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FA Cup Semi Final OMT ***Tottenham Hotspur FC v Manchester United***

Naive play from Spurs. They sat back while we probed gently at the centre of their defence... then they whack it upfield and overload us and score with ANY shot on target.

What are the stats now, something like 15 shots on target and 23 goals conceded?
 
This cloud is going to take a while to shift I think, for me at least.
In the first half we had the beating of Utd, but didn't capitalise on it. We let them back in and then couldn't - or didn't - step up when we needed to. It's the manner of the defeat, as much as the defeat itself, that is so frustrating, and depressing.

I hate to quote a Daily mail journalist but there is more than a little truth in this

Jack-Pitt Brook's article for the Independent is also worth reading.
https://www.independent.co.uk/sport...sanchez-dele-alli-ander-herrera-a8316181.html
I don't like use of the b word, but I think he does have something when he says we "froze".
 
This cloud is going to take a while to shift I think, for me at least.
In the first half we had the beating of Utd, but didn't capitalise on it. We let them back in and then couldn't - or didn't - step up when we needed to. It's the manner of the defeat, as much as the defeat itself, that is so frustrating, and depressing.

I hate to quote a Daily mail journalist but there is more than a little truth in this

Jack-Pitt Brook's article for the Independent is also worth reading.
https://www.independent.co.uk/sport...sanchez-dele-alli-ander-herrera-a8316181.html
I don't like use of the b word, but I think he does have something when he says we "froze".

At the same time, we did match Utd in terms of chances created. So it's not as if we played badly and they played well. They just took one of their chances better. Interestingly Eriksen's scuffed chance was extremely similar to Hererra's goal, but he scuffed it and Hererra didn't. And Vorm didn't save it when he should have. Small margins, that get exaggerated in all these broad, sweeping narratives.
 
At the same time, we did match Utd in terms of chances created. So it's not as if we played badly and they played well. They just took one of their chances better. Interestingly Eriksen's scuffed chance was extremely similar to Hererra's goal, but he scuffed it and Hererra didn't. And Vorm didn't save it when he should have. Small margins, that get exaggerated in all these broad, sweeping narratives.

Yeah, I don't disagree about fine margins. But being able to take just one more of our first half chances would have put Utd on the back foot. Because we were the better team in the first half hour.
Sliding door moments and all that - if Dembele hadn't inexplicably and uncharacteristically decided to turn back and then let Pogba push him off the ball, who knows.
But... that's Utd I guess. How many times have we seen them not be the better team? Yet they sit 2nd in the table and are now in a cup final.

I'm not viewing this as a huge disaster (assuming we finish top 4 it will still have been a great season), just as a huge disappointment for what might/could have been, and for what this team deserves.
 
At the same time, we did match Utd in terms of chances created. So it's not as if we played badly and they played well. They just took one of their chances better. Interestingly Eriksen's scuffed chance was extremely similar to Hererra's goal, but he scuffed it and Hererra didn't. And Vorm didn't save it when he should have. Small margins, that get exaggerated in all these broad, sweeping narratives.

We played great up until that moment that dembele cut back inside. After that we were generally poor. United weren't much better if at all, just cleverer.

Possibly neither team deserved to win but I'd say united deserve it more as we bottled the game after the dembele error and united had good game management.

No one is saying we played badly and they played well, they are generally saying the above.

The broad sweeping narratives thing I don't agree with and it's an easy get out you are giving the team there imo.

I'm looking at this game alone and am not drawing any link at all to the other semi losses etc, I mean how can anyone do that when it's different teams and different eras.

I'm looking at this game in isolation and looking at this game in isolation the team deserves massive criticism - we know what we are capable of and even showed it up to the mistake. But to then proceed to become so gutless and lose any bottle to then play generally brick following the dembele mistake is to me a disgrace, a shameful one.

What makes it worse is that despite being poor post the error, united weren't much better but we still lost.

Serious questions have to be asked why in this game (alone and no others) did they bottle it once it became 1-1.

It's not good enough and it's not acceptable imo.

Glenda said it's a shame this team doesn't get what they deserve and I know you are referring to how we have been overall the last couple of years but I am afraid that if you turn up and show your potential and proceed to wilt when the opponent lands their first glove on you, then you are an emabarrasmemt and deserve nothing.

Not a sweeping broad statement but a fair comment on yesterday's game alone.
 
Didn't have a problem with the team selection. Too many players were below par today.
4in the league
Knock outs in CL
Semi-final FA Cup

Poch has just got started
only so long you can say these things. Can't keep being nearly men. Enough is enough now
 
Yeah, I don't disagree about fine margins. But being able to take just one more of our first half chances would have put Utd on the back foot. Because we were the better team in the first half hour.
Sliding door moments and all that - if Dembele hadn't inexplicably and uncharacteristically decided to turn back and then let Pogba push him off the ball, who knows.
But... that's Utd I guess. How many times have we seen them not be the better team? Yet they sit 2nd in the table and are now in a cup final.

