Christian Eriksen

[Finney Is Back]

Personally I've never for one second believed the Eriksen-Vertonghen rumours, and I generally ignore any internet ITKs. But for what it's worth: my colleague comes from a family of lifelong local Spurs fans, and Paul Coyte (the guy who presents the half-time stuff at the stadium) is a family friend. My colleague said he told them that the Eriksen-Vertonghen rumour is 400% true.

Still can't bring myself to believe it, but it would give some explanation as to why Poch insists on continuing to pick Eriksen (loyalty and sympathy)...

I know Paul. I will discretely ask him when I see him next.

 

[Finney Is Back]

It gets more complicated than that though.

Set the team up in a different shape, instruct the players on movements and runs etc - and you can compensate for the lack of a single player (in virtually any position, but certainly attack).

We beat RSB 5-0 just the other week, no Eriksen, no Eriksen type player = and no shortage of attacking intent, options, or success.

RSB are about as good as the local pub team away from home though....

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Of course there are " other" ways of setting up a team but its not done overnight, eventually unless we find another creative player to replace Eriksen or a different way of playing we will struggle. If you really believe that we can change the way we have been playing over the last few years ( with Eriksen at the centre of it) and do it overnight then you are fooling yourself.

Creative players like Eriksen are wanted by most top clubs ( have you ever wondered why that is?), and the best ones usually end up at the biggest clubs.

Who mentioned anything about over night?

How about with a full pre season, and 15 games following - you think maybe there could be signs of something coming together in that time?

RSB are about as good as the local pub team away from home though....

They are, and I said as much at the time. However, IMO, that is the clearest sign all season of Poch getting hold of the team, setting them up, and them collectively showing focus.

And I also think it was the best performance on our part all season too. Some of the interplay between the front 4 was just brilliant, CM was disciplined, the fullbacks were involved - it was as close as Ive seen to proper Spurs in a very long time.

I dont know just how resilient they would have been, if perhaps RSB showed more quality or intent, but everything else was a major plus for me.

 

[Finney Is Back]

Trouble is, as the table in the link below shows, as poor as he's been, he's still our best option creatively. There's several players only performing at about 50% of their level in previous seasons, unfortunately. There's a good chance Poch is basing his decisions on the same sort of feedback.

https://understat.com/team/Tottenham/2019

If you look at those stats it would appear that Lamela's are only marginally worse.... I guess the problem here is that they are similar when Lamela is considered to be playing well and Eriksen very poorly (and that's before you consider that Lamela cannot be relied on to play in more than 50% of games over a season). However it does suggest that on current form we could swap out Eriksen for Lamela (when fit) and not notice a difference. Although it would seem that we do very much need to notice a difference as we've been poor this season.

 

[parklane1]

RSB are about as good as the local pub team away from home though....

What has that got to do with anything.

 

[Finney Is Back]

Who mentioned anything about over night?

How about with a full pre season, and 15 games following - you think maybe there could be signs of something coming together in that time?




They are, and I said as much at the time. However, IMO, that is the clearest sign all season of Poch getting hold of the team, setting them up, and them collectively showing focus.

And I also think it was the best performance on our part all season too. Some of the interplay between the front 4 was just brilliant, CM was disciplined, the fullbacks were involved - it was as close as Ive seen to proper Spurs in a very long time.

I dont know just how resilient they would have been, if perhaps RSB showed more quality or intent, but everything else was a major plus for me.

A full pre-season when you have Levy as chairman making offers for players that consioffering a close to best before date packet of crisps and £1 a week over 6 years, increasing that by 50p a day for the players that the manager wants?

 

[Finney Is Back]

Who mentioned anything about over night?

How about with a full pre season, and 15 games following - you think maybe there could be signs of something coming together in that time?




They are, and I said as much at the time. However, IMO, that is the clearest sign all season of Poch getting hold of the team, setting them up, and them collectively showing focus.

And I also think it was the best performance on our part all season too. Some of the interplay between the front 4 was just brilliant, CM was disciplined, the fullbacks were involved - it was as close as Ive seen to proper Spurs in a very long time.

I dont know just how resilient they would have been, if perhaps RSB showed more quality or intent, but everything else was a major plus for me.

RSB didn't play with a defensive shape to try to shut up shop and nor did they press us. They stood off of us while not getting everyone behind the ball. I reckon Ridgeway Rovers might have beat them that night. I think that sort of loss away from home in the CL is about par for the course for them.

We did look good that night, but so does every single CL team that plays at home against them.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

A full pre-season when you have Levy as chairman offering a close to best before date packet of crisps and £1 a week over 6 years?

When you have an excellent squad of international players at your disposal?

Nobody denies that adding to the squad would be a positive thing.

MANY seem to deny that the squad as it stands is actually rather good, and well capable of a lot more than its showing right now.

And the point to start this was the idea of a manager using his squad to better effect - rather than apparently pinning everything on one player.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

RSB didn't play with a defensive shape to try to shut up shop and nor did they press us. They stood off of us while not getting everyone behind the ball. I reckon Ridgeway Rovers might have beat them that night. I think that sort of loss away from home in the CL is about par for the course for them.

Again, absolutely nobody has said otherwise.

Only that we actually played well ourselves, looked very good, and did so by doing exactly what Im suggesting (hence the example) and without Eriksen.

The man who, apparently, we cant possibly expect attacking football without. No matter how badly he plays...

 

[Finney Is Back]

When you have an excellent squad of international players at your disposal?

