***OMT - Tottenham Hotspur v Borussia Dortmund - first leg***

[thfcsteff]

A thought.
Would putting out a side which featured a tired Dier and Kane plus Mousa that still got done, say, 2-0 have been better? BD are a top side. What would it have done to their confidence? What if we had lost either to injury? There are always hard questions to ask. Angry at Poch? I was more upset at the Lamela sub on Sat than anything tonight TBH...

 

[NaijaSpurs]

Yes. He played well when he deputised for Dembele, Bentaleb has struggled for form all season.

Yeah deputising for Dembele along side Dier is one thing, but to play Carroll and mason together, against Dortmund?

So if we make CL next season how are we going to cope with Wednesdays and Saturdays if Thursday and Sundays is a problem? Or maybe we will play a weakened team against PSG, Juventus, Barca, Bayern or Madrid because we are going for the title next season?

 

[Baleforce]

Who do u think would be a better selection tonight? Bentaleb has played well when I've seen him. Carroll has struggled all season bar 2 or 3 games. Despite many chances.

it's Poch opinion that matters most, you have yours, mine is Bentaleb hasn't played well for a long long time

Carroll is normally neat and tidy and retains possession, on paper, a logical selection against a pressing midfield

 

[thfcsteff]

let's hope the players just put this result behind them and don't let it dampen thier spirits - the loss of team moral was alway alway the biggest risk ever since Dortmund came out of the hat.

On the money.

 

[thfcsteff]

Yeah deputising for Dembele along side Dier is one thing, but to play Carroll and mason together, against Dortmund?

So if we make CL next season how are we going to cope with Wednesdays and Saturdays if Thursday and Sundays is a problem? Or maybe we will play a weakened team against PSG, Juventus, Barca, Bayern or Madrid because we are going for the title next season?

He will have the money to sign a couple of key reinforcements.

 

[thfcsteff]

it's Poch opinion that matters most, you have yours, mine is Bentaleb hasn't played well for a long long time

Carroll is normally neat and tidy and retains possession, on paper, a logical selection against a pressing midfield

Again I agree which is why IMO he has been the biggest loser of the night long/term. Son was poor again too.

 

[milo]

Yeah deputising for Dembele along side Dier is one thing, but to play Carroll and mason together, against Dortmund?

It was undoubtedly a tall order but we do not know how Dembele and Dier's fitness is and I do not think that Bentaleb would have done significantly better than either Mason or Carroll, based on his performances this season.

 

[diego_maradona]

I understand why people are mad. I myself have a ticket for next week, and at 3-0 down it feels kind of pointless. But less humble ourselves and say hats off to the best team we played this season. The team, the style of football, the stadium, the fans. Most teams would aspire to be what BVB are. It's a shame that the fixtures fell the way they did.

Pochettino doesn't have a disrespect for the competition, I think if he felt he could have played his best side and kept the fitness levels at an optimum for the forthcoming fixtures then he would have. But two derbies in a week, and now a real need to string some results together in the league meant he felt he couldn't do it. I feel for the fans who travelled that distance.

I would have loved to have seen how our very best would have coped today.

I felt we were so scared of their pace (for the first time this season) that the full backs stayed back, and we didn't fully commit to pressing. I thought Son done ok. Alderweireld our stand out again.

I think there is an instant demand for results and silverware, but I think we all appreciate the long term vision here. If Pochettino feels some of these lads are our future then today was an invaluable lesson. A blueprint and a real taster of what playing at the very top level feels like.

 

[Benny_Lad]

I think that picking players based on form is probably the best option for a manager. Picking on reputation or past form normally ends up upsetting the squad and worse selections. If Bentaleb wants to be in the first team, he needs to fight for his place and show it on the pitch when given a chance, like many of the current first team have done.

If he can't be given a chance tonight then it's the highway is it not? I'd have a first class attitude if I was on spurs books but there is a reason I'm not. And that is because ability is by far the most important commodity in any footballers armoury. It's then up to the manager to increase the performance and decrease the ego.

 

[paxtonwolf]

Extremely disappointed tonight. 3 points against the Villains an absolute MUST now.

For me since the start of January and their league position it always has been. Even before tonight I dont think we can afford to drop points in this fixture. We simply have to win on Sunday'
Draw and any faint hopes of a title challenge is gone, and a Cl spot would be in the balance unless we could pick up the lost points at Anfield or Chelsea

 

[NaijaSpurs]

He will have the money to sign a couple of key reinforcements.

You mean we had no money in January or last summer?

 

[Benny_Lad]

What team do we think we will see next week? Best 11? Weak 11? Hard to know what's best now!

 

[NaijaSpurs]

Someone said Kane was rested because he was tired? Why the heck is he tired? Oh, I forgot we have just one fecking striker Go figure

 

[Benny_Lad]

You mean we had no money in January or last summer?

Got to assume that any rag forward bought in January would have done better than Chadli up top tonight.

 

[milo]

If he can't be given a chance tonight then it's the highway is it not? I'd have a first class attitude if I was on spurs books but there is a reason I'm not. And that is because ability is by far the most important commodity in any footballers armoury. It's then up to the manager to increase the performance and decrease the ego.

It doesn't have to be. He is young and has plenty of time to prove himself. Evidently he has asked to play for the U21s, I think that this is a good call and hopefully he can show enough form with them to put himself back in contention.

 

[Benny_Lad]

It doesn't have to be. He is young and has plenty of time to prove himself. Evidently he has asked to play for the U21s, I think that this is a good call and hopefully he can show enough form with them to put himself back in contention.

Sounds like a good attitude to me. Now I'm confused.

 

[NaijaSpurs]

Got to assume that any rag forward bought in January would have done better than Chadli up top tonight.

 

[Robspur12]

Again I agree which is why IMO he has been the biggest loser of the night long/term. Son was poor again too.

Poch was the one who thought that Son and Chadli could deputise for Kane. It shows the folly of our failure to sign a striking cover for Kane.

 

[milo]

Sounds like a good attitude to me. Now I'm confused.

Let's hope that it is and he forces his way back into first team contention. An in form and improving Bentaleb would save us a lot of money in the summer.

 

[milo]

Poch was the one who thought that Son and Chadli could deputise for Kane. It shows the folly of our failure to sign a striking cover for Kane.

No it doesn't. We could have signed a striker who might not have settled or been unsuited to our game and we did fine against a decent Fiorentina side without Kane. There will be plenty of decent strikers who don't get a sniff against Dortmund.