemed like the answer for most of last season after Kane's injury. He didn't have the speed to drop in, hold up play, dish off, and then crash the box (plus that would increase the amount of top end sprinting he has to do), he's not as fast as Son or Lucas, and he was getting terrible service (primarily from Serge). This is somewhat similar to the Messi problem. Kane's the best at so many things, that you just try to get him the most opportunities in dangerous areas, but when he's not getting enough of those you have to adjust and let them create. Fortunately (for this thread anyway), Spurs have a much younger and deeper squad, and better finishers than Barca.

Bale for Lucas certainly makes the attack much better, but Lucas deserves a lot of credit for working his ass off up and down the flank. Lucas is probably a starting LMF/RMF in a 442 (really a 4132), depending on if Bale's starting up top:

Hugo
Doherty-Dav-Dier-Reguilon
Hoj
Lucas-GLC/Tanguy-Son
Kane-Bale

Other options at wide mid are Dele (questionable fit), GLC (ditto), Bergy (id.), Sissoko (etc.), Sess (I can dream). I don't think Lucas makes the best XI in a 433 or 4231.

I agree that Winks needs to come out for most matches. He's young, but he's a tweener in that he's not defensively sound enough to be a DMF, not good enough overall to be a CMF, and certainly not skilled enough or a good enough passer to be higher up. He's a promising young player though and it's too early to give up on him. He does need to figure out what his best position is though and start refining those specialized skills.

While the consternation over Dele in here is warranted, he's also good enough that he should get plenty of PT with all the fixtures. This is balanced against Mou wanting to have a consistent lineup, but Mou's also not dumb enough to create an issue with Dele this early in the season--I look at him starting Dier in the match following his minute 30 substitution for this. The first half of the season is about keeping everyone fresh and figuring out combos. Once the calendar flips to February is when you need to shorten the rotation and make a sprint of it to the finish.
 

DJnVa

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Word is tomorrow's game may be postponed or even forfeited by Leyton Orient as they have had some positive COVID tests. Answers are supposed to come today.
 

coremiller

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Zoso, Winks is already 24, and he's gotten a lot of playing time the past 18 months. He could make marginal improvement but I think he just mostly is what he is now, which is mediocre. Acceptable as squad depth but really not good enough to be a first XI player in a team with Spurs' ambitions. If anything, I'd be in favor of selling him now while his stock is high -- surely some club like West Ham would overpay for a youngish English player?

Winks has been a big disappointment IMO. When he first broke in he showed a much greater range of passing. But over time I feel like his passing has gotten increasingly conservative. So much of his passing is backwards or sideways now. He seems to lack that ability to receive the ball on half-turn, take one touch away from the defender, and then play an accurate pass into the feet of a forward. And he's not good enough defensively to offer so little in possession.
 

Zososoxfan

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Zoso, Winks is already 24, and he's gotten a lot of playing time the past 18 months. He could make marginal improvement but I think he just mostly is what he is now, which is mediocre. Acceptable as squad depth but really not good enough to be a first XI player in a team with Spurs' ambitions. If anything, I'd be in favor of selling him now while his stock is high -- surely some club like West Ham would overpay for a youngish English player?

Winks has been a big disappointment IMO. When he first broke in he showed a much greater range of passing. But over time I feel like his passing has gotten increasingly conservative. So much of his passing is backwards or sideways now. He seems to lack that ability to receive the ball on half-turn, take one touch away from the defender, and then play an accurate pass into the feet of a forward. And he's not good enough defensively to offer so little in possession.
I was trying to be somewhat diplomatic--I largely agree with you. That being said, 24 is still relatively young. I could easily see him having a strong few peak years (26-28) after he spends a couple of seasons figuring out what he does best. But no, he's no longer the promising 21 year old who may someday blossom into an anchor in the MF for club and country for years.
 

Jimy Hendrix

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I was trying to be somewhat diplomatic--I largely agree with you. That being said, 24 is still relatively young. I could easily see him having a strong few peak years (26-28) after he spends a couple of seasons figuring out what he does best. But no, he's no longer the promising 21 year old who may someday blossom into an anchor in the MF for club and country for years.
He's at the age where his upside is no longer dreaming "WE FOUND THE HEMEL HEMPSTEAD MODRIC!" and more "He could hone in and be a notably better Harry Winks". I'd be open to selling him if someone wants to overpay, but he seems like a reasonable (and country/club trained) squad player to have as well, provided he doesn't start every damn game for unclear reasons.
 

Tangled Up In Red

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Anyone clear with what's happening with the Leyton Orient match?
Postponed but not canceled? Don't see when/how it can be played.
 

Zososoxfan

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Don't recall if it's been mentioned here, but Spurs are going after Skriniar and Milik. Hold up on Skriniar is price. Inter is rumored to be asking for €60M. Inter fanboys say that's a steal for a stout 25 YO CB signed thru '23, but regardless that's a lot of loot--it would instantly be a top 10 defender transfer of all time. Inter willing to talk because it seems like they're comfortable continuing with Conte and his preferred back 3, and Skriniar doesn't quite fit there. Mou apparently identified Skriniar as a target and from what I've read it sounds like Skriniar can also play at the pivot. In other words, this sounds like a great idea. A player swap here would be ideal, but who knows who's available or not. Trading back a CB would be great--maybe Dav gets a change of scenery, Foyth may be appealing as a backup, or maybe Davies gets a chance as a 3ATB CB (does Davies have any value as a domestic (UK) player?). Dele???!?

Milik has again become available because of the musical chairs with CFs in Serie A:

Juventus’ interest cooled off after the change of head coach to Andrea Pirlo, which is why Álvaro Morata finally rejoined the Bianconeri. The arrival of the Spaniard also caused the move of Milik to Roma to be the off the table. In the Italian capital, the Pole was supposed to replace Edin Dzeko, who in turn was about to move to Juventus. According to reports, Milik would have earned €4 million a year if he had joined Roma, while €26 million were mentioned as a fee.
Milik is only 26, he scored 11 Serie A goals and 3 UCL goals in Napoli's shitshow last season. The year before he netted 17 in Serie A. Hard to think of a better striker to fill this fairly limited role. His contract expires at the end of the season though, which is why his price is estimated at approx. €30M. Even with a Levy tax (say €20M), that's still very rich.
 

Kliq

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Spurs beat their Macedonian opponents 3-1 today. Lamela opened the scoring, but a second half goal tied things up at 1. Kane and GLC came on, Son and Kane scored and Spurs roll on to the third and final qualification round, where they will play Maccabi Haifa, thankfully at home.
 

coremiller

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Spurs beat their Macedonian opponents 3-1 today. Lamela opened the scoring, but a second half goal tied things up at 1. Kane and GLC came on, Son and Kane scored and Spurs roll on to the third and final qualification round, where they will play Maccabi Haifa, thankfully at home.
Survive and advance.
 

Joe D Reid

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Spurs beat their Macedonian opponents 3-1 today. Lamela opened the scoring, but a second half goal tied things up at 1. Kane and GLC came on, Son and Kane scored and Spurs roll on to the third and final qualification round, where they will play Maccabi Haifa, thankfully at home.
You've buried the actual lede, which is that the goals in Macedonia were found to be 5cm too small. The hosts claim no knowledge. I actually hope that's not true, because it's my favorite grift of a grift-heavy 2020.