***TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR v Crystal Palace OMT***

[Mumorn]

Great to see a cleansheet. Nice to see Fazio and Vert getting time to build a partnership

 

[Jimmy-g]

Great to see a cleansheet. Nice to see Fazio and Vert getting time to build a partnership

I thought the whole defence played well, Dier was getting a roasting for the first 30 minutes but stuck at it and was ok when Ericksen gave him a hand, Palace played with good pace and movement, the number of times Lamela gave the ball away and it came straight back at Dier was awful, Davies might not get forward efectively but he is sound defensively.

 

[metalgear]

Palace attacked with two players - Utd reject and Bolasie (sp?)

They're both very quick and very tricky but look at when they broke - Palace still kept a very solid shape. There was only one time I remember them over committing and leaving gaps.

[/B]

Probably higher but I guarantee we wouldn't have finished as high when the season was over. The point that all the AVB people seem to forget was that he had the opportunity to build his own side with 100 million pounds and this is the mess we are in and have been in now from the start of last season. Poch has not had that opportunity. So yeah let's not make AVB out to be a messiah. Southampton were good last season played lovely, attractive football. How about we give this bloke a little more time.

Thought it was always transfers by committee and above all AVB didn't want Bale to go.

 

[paxtonwolf]

Back in from the game. At 3pm I think we would all have said that was 2pts dropped but honestly, and listening to other fans walking down the paxton stairwell, I think in the end we stole a point.
Credit to Palace they played well throughout(especially Bolasie would love him at Spurs), and from about the 70th minute (some will argue maybe earlier) you could see they fancied taking all 3 pts today, and thanks to Hugo, they didnt.
Such a shame we couldnt capitalise on the result at Stoke, but taking the positives we did keep a clean sheet and we are another week nearer Walker returning/Yedlin arriving.

 

[shaney]

Great to see a cleansheet. Nice to see Fazio and Vert getting time to build a partnership

Great to see a clean sheet ? We were at home.............against a team who who had the joint WORST defence outside of the relegation zone.............and who themselves were just one point off the relegation zone before today. Talk about clutching at straws hahaha !

 

[SteveAWOL]

Great to see a cleansheet. Nice to see Fazio and Vert getting time to build a partnership

It's been a while.

@SpursStatMan: Today's result was our first Premier League clean sheet since the 1-0 win against Southampton on October 5th.

@SpursStatMan: Fazio to Vertonghen (21) was the most used pass combination against Palace. Sideways.

 

[Mumorn]

Great to see a clean sheet ? We were at home.............against a team who who had the joint WORST defence outside of the relegation zone.............and who themselves were just one point off the relegation zone before today. Talk about clutching at straws hahaha !

cleansheets a cleansheet, couldnt care if we were up against barcelona or blyth spartans.

 

[Robspur12]

Thought it was always transfers by committee and above all AVB didn't want Bale to go.

We've been here before I think. Of course AVB would not want Bale to go, which manager would? But only a really naïve one would expect that a club would not accept a World record bid for a player who wanted to go. Transfer committee means he would have a big say. So even if a player wasn't his first choice because we couldn't afford him, the player bought would have been subject to his approval, just like the players bought last summer would have been approved by Poch even if not his first choice (Fazio for Mussachio is an example). There is absolutely no evidence that Levy has ever forced a player on a manager a la Abramovich and Shevchenko. Also Baldini was supposed to have been chosen by AVB. The players bought last season mostly fitted a certain profile which AVB favoured -physically big players to form a powerful midfield. The season before we purchased Dembele also a big unit Therefore the problems with the playing personnel we see now, slow cumbersome midfield players who are not great passers is a large part imo down to AVB. But because he has gone it would appear that his part in the building of this team has been forgotten. It's not all bad of course, some very good technical players were also bought, Eriksen, Soldado and Lamela, but AVB failed to utilise them properly. For me Poch needs a transfer window to stamp his mark on a team before we can judge him.

 

[Pirate55]

:ross:

Nice use of the Russell Brand form of argument (using a thesaurus to make an argument sound less empty).

Still, with your thesaurus back in your pocket, have a look at what the article says about attacking against settled, organised teams.

Apart from around 4 matches per year, we don't play against an open defence, we play against teams that would happily take a point from us, who won't leave their own half for anything other than a set piece.

Crossing won't pull those teams out of shape, passing it around them will. Obviously we need to get better at passing around, but that's no reason to revert to some archaic form of football.