Nobody denies that adding to the squad would be a positive thing.

MANY seem to deny that the squad as it stands is actually rather good, and well capable of a lot more than its showing right now.

And the point to start this was the idea of a manager using his squad to better effect - rather than apparently pinning everything on one player.

I did a little write up of our squad we'd had available to us this season in one of the threads somewhere on here.... With a bunch of players half way through the exit door and a bunch of others injured it didn't look as good in reality as it did on paper.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

I did a little write up of our squad we'd had available to us this season in one of the threads somewhere on here.... With a bunch of players half way through the exit door and a bunch of others injured it didn't look as good in reality as it did on paper.

Which is where good management comes into its own.

I dont believe the situation is actually anything like as bad as many seem to think.

Though of course thats clearly one of the big disagreements running through the board right now.

 

[parklane1]

.

The man who, apparently, we cant possibly expect attacking football without. No matter how badly he plays...

I may be wrong but i do not think anyone has suggested that we can not play attacking football without Eriksen, what some have said is that at his best we do not have any player who offers what he does. Twisting words to suit a stance is not really a way to make a point. If anyone has posted that i must have missed it so maybe you can bring the post up.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

I may be wrong but i do not think anyone has suggested that we can not play attacking football without Eriksen, what some have said is that at his best we do not have any player who offers what he does. Twisting words to suit a stance is not really a way to make a point. If anyone has posted that i must have missed it so maybe you can bring the post up.

No twisting of anything.

Trouble is, as the table in the link below shows, as poor as he's been, he's still our best option creatively. There's several players only performing at about 50% of their level in previous seasons, unfortunately. There's a good chance Poch is basing his decisions on the same sort of feedback.

https://understat.com/team/Tottenham/2019

Is what I responded to. And my suggestion was simply that there are more ways to play attacking football than to rely on a single player/set up.

If we set up in a way that requires a player like Eriksen, then yes the above quote would be about right.

If we set up in a way that DOESNT require a player like Eriksen, then the above quote is, IMO - missing the bigger picture.

I realise this board is all about the arguments right now - but is this really something worth such back and forth over?

 

[parklane1]

Still waiting for the posts on here where members have suggested we can not play attacking football without Eriksen in the team, which is what you seem to have been suggesting. If that was not your intension well maybe you should have made that clearer.

As i said earlier you can not change your playing style ( which we have used for several seasons) overnight.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

As i said earlier you can not change your playing style ( which we have used for several seasons) overnight.

In response to..... absolutely nobody saying we can change our style of play over night.

Perhaps if suggesting that wasnt your intention you should have been clearer?

 

[billyiddo]

If it was as simple as that, there would be no chase to buy the most creative players in the game.

There was a real rush to buy Eriksen and Ozil this summer wasn't there?

Games moving away from those types of playmakers - cant think of many players of that ilk at top clubs and there certainly aren't many knocking down our door for Eriksen...

 

[parklane1]

There was a real rush to buy Eriksen and Ozil this summer wasn't there?

Games moving away from those types of playmakers - cant think of many players of that ilk at top clubs and there certainly aren't many knocking down our door for Eriksen...

Ozil who is on 350,000 a week until 2021 and 31 years of age, hardly been a star for a while now, i would be amazed if anyone would buy him.

As for Eriksen lets see who/where he ends up at this summer.

 

[Finney Is Back]

Which is where good management comes into its own.

I dont believe the situation is actually anything like as bad as many seem to think.

Though of course thats clearly one of the big disagreements running through the board right now.

I think that with our players now starting to gain a bit of fitness having come back form injury and perhaps some form as well (Lo Celso, Foyth, Dele, Sessegnon, Davies, Dier?.... even Serge Aurier) and with Sissoko and NDombele having seemed to establish something of a partnership our performances and results will be on the up from the low point of Brighton. I think we properly bottomed out there and we'll improve as the season progresses. How much we'll improve is another matter but I think the worst of it is over, maybe that is just hope on my part though.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

I think that with our players now starting to gain a bit of fitness having come back form injury and perhaps some form as well (Lo Celso, Foyth, Dele, Sessegnon, Davies, Dier?.... even Serge Aurier) and with Sissoko and NDombele having seemed to establish something of a partnership our performances and results will be on the up from the low point of Brighton. I think we properly bottomed out there and we'll improve as the season progresses. How much we'll improve is another matter but I think the worst of it is over, maybe that is just hope on my part though.

Id like some of that hope. I dont share it right now.

RSB is the only real bright spot I see to inspire some belief things are turning - and as you point out it wasnt exactly a competitive game.

Otherwise the low point of Brighton seems to be continuing, I cant say Im seeing a drastic improvement since.

Everton was, for me, the players just going through the motions.

I think tomorrow is a test. Not so much RSB directly (though I understand they are better at home), but rather the occasion, the need for points, the atmosphere - and the need for a reaction to the Everton disappointment.

Then I think Sheffield is actually quite scary. A hard working, well drilled, effective team - and a manager that wont settle for any slip - up against us? Unless we really raise our game I think they could take a big scalp at the weekend.

 

[thfcsteff]

Even if it is 400% true, it doesnt justify Eriksens selection.

That MUST be a sporting decision. For both the good of the team and squad.

And even if Eriksens world has been turned upside down, that doesnt mean he should be in the team on current form.

If anything it might do him a favour to drop him and give him time to sort his head out.

Agreed. It makes no sense regardless.