• Dear Guest, Please note that adult content is not permitted on this forum. We have had our Google ads disabled at times due to some posts that were found from some time ago. Please do not post adult content and if you see any already on the forum, please report the post so that we can deal with it. Adult content is allowed in the glory hole - you will have to request permission to access it. Thanks, scara

Lennon's back baby!

what was the point then? i read into that much like DHSF

Not having cover for Lennon forced us to chop and change a winning formation. Ruiz is not Lennon but would have been in the squad to cover that position and offers trickery and goals from the wing. Was it that difficult to figure out?
 
We've missed lennon in the past months. I think we forgot how important players like lennon and gallas were to our sucess last season.
 
He is a massive player for us, and i do not think its coincidence that since he has been out injured we have had a bad run.
 
Azzaa !!!! brilliant to see the little man back, and instantly on the assist sheet.

Lennon gives us both pace and width (more so than Bale as Lennon stays wide), he also does a good shift defensively.

We keep him, Bale, VDV, Modric fit for the remaining games, will be a good end to season.
 
Not having cover for Lennon forced us to chop and change a winning formation. Ruiz is not Lennon but would have been in the squad to cover that position and offers trickery and goals from the wing. Was it that difficult to figure out?

I gathered that I guess my point from saying that Ruiz was different was that we need someone like Lennon in order for us to keep our style of play i.e. two out n out quick pacey wingers. That was the problem with not having Lennon, we played VDV, who is full of tricks but ultimately he had no pace. Same as Ruiz
 
I gathered that I guess my point from saying that Ruiz was different was that we need someone like Lennon in order for us to keep our style of play i.e. two out n out quick pacey wingers. That was the problem with not having Lennon, we played VDV, who is full of tricks but ultimately he had no pace. Same as Ruiz

Yes agree. Harry was probably right not to sign Ruiz, his logic that we should be improving the team, not spending to improve squad depth. I think Ruiz would have done better than VDV on the wing. He's a bit bigger and more of a handful running the channel and cutting in to shoot.
 
Not having cover for Lennon forced us to chop and change a winning formation. Ruiz is not Lennon but would have been in the squad to cover that position and offers trickery and goals from the wing. Was it that difficult to figure out?

actually it was and still is unfortunately. because ruiz is that much different from lennon and not as effective as an out and out winger we would still have had to 'chop and change' the winning formation, if you catch my drift. obviously i understood the part about squad cover, and i think you may rate ruiz alot higher than i do. its just that if what you meant was that the effectiveness of our team was diminished because we didnt have a lennon replacement to keep a formation (which would have been wing play , stretching teams, pace , balance on the right etc) going then i guess what i am trying to say is that ruiz isnt a lennon replacement and we would still have had to change the formation? meh, its not important anyway, never mind
 
actually it was and still is unfortunately. because ruiz is that much different from lennon and not as effective as an out and out winger we would still have had to 'chop and change' the winning formation, if you catch my drift. obviously i understood the part about squad cover, and i think you may rate ruiz alot higher than i do. its just that if what you meant was that the effectiveness of our team was diminished because we didnt have a lennon replacement to keep a formation (which would have been wing play , stretching teams, pace , balance on the right etc) going then i guess what i am trying to say is that ruiz isnt a lennon replacement and we would still have had to change the formation? meh, its not important anyway, never mind

Yes its all hypothetical. Its not really about Ruiz either (though he undoubtedly has some skills). Its about not having any effective cover for Lennon.

Though Ruiz is very different - closer to VDV than Lennon - he is used to playing along the line, and most importantly would allow VDV to play behind Ade upfront. VDV on the right and 2 upfront didn't work. Having VDV following up into the box made the first goal today.
 
Yes its all hypothetical. Its not really about Ruiz either (though he undoubtedly has some skills). Its about not having any effective cover for Lennon.

Though Ruiz is very different - closer to VDV than Lennon - he is used to playing along the line, and most importantly would allow VDV to play behind Ade upfront. VDV on the right and 2 upfront didn't work. Having VDV following up into the box made the first goal today.

i see your point now. your talking about statistical contribution, not qualities of lennon.
 
Keep both him and Bale fit and we have a chance in any game even when we are not playing well. Ideal timing for his return to fitness.
 
Ruiz would be no better than GDS. Runs into blind alleys, gives the ball away and occasionally does something unexpected.
No way Harry would ever trust a player like Ruiz.
 
Whether Tottenham finish in the top four this season will be decided by a multitude of factors but among the most prominent is how Harry Redknapp manages Aaron Lennon’s troublesome hamstrings.

Lennon is far from the headline act at White Hart Lane but his reintroduction following more than three weeks out against Swansea yesterday restored the balance to Spurs’ line-up and helped provide the platform for success.

The 24-year-old may not have contributed directly to the goal that edged Tottenham ahead three minutes after his entrance as a substitute but the consequential reshuffle reverted the home side’s key players to their more natural positions.