That is where your argument falls flat on its face - trying to pass through a team playing massed defence is invariably fruitless unless you have real top quality players like Barca or Chelscum. We dont. If long words are too difficult for you to comprehend, how about crosses from width help pull teams out of shape. Simple enough to comprehend?

We have now tried for the best part of three seasons (less the back end of last season) to pass our way through teams - it just doest work for us, especially on a narrow pitch. How did we achieve our greatest success in recent times? Two pacy wingers stretching teams and causing havoc. It really aint rocket science. Football is a simple game and we need to get back to basics.

 

[Yermiyahu]

That is where your argument falls flat on its face - trying to pass through a team playing massed defence is invariably fruitless unless you have real top quality players like Barca or Chelscum. We dont. If long words are too difficult for you to comprehend, how about crosses from width help pull teams out of shape. Simple enough to comprehend?

We have now tried for the best part of three seasons (less the back end of last season) to pass our way through teams - it just doest work for us, especially on a narrow pitch. How did we achieve our greatest success in recent times? Two pacy wingers stretching teams and causing havoc. It really aint rocket science. Football is a simple game and we need to get back to basics.

This.

 

[scaramanga]

If long words are too difficult for you to comprehend,

Now, that's no way to talk to your genetic superiors is it?

how about crosses from width help pull teams out of shape.

No they don't. The facts will tell you the precise opposite - crosses work against defences not prepared and settled. They are next to useless against a team ready for them.

If you're QPR, Stoke or a Timmeh team that nobody respects then go ahead. Teams don't let us attack them like that.

 

[Modric THFC]

It's been a while.

@SpursStatMan: Today's result was our first Premier League clean sheet since the 1-0 win against Southampton on October 5th.

@SpursStatMan: Fazio to Vertonghen (21) was the most used pass combination against Palace. Sideways.

The real issue with this was the time it took them to move the ball on at the back.
It was get the ball then look around for a full 5 seconds and then make the worlds most obvious pass at walking pace.
People say the defence played well because they got a clean sheet against QPR but they slowed down the game so much. It was painful.

 

[SpurMeUp]

The real issue with this was the time it took them to move the ball on at the back.
It was get the ball then look around for a full 5 seconds and then make the worlds most obvious pass at walking pace.
People say the defence played well because they got a clean sheet against QPR but they slowed down the game so much. It was painful.

The CBs did seem more lethargic that in the last two games, but I think it has a lot to do with less movement ahead of the CBs, and Palace closing down space. With fresh players or just a fresh confident striker I think we'd have won easily. The disappointing thing was that we lost our way mid way through the second half - when we should have been kicking on. That's when we need experience. To stick our game and break them down. Instead we were desperate and lost our composure. Its a young developing team. What can you do.

 

[Raziel]

The CBs did seem more lethargic that in the last two games, but I think it has a lot to do with less movement ahead of the CBs, and Palace closing down space. With fresh players or just a fresh confident striker I think we'd have won easily. The disappointing thing was that we lost our way mid way through the second half - when we should have been kicking on. That's when we need experience. To stick our game and break them down. Instead we were desperate and lost our composure. Its a young developing team. What can you do.

After two horrendous substitutions ...

 

[Pirate55]

Just watching Motd. So far the first Saudi Sportswashing Machine goal against Chelsea came from a cross, two Stoke goals against Scum came from crosses, as did the QPR second goal.

So, of the 10 goals scored today in all games, four came from crosses. Not too shabby at all. Eat those stats.

 

[Pirate55]

Now, that's no way to talk to your genetic superiors is it?






No they don't. The facts will tell you the precise opposite - crosses work against defences not prepared and settled. They are next to useless against a team ready for them.

If you're QPR, Stoke or a Timmeh team that nobody respects then go ahead. Teams don't let us attack them like that.

Snobbery of the highest order. I want to be entertained by Spurs. I want excitement, entertainment and goals. If I wanted to watch a statistical based, chess match I wouldnt go to WHL.

Go ahead a be a snob, but we can no longer compete with the best teams by buying the best players. We need to go back to the formula that got us to 4th, 5th and 4th in successive seasons. We have blown £100m on inferior players trying to compete on a level playing field with others that can just buy better than us and are therefore better at it. We will never play them and beat them at this game.

We need to find another way, a Spurs way, a way that delivers excitement, entertainment and goals. I want to be thrilled again.

