AVB & Spurs Tactics and Formations discussion thread

[metalgear]

metalgear - When playing FOR us? Absolutely! Stoke? It will suddenly be acceptable.

I guarantee, whatever the result, Stoke will score a goal that shouldnt be allowed because of at least 3 fouls in the build up - not least Crouch climbing all over the back of someone.

haha... the debutant , the guy that they say won't score again... they all do it against Spurs don't they :ross:

 

[glorygloryeze]

Please discuss the tactics seen in today's game. Was our finishing as bad and sloppy as we were in ghe final months of the last two seasons? Can the tactics/formation work away at, say, Man utd?

 

[Rossi22]

Yes
No

 

[The Moonlit Knight]

Please discuss the tactics seen in today's game. Was our finishing as bad and sloppy as we were in ghe final months of the last two seasons? Can the tactics/formation work away at, say, Man utd?

Finishing was sloppy. Defoe, Bale & Sigurdsson (especially) all missed good chances. It's difficult to say that it would work elsewhere as we weren't seriously tested and Reading were very poor. The rare few times they did get forward we did look a little bit of a mess which is concerning.

I don't think you can take much away from todays game in terms of judging us. But the same also applies to the last two matches as well. Once we get 15 games in we'll have a more realistic barometer of where we are at.

Another late goal conceded though, which could be co-incidence or point towards fitness and / or lack of concentration issues to see the game out.

 

[glorygloryeze]

Finishing was sloppy. Defoe, Bale & Sigurdsson (especially) all missed good chances. It's difficult to say that it would work elsewhere as we weren't seriously tested and Reading were very poor. The rare few times they did get forward we did look a little bit of a mess which is concerning.

I don't think you can take much away from todays game in terms of judging us. But the same also applies to the last two matches as well. Once we get 15 games in we'll have a more realistic barometer of where we are at.

Another late goal conceded though, which could be co-incidence or point towards fitness and / or lack of concentration issues to see the game out.

Hmmm..how sloppy can we get?? We seem to have been sloppy in our finishing for years!! When will it end??
Were the chances REAL sitters??

 

[DHSF]

I will be honest this is how I see it

I think this season we will be very good away

At home we wont be and will struggle.

Based on the four games thus far - our away performances have been far better than at home. Some could say now it will be better as we have the players etc but Noocastle we didnt have the players that we have recently bought yet we were better.

I think the tactics just suit away games than at home.

 

[The Moonlit Knight]

Hmmm..how sloppy can we get?? We seem to have been sloppy in our finishing for years!! When will it end??
Were the chances REAL sitters??

I'd say all three chances were very good chances. Sigurdsson's was the biggest sitter. Bale I think tried to take it around the keeper and didn't realise that if he had sent it goalwards it would have probably gone in. Defoe had a very good snapshot volley chance but it was one of those where had he scored people would have said what a difficult skill it was etc. So you can't go from a brilliantly taken goal to missing a sitter in the same chance IMHO. Defoe also missed another good chance at a slight angle when he tries to curl it with the outside of his boot rather than just hit it with his left.

 

[The Moonlit Knight]

I will be honest this is how I see it

I think this season we will be very good away

At home we wont be and will struggle.

Based on the four games thus far - our away performances have been far better than at home. Some could say now it will be better as we have the players etc but Noocastle we didnt have the players that we have recently bought yet we were better.

I think the tactics just suit away games than at home.

I don't want to spacegoat, but no shock to me that Livermore doesn't play and we win. He just isn't good enough for the level we want to be at. Everyone still bangs on about how poor we were against Norwich at home last season (including me!) and at the time I blamed Redknapp for starting Livermore.

 

[milo]

I don't want to spacegoat, but no shock to me that Livermore doesn't play and we win. He just isn't good enough for the level we want to be at. Everyone still bangs on about how poor we were against Norwich at home last season (including me!) and at the time I blamed Redknapp for starting Livermore.

Dembele is obviously an improvement on Livermore and a far more positive player too.

I do not think that we can judge this team for a little while yet, Dempsey is yet to start, as is Lloris, Dembele has only started one game, Sig is still settling in and the coaches have only had a couple of days with the complete squad. Let's see what we look like at the end of next month and judge then.

 

[DHSF]

I don't want to spacegoat, but no shock to me that Livermore doesn't play and we win. He just isn't good enough for the level we want to be at. Everyone still bangs on about how poor we were against Norwich at home last season (including me!) and at the time I blamed Redknapp for starting Livermore.

Im looking at performances and not results - although im obviously interested in the results. For example had we beaten WBA and Norwich I would have still been concerned that we were performing poorly and quite frankly brick.

Our performance today was very good and against Noocastle it was good. At home both were brick. So unsure if it is a coincidence that the away games were better than home

 

[milo]

Our performance today was very good and against Noocastle it was good. At home both were brick. So unsure if it is a coincidence that the away games were better than home

The team may feel less pressure away from home but I do not think that you can read too much into games where Sandro and Livermore start.

 

[Rossi22]

Teams sit back more at WHL, with Luka and VDV gone we struggle to pick the lock.