Luka Modric moved to a more orthodox central midfield role while Rafael Van der Vaart abandoned a right-wing station he has always been an awkward fit for to thrive in the space behind Emmanuel Adebayor in attack.

Spurs’ midfield had hitherto been pulled around by a Swansea side impressively calm in possession and inventive in their movement which further enhanced manager Brendan Rodgers’ burgeoning reputation, even in defeat.

Assistant manager Kevin Bond and first team coach Joe Jordan were repeatedly screaming at Sandro and Scott Parker from the touchline to press their opponents and maintain their shape in possession.

With several players operating out of position, Spurs struggled to match the irrepressible rhythm their 4-4-1-1 system often engenders and the scrambled picture even left those within Redknapp’s staff baffled. “It was good to see Aaron back,” he said.

“I just got a text from somebody saying ‘it was great that you went 4-4-2’ [when Lennon came on]. ‘I thought, I don’t remember doing that’. It was one of my scouts, which really scares me!

“We played 4-3-3 all the way through. We stuck him wide and played [Gareth] Bale wide and Adebayor up front and three in midfield still. We never changed the system. But suddenly he gave us that little bit more width.”

Lennon (right) crafted the goal that settled proceedings with a fine cross stood up to the back post for Adebayor to score his second header in 13 minutes.It was a moment that typified the danger Lennon can pose — unmatched on the right by any other member of the squad — while also providing a dual threat on the flanks to attract some attention away from Bale for the Welshman, who was excellent yesterday, to thrive. His impact was not lost on Rodgers.

“In relation to the final goal, when you face that stature and physicality like Adebayor, the question is can you stop the cross?” he said.

“Aaron Lennon dug it out really well. It was a great bit of skill and that’s what he is great at in small spaces.

“He manoeuvres the ball really well, has a good touch and crosses with great delivery. I thought in the main, if you look at a lot of the delivery into the box, our players do incredibly well.

“But there are going to be times when we get outdone.”

Lennon provided such a moment and it led to the unusual situation of the supporters chanting the provider’s name rather than the goalscorer.

In fact, Lennon received a rousing reception upon entering play that felt somewhat disproportionate to his perceived popularity at the club.

That is not to suggest the England winger is an unloved figure but more that the euphoria greeting his return was recognition of the importance he has to Spurs’ play as much as a show of individual affection for a player who has often been aloof with the media. Redknapp must find the right balance in his use of Lennon, given his vulnerable hamstrings. Of all the reasons proffered for Spurs five-game winless run in the League, Lennon’s absence for four of them from the outset was a factor.

“Next week is going to be a juggling act playing Saturday and Monday,” said Redknapp. “It is going to be survival of the fittest, trying to get two teams ready. We have got a long slap up to Sunderland for a tough game and then we have to come back and play Norwich at home. You are going to have to change the team around.

“I think Aaron will be ready for 90 minutes but you won’t get two games out of him next weekend. No chance.

“He’ll play one game — whichever one I choose to play him in. He keeps getting little hamstring problems and I think he and the medical people would be a bit wary of playing two games in quick time.”

Lennon’s team-mates hope Redknapp makes the right call. “I’m very happy personally for him that he is back and in good form,” said defender Younes Kaboul. “He proved again that he is a class player with a beautiful assist to Adebayor. I hope that he is not going to have any more injuries.”

The sight of Van der Vaart and Adebayor as Tottenham’s goalscorers is a hugely encouraging sign for a team that had been alarmingly profligate in recent weeks.

Van der Vaart’s smartly taken opener preceded Gylfi Sigurdsson’s volley before Adebayor put a goal drought behind him — three strikes in 15 matches prior to yesterday — with two late headers.

With the four teams from Arsenal in third to Saudi Sportswashing Machine in sixth separated by only five points, the final reckoning will be determined by fine margins and Lennon’s return could prove a significant moment for Tottenham’s cause.
 
I agree - Modric and Parker look so knackered at times. We need 7 big games out of each of them.

Sunderland:

Parker------Sandro
------Modric------
VdV----------Bale
-----Adebayor----

Norwich:

Livermore---Sandro
-------Vdv--------
Lennon--------Bale
-------Ade--------
 
NOT that we're a one man team (not with Bale, Modric, van der Vaart & Ade in the team!) but it's no co-incidence we were so poor without Lennon in the team, and 'suddenly' get back to winning ways on his return... BALANCE is the key to a successful team, and with Lennon back to compliment the RW, Bale no longer has to drift in, or switch to the right to fill the massive void Lennon has left due to his absence... and can instead focus on what he's best at... HE PLAYS ON THE LEFT!

LENNON -- PARKER -- MODRIC -- BALE

That's a Champions League midfield that is!!
 
Lennon is a massive player for us without a doubt, however in the past he has taken a game or two to get up to speed after returning from injury. Lets not get on his back because if he stays fit he will be a major influence on our run in.
 
Back