This match, more or less typified
Tottenham’s season so far. Spurs fans don’t
know whether to laugh or cry right now. It depends on if you are a glass half
full or half empty person. A point at Everton is more than Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea
managed and not many teams will have fruitful trips to Goodison park. The bottom
line is Spurs are firmly in the mix for a top four finish. Even though Spurs
have not scored enough goals, I don’t think that AVB is setting up spurs to be
defensive, nor is their play actually defensive as they consistently dominate
possession.
Watching the match unfold, a
familiar pattern has now emerged to spurs play. An increasingly impressive back
four, with Sandro providing an impressive shield in front of them as they
pressed high up into the opposition’s half. In midfield, Dembele, Holtby, Eriksson,
Lennon, Townsend and Lamela, offer AVB enough forward players to attack
opponents through the middle and also in the wide areas. Paulinho, for my money the most consistent of
the summer arrivals so far also offers a goal threat and gets himself into some
promising positions. However, the forward players have just not quite gelled
yet. The fact that Lamela has openly
admitted to struggling so far and Eriksson has also been inconsistent show that
the attacking part of the equation is still a work in progress. That there is
much scope for improvement in spurs’ forward play should offer a lot of
encouragement for spurs season.
In the circumstances, AVB is quite
right to focus on results. Spurs have a tradition for playing swashbuckling football
and fans demand that as a mere minimum, however they no longer have a monopoly
on style, even in north London. Tottenham fans however have a new reality. Champions
League football is the new sexy football. The late goals conceded last season ultimately
cost a Champions league place and Andre Villas Boas will argue that if he gets Tottenham
to the Champions league, his approach would be completely vindicated.
Lone striker, Roberto Soldado has
had a mixed start to his first season in English football. He sure knows how to
take a penalty and his record in Valencia suggests he is suited to playing as a
lone striker. However, he does not strike me as someone that likes being
involved in the build-up play. He is a striker whose first or second touch
tends to be a shot towards goal. Jermain
Defoe is more mobile, dynamic and has evolved his game to be more involved in the
build-up play. There will always be an understandable clamour for Defoe whenever
spurs are struggling to score goals because of his record. However Soldado is
better suited to the 4-2-3-1 formation that AVB favours and so should be allowed
to develop his game by playing regularly. Defoe still has plenty to offer spurs and in a
season where there are hopefully many games to play, Defoe will get his fair
share of games.
Hugo Lloris should have been
substituted after his collision with Romelu Lukaku. I trust that AVB would never put results
before a player’s welfare. I also trust the judgement of the Tottenham team
doctor, Dr Shabaaz Mughal, who was among the heroes that saved the life of
Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba when his heart stopped beating during an FA
Cup match at White hart lane in March 2012. Many may applaud Lloris’s bravery
after being concussed. However, three things swing the argument for me; Lukaku,
who is a big, strong guy, himself had to go off, his knee strapped and packed
with ice shortly after the clash. Secondly, a second incident could have
aggravated the situation. Finally, with ten minutes to go, we had a decent back
up in Brad Friedel. All things considered. It was undoubtedly risky, it was the
least pragmatic option and it was unnecessary. A decision that that puts a
player’s welfare first should not be any of these things.
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