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Dele Alli

scaramanga said:
Let's not forget the genius move of putting all the bits of training that require thinking and concentration to the end of the sessions.

Most managers seeing us conceding a lot of late goals would work on fitness so that we were less tired. AVB could see that it was mental and not physical fatigue and altered training to compensate. Genius.
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I did not know that -- it makes A LOT of sense.
 
DubaiSpur said:
He was a good manager, mate. I don't think it was a social/communication thing as much as it was just losing VDV, Modric, Ledley and Bale in successive seasons: he'd set the team up around Bale after Modric left, but when Bale left he ran out of ideas and we spent the money on players he didn't necessarily want. Similarly, VDV and Ledley brought a lot of intangibles to the club that probably disappeared when they left and a personality/leadership gap was created.

The thing about AVB is that I really don't see him as a charismatic leader type, the sort of person who could fill that void: we have Poch now, who absolutely is that sort of person (by all accounts, even though he's generally a bit of a wet fish in press conferences and in public :p ), and he's provided the leadership our side needed to become as good as it is now. But AVB had a situation that was crying out for a Poch-type manager (as you say, the post Bale/Modric era) and his character (which is more suited to being the sort of reserved tactical organizer that's more common on the continent) didn't allow him to rise to it, simple as that.

Bale absolutely loves the guy, for example, and a lot of his players at Porto have spoken about how he shaped their game and their personal development. It isn't a stretch to assume that he can gain players' loyalty at about the same rate as any other manager: he just wasn't able to steady the ship as we lost our best players in successive years, by dint of being unsuited to the role.

The whole 'he's an awkward croaky-voiced bad communicator' thing comes from the hacks at the Mail and the Sun, who never tired of making him the pantomime villain as some sort of imagined payback for the way he treated Chelsea's old English cohort in 2011/2012 (who probably were the ones who spread that rumor in the first place). It's all history now, and we have a good manager (perhaps very,very good) who combines being a naturally charismatic leader with being a tactical savant: but I'll still defend old Andre as heartily as I can. Because of the win at Old Trafford, the win against City, the win against Arsenal, the development of Bale, the accumulation of 72 points, the highest total the club's gotten in the PL era..
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Good post. I have a soft spot for AVB even though it all went south for him at the end. I always thought that if Sir Bobby Robson was still around he could have been a good source of advice for young Andre. IMO the main flaw with AVB was his lack of pragmatism. His inflexibility. His playbook was quite thin, especially the going forward section, and he really needed a friendly voice to jolt him out of his stubbornness with regards to this part of the game. Instead of adapting his methods to accommodate the players he had, he stuck rigidly to his guns and ultimately the team gave up on him.

I can't see him rocking up in the PL again but he'll have a high level of success across various continental leagues I would imagine. I don't wish him ill at all, I still quite like him. We had plenty of highlights along with the low points.
 
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Jurgen the German said:
Sure thing.
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You can never under rate the significance of that win over ManU. We were winless in 26 matches against ManU before that, losing 20 of them, over 12 long years ! The legendary AVB somehow managed to get us beat them, forced Ferguson eat humble pie and retire in the process.:p
 
Spurs7891 said:
You can never under rate the significance of that win over ManU. We were winless in 26 matches against ManU before that, losing 20 of them, over 12 long years ! The legendary AVB somehow managed to get us beat them, forced Ferguson eat humble pie and retire in the process.:p
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What about the two wins at Anfield and the Emirates then? Where do they rank against winning at OT? Bear in mind we haven't won at Arsenal or Liverpool since.
 
Lots of nutmeg goals this season, kind of bizarre considering but shooting low and at the keeper for a close-range finish seems to work well for us.
 
papaspur said:
Lots of nutmeg goals this season, kind of bizarre considering but shooting low and at the keeper for a close-range finish seems to work well for us.
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We always told strikers to place the ball at the keepers feet as its hard for them to get down to use their hands/bodies.
 
Dele Alli was blissfully unaware he'd been nutmegged by team-mate in pre-match warm up
BY SIMON LLOYD

When it comes to nutmegging opponents, Dele Alli has been one of football's serial offenders this season.
But on Sunday afternoon, as the Spurs youngster and his teammates waited for Manchester United to complete their seven-hour bus tour of the London streets, Mousa Dembele stealthily poked the ball through the 20-year-old's legs without the England international even realising.


Those that were watching Sky Sports' (longer than expected) build up to the match might have noticed that Dembele was merely evening things up after falling victim to an Alli nutmeg only seconds earlier.

https://twitter.com/x/status/719182080584888320


http://www.joe.co.uk/sport/dele-all...ed-been-nutmegged-by-teammate-in-warmup/51745

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So, Alli messed with the wrong player ! Frankly, never thought Dembele is a player who can be easily offended and take revenge in return !:D
 
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Spurs7891 said:
Dele Alli was blissfully unaware he'd been nutmegged by team-mate in pre-match warm up
BY SIMON LLOYD

When it comes to nutmegging opponents, Dele Alli has been one of football's serial offenders this season.
But on Sunday afternoon, as the Spurs youngster and his teammates waited for Manchester United to complete their seven-hour bus tour of the London streets, Mousa Dembele stealthily poked the ball through the 20-year-old's legs without the England international even realising.


Those that were watching Sky Sports' (longer than expected) build up to the match might have noticed that Dembele was merely evening things up after falling victim to an Alli nutmeg only seconds earlier.

https://twitter.com/x/status/719182080584888320


http://www.joe.co.uk/sport/dele-all...ed-been-nutmegged-by-teammate-in-warmup/51745

----------------------------------------

So, Alli messed with the wrong player ! Frankly, never thought Dembele is a player who can be easily offended and take revenge in return !:D
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That is feckin hilarious!!! Love this team!
 
I will be surprised if Alli doesn't get the award, to be honest. He's clearly deserved it, and with the praise and media hype surrounding him at times, he's got to get it.
 
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