 

[DHSF]

The team may feel less pressure away from home but I do not think that you can read too much into games where Sandro and Livermore start.

You may well be right proof is in the pudding in the next few games. However; I dont think that one player in Livermore can change the whole dynamic of the team and how we set out to attack and create. For example I dont actually think Dembele did too much in an attacking sense but defensively I was surprised as to how good he was.

 

[DHSF]

Teams sit back more at WHL, with Luka and VDV gone we struggle to pick the lock.

Maybe and hopefully, milo is right and if we have someone like Dembele we can unpick it but he wont unpick the lock defensively. I would seriously consider pushing him up behind the striker with Thudd and Sandro behind him. At home especially.

 

[The Moonlit Knight]

You may well be right proof is in the pudding in the next few games. However; I dont think that one player in Livermore can change the whole dynamic of the team and how we set out to attack and create. For example I dont actually think Dembele did too much in an attacking sense but defensively I was surprised as to how good he was.

I think one player can make a difference, because it can change the whole shape and balance of the team. Especially in the centre of midfield. It can work both ways too, look at Parker's immense impact on last season for us.

 

[yiddy yid yid yid]

Dembele came away with an assist. Hardly a poor days work.

 

[The Moonlit Knight]

I think one player can make a difference, because it can change the whole shape and balance of the team. Especially in the centre of midfield. It can work both ways too, look at Parker's immense impact on last season for us.

Actually a better example is look how our results dipped last season when Lennon got injured. It killed our balance and we struggled as a result.

 

[Jimmy-g]

I don't want to spacegoat, but no shock to me that Livermore doesn't play and we win. He just isn't good enough for the level we want to be at. Everyone still bangs on about how poor we were against Norwich at home last season (including me!) and at the time I blamed Redknapp for starting Livermore.

A lot more went through the middle today, Siggs and Dembele tried to retain possesion, Dembele carries the ball which is great, Reading were poor but both the mentioned players will improve matters when we play at home with teams sitting back.

 

[Jordinho]

Tottenham hand Sandro a licence to roam and Reading are left exposed

Flexibility and fluidity of Sandro, Moussa Dembélé and Gylfi Sigurdsson impressive in Spurs' 3-1 defeat of Reading

This match was decided in the centre of midfield, where Tottenham's talented trio of technical midfielders passed and rotated their way around Reading's static system. The understanding between Sandro, Moussa Dembélé and Gylfi Sigurdsson was particularly impressive considering this was their first match together – one would have expected Sandro to sit deep and leave the creativity to his midfield colleagues, but their flexibility and fluidity was crucial in breaking the deadlock.

Sandro played a very important role, helping to overload and surprise Reading in two different zones. First, when Brad Friedel played the ball out from the back, the Brazilian would drop deep between the centre-backs to create a three-versus-two situation against Pavel Pogrebnyak and Danny Guthrie, who were trying to close down high up the pitch. It meant the ball was worked into midfield easily, and Spurs' passing rhythm was much higher than in their previous league games.

Second, as Spurs tried to work the ball into the final third, Sandro broke forward from his deep-lying position. This was noticeable for the opening goal: Sandro made a sudden forward dart, Guthrie followed him, so space opened up for Sigurdsson to drop deep, away from Mikele Leigertwood, and receive the ball under no pressure.

He had time to look up and play an excellent pass into the path of Aaron Lennon, who cut the ball back for Jermain Defoe to fire into the far corner.

Lennon's run was also an example of André Villas-Boas's influence. Under Harry Redknapp the winger received the ball to feet, then attempted to dribble past the full-back – but he is now expected to make intelligent, purposeful off-the-ball runs to collect passes played in behind the defence.

In the first half Reading were extremely passive, taking 40 minutes to register their first shot. Brian McDermott seemingly wanted his side to sit back and soak up pressure before breaking quickly, but the first pass out of the defence was frequently wayward, conceding possession and inviting more Tottenham pressure.

Reading were simply unable to get high up the pitch. Spells of possession were extremely rare, and it was a surprise to see Jem Karacan substituted at the interval, since he was the only Reading midfielder who looked comfortable on the ball, completing as many passes as the other two central-midfielders, Leigertwood and Guthrie, combined. At least Guthrie was more involved after he dropped into Karacan's central-midfield role, with Adam Le Fondre introduced to turn Reading into more of a 4-4-2.

Reading were more proactive without the ball in the second half, and the presence of a second striker caused problems when the home side attacked directly. But Tottenham were still much the better side and retained their fluidity in the second half, with Sandro still bursting forward, making a purposeful run that ended with Gareth Bale firing wide.

Having wasted 1-0 leads in their previous two matches following defensive substitutions from Villas-Boas, the sight of Tom Huddlestone preparing to come on would have worried Spurs fans – but Bale fired the second goal before he got on, after another cut-back from the right, this time from Kyle Walker.

With that second goal, the game was over as a contest.

www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2012/sep/16/tottenham-sandro-flexibility-reading

 

[Baleforce]

i don't believe this gonads about Levy giving him 3 games to save his job

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/sep/16/andre-villas-boas-tottenham-reading