 

[thfcsteff]

These are tough times in terms of instant glamour, but Poch is working very, very hard to reset this club properly. He is dispensing with the ****ers as best he can, and slowly building a reliable defense. Fazio and Verts are starting to click well. I personally support him fully.

One thing I would LOVE to see tried, is Eriksen working from a DEEPER role alongside Bentaleb. Yes, it could leave you a bit 'lightweight' on transitions, but the advantage would be getting a very creative player on the ball in deeper situations where can hopefully dictate some interesting situations. It would also allow us to play Chadli or Lamela on the left, Kane in the hole and Lennon the right with Nobby up top but interchanging with Kane. Bentaleb would certainly have a greater responsibility, but on transition I would expect the likes of Lennon to drop back quickly. For me, it would also allow Eriksen and Lamela to function together without getting into each other's spaces all the time. Just imagine what we could do with such a line-up IF Walker and Rose/Yedlin were there! It 'could' be a bit 'Ossie 94' but I'd love to see it tried myself!!!!!

 

[Robspur12]

After two horrendous substitutions ...

I don't think in themselves they were horrendous. We needed more width so the choice was a fresh chadli or Lennon who has already played 2 games and will be needed on Thursday. Poch chose Chadli. Unfortunately Chadli is not playing well. Then Mason was tired so the alternative on the bench in terms of a passer was Paulinho. Again unfortunately Paulinho has not been up to it, but then neither has Dembele so what are the choices? make a substitution with a 17 million pound player to try to influence the game more or leave the knackered player on?

 

[Robspur12]

These are tough times in terms of instant glamour, but Poch is working very, very hard to reset this club properly. He is dispensing with the ****ers as best he can, and slowly building a reliable defense. Fazio and Verts are starting to click well. I personally support him fully.

One thing I would LOVE to see tried, is Eriksen working from a DEEPER role alongside Bentaleb. Yes, it could leave you a bit 'lightweight' on transitions, but the advantage would be getting a very creative player on the ball in deeper situations where can hopefully dictate some interesting situations. It would also allow us to play Chadli or Lamela on the left, Kane in the hole and Lennon the right with Nobby up top but interchanging with Kane. Bentaleb would certainly have a greater responsibility, but on transition I would expect the likes of Lennon to drop back quickly. For me, it would also allow Eriksen and Lamela to function together without getting into each other's spaces all the time. Just imagine what we could do with such a line-up IF Walker and Rose/Yedlin were there! It 'could' be a bit 'Ossie 94' but I'd love to see it tried myself!!!!!

I think that would be a waste Steff. Eriksen is a very different player to Modric, he is far more offensive. By playing him deeper we would lose his goals for very little defensive gain imo. We need Morgan Schneiderlin.

 

[thfcsteff]

We've been here before I think. Of course AVB would not want Bale to go, which manager would? But only a really naïve one would expect that a club would not accept a World record bid for a player who wanted to go. Transfer committee means he would have a big say. So even if a player wasn't his first choice because we couldn't afford him, the player bought would have been subject to his approval, just like the players bought last summer would have been approved by Poch even if not his first choice (Fazio for Mussachio is an example). There is absolutely no evidence that Levy has ever forced a player on a manager a la Abramovich and Shevchenko. Also Baldini was supposed to have been chosen by AVB. The players bought last season mostly fitted a certain profile which AVB favoured -physically big players to form a powerful midfield. The season before we purchased Dembele also a big unit Therefore the problems with the playing personnel we see now, slow cumbersome midfield players who are not great passers is a large part imo down to AVB. But because he has gone it would appear that his part in the building of this team has been forgotten. It's not all bad of course, some very good technical players were also bought, Eriksen, Soldado and Lamela, but AVB failed to utilise them properly. For me Poch needs a transfer window to stamp his mark on a team before we can judge him.

Mate...I can only repeat something I said at the time (and was blasted on here by some for saying 'without revealing my source' - HA!)...at the start of that summer, Madrid had agreed to wait one more year. The price would've been lower for them too. Then Ancelotti went in. Then Madrid forced the issue harder, saying they wouldn't come back for Bale (knowing that the player himself was only interested in leaving us for them - he was never going to Man U for example!) and thus he was squeezed. So AVB went about early pre-season plans with Bale as part of the set-up. I PERSONALLY believe (i.e. don't know this next bit for any sort of fact) that Lamela would've been bought and would've been worked into the situation slowly over time. I do know that Soldado was bought with Bale in mind (the thought being that both would link well together)...