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Ratings v Palace

Disagree. For all his technique, Dembele is about the least creative player in our squad.



Tbh even I wouldn't be upset if Defoe's role this season is explosive 8 minutes cameos like that.

Soldado was like going back to the Klinsmann days though. A forward with movement, smart link up play, intelligence. Hopefully the start of very bright things.

Seems a strange one, but do you feel like his "super sub" status could actually make him more likely to go to the WC? He's not going to start for England, but if he can show that he can make an impact later in games, it could possibly convince Woy that he could be worth the trip. With the EL, cup games, and the Prem, JD will be an important member of our squad. Just hope AVB can keep him happy, while giving someone like Kane some time here and there.
 
Siggy's main problem today was that he didn't support Soldado in the way he should have imo. The distance between him and Soldado was way too much for most of the game which resulted in Soldado coming deep to get more involved in the game (which he did well). if you're playing the AM role behind the striker you have to be very smart in how you go about finding space as well as supporting the frontman, there has to be a balance which Siggy hasn't found yet.
 
I think Sigurdsson is a 433 centre mid in the Lampard mould, rather than a #10. Seems strange that we're still playing 4231 though.
 
Lloris 7
Walker 6
Dawson 5
Vertonghen 7
Rose 6
Lennon 6
Dembélé 6
Paulinho 6
Sigurðsson 5
Chadli 6
Soldado 7

Capoue 7
Defoe 7
Kaboul n/a
 
The best.

I made him MOTM because I thought all our guys did good but those 2 saves earned us the points.

He was quick off his line and made a great contribution throughout the game also.

It's the way he comes off his line for me, seen nothing like it before.
 
Siggy's main problem today was that he didn't support Soldado in the way he should have imo. The distance between him and Soldado was way too much for most of the game which resulted in Soldado coming deep to get more involved in the game (which he did well). if you're playing the AM role behind the striker you have to be very smart in how you go about finding space as well as supporting the frontman, there has to be a balance which Siggy hasn't found yet.

Exactly!

If Bale leaves we really need to find a no 10 behind Soldado.
 
Similar to last season we still lack creativity, due to the quality of players at our disposal alone we should be ok to challenge for the top positions but bringing in a creative mid would have helped matters significantly. Not entirely sure why AVB has overlooked bringing in a playmaker, perhaps he feels Sigg will be able to fill this role, and tbf he has looked pretty decent in pre-season playing this role. Holtby i guess could potentially be another that could fill the role, we'll have to wait and see.

Chadli seems the type that will both frustrate and delight. He seems to hog the ball a little too long on occasions and does seem a tad selfish at times, but at the same time he does look to have plenty of ability, similar to Taraabt in a way. Hopefully, unlike Taraabt, he is smart enough to learn where he is going wrong and improve.
 
Think everyone's been harsh on Dawson's 'hollywood' passes. I thought it was clear that Wilbraham had been told to stick to Vertonghen and let Dawson have the ball (which is why Dawson had the second-most passes for us today, and subsequentlly why Walker had the most). And there wasn't much movement in front of him from the rest of the team, so occasionally he'd try and hit long passes to Rose instead. Yes, quite a few of them were off-target, but quite a few of them were inch perfect too, and the ones which were on target allowed us get the ball high up the pitch in a way that we were struggling to do via Dembele, Paulinho and Siggy.

In a game like today where we had lots of possession without (seemingly) having the central midfielders to play good pass and move football, I have no problem with Daws trying some low-percentage / high-reward long balls like that.
 
Chadli's was a half chance. Defoe made his own chance, it wasn't created for him. None of Soldado's were real chances. We have a lot of attempts at goal but we don't create many chances, not in my eyes.


It was more than a half, on target and it's a goal.


Er.. Why does it matter that he created it? Last i checked Defoe was a member of our team, so if he creates a chance, Spurs have created a chance.

'Real' chances? If they were on target they would likely have been goals.


I'm not going to go further on this though, i see chances as i see them.
 
Lloris 8 - vital saves at the death and critically quick off his line throughout, needs to improve distribution though
Walker 7 - still something a bit iffy about his all-round game but even Xavi would have been proud of two through passes that put Lennon in behind their defence
Dawson 6 - strange how we rely on him for his long diagonal out-balls rather than the more gifted Verts
Verthonghen 7 - absurdly talented, seems wasted at CB
Rose 7 - pretty decent overall but not sure he has the quality we need at LB
Chadli 6 - indifferent first half, improved second, but never really showed that much
Paulhino 8 - powerful, fast AND intelligent - beast no.2!
Dembele 7 - so strong on the ball, surprised he was subbed until Capoue showed us what he can bring to the table
Siggy 6 - decent dead-balls, came close to scoring but somehow lacks that ability to assert himself
Lennon 6 - came on strong second half but not quite there with his final ball
Soldado 7 - cool pen, really looked the part

Subs
Capoue 7
- impressive debut despite the wayward potshot
Defoe 6 - did well to create one good opening but then fluffed his lines
Kaboul n/a - pleased to see him make an appearance
 
I think Sigurdsson is a 433 centre mid in the Lampard mould, rather than a #10. Seems strange that we're still playing 4231 though.

Agreed too, Siggy there then has 3 options ahead of him to thread those incisive passes that he is fully capable of doing. Rather than having to be an outlet himself.

It's tough, because the 4231 works extremely well for away games in the league. It gets the best out of Lennon, and allows our 2 strong double pivots to control the midfield. But it means we don't get the best out of Siggy.

In a 433, Siggy would rule. But then Lennon wouldn't.
 
Siggy's main problem today was that he didn't support Soldado in the way he should have imo. The distance between him and Soldado was way too much for most of the game which resulted in Soldado coming deep to get more involved in the game (which he did well). if you're playing the AM role behind the striker you have to be very smart in how you go about finding space as well as supporting the frontman, there has to be a balance which Siggy hasn't found yet.

Yet Siggy was everywhere plugging holes - helping out attacking and defending everywhere.
That balance he seeks will come when our new midfield players settle down. Hard to do that when there are so many playing for the first time together.
 
Sig just still seems a little low on confidence. Always seems to hit the bar or narrowly miss or force a great save. When he clicks (and he's getting there slowly) I think he'll be very good (but not good enough to replace Bale if he goes).
 
Also I think Lennon was our most dangerous player, his movement and timing were superb in the first half even though his final ball was awful. He's very intelligent in using his speed, how many times does he make it to those difficult tight passes out wide. He makes their margin for error much greater. Seemed to be involved more with Bale not playing.
 
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