I'm not viewing this as a huge disaster (assuming we finish top 4 it will still have been a great season), just as a huge disappointment for what might/could have been, and for what this team deserves.

Indeed. Looking back, Vertonghens' shot that hits the post just before HT. It rebounds goes to the right, it's 2-1. It comes straight back out, there was a white shirt closing in on it for a possible tap-in, but no, it rebounds out to the left
 
I agree that we were certainly a little unlucky but we had more than enough time on the ball ans more than enough chances to put the game away. Remember the second leg against Juve? When we were ‘Juve’d’ well we were ‘Mourinho’d’ yesterday. Not an excuse though, we should have won. Another disappointment to get over.
 
Didn't have a problem with the team selection. Too many players were below par today.

only so long you can say these things. Can't keep being nearly men. Enough is enough now

I think our performance in general these past few seasons have made a rod for our own backs - make no mistake we could have a free pick of any manager in the world and the odds of us improving further whilst working with our financial constraits are slim and sadly i think it's only once/if this current setup breaks up some of our fans will appreciate what we're doing.

10 years of scraping top 4 and Wenger was hailed as a genius by all and sundry despite being at various points of that time the 2nd/3rd highest paying side in the league - we are working to the same transfer constraints but are way down in 6th when it comes to wages and yet the narrative seems to be we are failing, doesn't make sense
 
We did alright. We lost to a good team in a close game. Some individual errors to point to, but those happen. Not too disheartened by that loss, but a shame we couldn't get through. We were very close.
 
The Dembele error was the turning point, but how many times would that error have resulted in a goal? Pogba hit a great pass and Sanchez timed his run and placed his header perfectly. We were wide open because we were going on the attack, but it took a great play to score. It was certainly deflating, to lose the lead so soon and in such manner.

It's also worth noting that it was Pogba and Sanchez involved. They turned up yesterday. Mourinho's talk about dropping big names might have got through to them. It also helped that Pogba was allowed to play a freer role with two others in midfield. Why Mourinho is so reluctant to play him this way is bizarre.
 
I think our performance in general these past few seasons have made a rod for our own backs - make no mistake we could have a free pick of any manager in the world and the odds of us improving further whilst working with our financial constraits are slim and sadly i think it's only once/if this current setup breaks up some of our fans will appreciate what we're doing.

10 years of scraping top 4 and Wenger was hailed as a genius by all and sundry despite being at various points of that time the 2nd/3rd highest paying side in the league - we are working to the same transfer constraints but are way down in 6th when it comes to wages and yet the narrative seems to be we are failing, doesn't make sense

Thats not true a all.....Arse have had a ton of criticism over the years for Wenger and his top 4 trophy is all that matters policy. Their fans and media have been saying Wenger has been failing by not seriously challenging for the title
 
Didn't have a problem with the team selection. Too many players were below par today.

only so long you can say these things. Can't keep being nearly men. Enough is enough now

You off then? Because nothing will alter club wise...
Because we have not got £400m to spend. Also if Pochettino leaves this summer which is 50/50 Imho I cannot see that improving the situation.
 
We did alright. We lost to a good team in a close game. Some individual errors to point to, but those happen. Not too disheartened by that loss, but a shame we couldn't get through. We were very close.

We were only close because after we froze at 1-1 the opposition were also pretty hopeless.

If we froze like that against a Liverpool or Emirates Marketing Project we would have got battered.
 
I think our performance in general these past few seasons have made a rod for our own backs - make no mistake we could have a free pick of any manager in the world and the odds of us improving further whilst working with our financial constraits are slim and sadly i think it's only once/if this current setup breaks up some of our fans will appreciate what we're doing.

10 years of scraping top 4 and Wenger was hailed as a genius by all and sundry despite being at various points of that time the 2nd/3rd highest paying side in the league - we are working to the same transfer constraints but are way down in 6th when it comes to wages and yet the narrative seems to be we are failing, doesn't make sense

We are not failing and people shouldn't be drawing references to the previous 7 semi finals for example. Last year for example we were deeply unfortunate in the semi imo.

But we need to look at and understand and be critical of why we froze at 1-1.

We can't ignore this just because we did excellently well to acquire so many top players on the cheap or develop them into top players.

Look at everyone's combined team with united, tells you all you need to know.

The budget is irrelevant - we froze yesterday at 1-1 and we should be asking questions why.
 
We are not failing and people shouldn't be drawing references to the previous 7 semi finals for example. Last year for example we were deeply unfortunate in the semi imo.

But we need to look at and understand and be critical of why we froze at 1-1.

We can't ignore this just because we did excellently well to acquire so many top players on the cheap or develop them into top players.

Look at everyone's combined team with united, tells you all you need to know.

The budget is irrelevant - we froze yesterday at 1-1 and we should be asking questions why.

I agree the focus needs to be on the game itself rather than to try and shoehorn it in to a bigger narative
 
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