BrainOfLevy
Michael Carrick
...and, we actually WON THE FREAKING GAME!!!
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Mauricio Pochettino - Sacked
- Thread starter DubaiSpur
- Start date
...and, we actually WON THE FREAKING GAME!!!
Finney Is Back
Luka Modric
I'm not sure what point you are making about time and thought?....
I don't think I claimed that Monk adjusted his line up at all did I?.... I merely claimed that Monk played with two out and out wingers against Pochettino's narrow attacking midfield. This highlighted their strengths and exposed our weaknesses.
The point I am trying to make (perhaps badly?) is that Swansea have a set way of playing that is reasonably predictable, yet Pochettino seemed to set us up without the right shape to try to nullify that or counter that. Our two in midfield were getting outnumbered by Swansea's three, our full backs were penned in by Swansea's wingers and as a result of Swansea's width our two centre halves had too much space between them and around them to be able to successfully cover Bony's runs (hence why he ended up in behind us on a number of occasions). I thought it was a reasonably similar story in the Palace game where again their two out and out wingers negated our one and only method of playing with some width (although Palace weren't as threatening through the middle as Swansea were - I guess because they haven't got players as good as Bony and Siggurdsen through the centre in their team).
Do you disagree with me and feel that we played with good width on Sunday? Do you feel that we looked solid in the centre of our defence? Do you feel that the number of times that Bony ended up in behind us was acceptable and commensurate with a good performance by us?
I'm not asking us to go out and outplay them away from home at all. I was just surprised at how easily Swansea were able to get in behind us and how easy it was for them to be able to force us to play with no width. I don't think I have seen us get in behind a single team this season as many times as Swansea managed to do against us (and that includes our Europa league games against questionable opposition).
I am really pleased that we won, pleased that our fitness is looking good. Pleased that we finally looked a threat from corners, pleased that Ericksen is popping up with important goals. However I wasn't pleased with the overall performance. I thought it was a game where we got away with it. As I said before, look at the reports of the game to get an idea of who the neutral thought was the better team.
braineclipse
Steve Sedgley
You claimed that Monk schooled Pochettino by doing to us what Warnock did before by playing two wingers. What Monk did was send out the two same wide men he has for a long time and essentially the same front 6 that have been regulars for some time now. You don't see the difference?
Swansea away, a team that's known for in possession play and that's averaged 54% possession at home this season is similar to Palace at home where we had 60% possession. I just don't see it. This game, to me at least, was a lot more similar to Everton at home and Arsenal away than to Palace at home. Games where we also allowed ourselves to get outnumbered in the centre of the park to have two central attacking players (/strikers/forwards/whatevers) to be more of a threat on the break. It didn't work as well as against Everton and Arsenal, but it's not some unreasonable plan. Swansea, like Everton and completely unlike Palace, accept considerable risk when playing from the back and through the middle. Like against Everton we got a goal from pressing them fairly high up the pitch to exploit that.
As a result we at times looked open. Poch has us pressing more and better in recent weeks I think. Rather cleverly, unlike AVB, he's taken a more gradual approach to our pressing game. Perhaps realizing that we didn't quite have the players to play that game from the get go. Pressing high up is obviously somewhat high risk high reward. At times against Swansea we weren't good enough and creative Swansea players found space to pick passes to Bony. I thought, like you do, that we adapted as the game progressed. I thought it was a good adaptation though. We denied them the through ball options by and large and limited them to crosses and shots from range. We need to get better with our pressing, but I really feel like we're improving. And whilst there's risk, there's also reward.
We didn't play with great width for sure. With Lennon (almost certainly) out the only proper winger available was Townsend. He was rather poor against Besiktas and I really don't think he was the answer to our problems against Swansea. Walker did well I thought and got involved quite a lot and Ben Davies did reasonably well. My point all along is that this is a work in progress. It was only Walker's first league start after returning from injury and Ben Davies is obviously also still settling in. I really feel your expectations are unreasonably high at this point.
Mumorn
Vic Buckingham
Mauricio Pochettino has boldly stated he isn't scared of playing a weakened side against Saudi Sportswashing Machine tomorrow.
Pochettino: "When you're coach, you have all information. If you win, you're best and if you don't, you are a **** who made wrong decision."
Pochettino: "Against Saudi Sportswashing Machine, we play best players to try to go to the semi-final. It's is not about names, it's about squad."
Pochettino: "All players are important because I have confidence in all players."
Pochettino: "For tomorrow, the players we will play is the best starting eleven to try to go to the semi-final."
Pochettino has insisted he wants to match fellow Argentines, Villa and Ardiles, by getting Tottenham to Wembley.
Pochettino: "When you're coach, you have all information. If you win, you're best and if you don't, you are a **** who made wrong decision."
Pochettino: "Against Saudi Sportswashing Machine, we play best players to try to go to the semi-final. It's is not about names, it's about squad."
Pochettino: "All players are important because I have confidence in all players."
Pochettino: "For tomorrow, the players we will play is the best starting eleven to try to go to the semi-final."
Pochettino has insisted he wants to match fellow Argentines, Villa and Ardiles, by getting Tottenham to Wembley.
Rorschach
Sonny Walters
Ha. I was wondering what those asterix were hiding too. After a bit of research it's s.hit.
Mumorn
Vic Buckingham
"sh!t"
LutonSpurs
Eric Dear
I still believe in Poch. It is going to happen. I did believe in Avb also but it is clear that they are very different beasts. Poch has got the style going. He has the players we like as fans seemingly happy. The reports are that the powers that be love him. Feel very comfortable about it all.
braineclipse
Steve Sedgley
Hehe. True :lol:
OptaJoe @OptaJoe · 6h 6 hours ago
5 - Manchester United had five shots on target vs Spurs but all of them came in the first half. Splutter.
think Poch should be applauded for whatever he said to the players at the half. We looked a different team and our high line seemed to be a bit higher in the second half. don't know if i'm in the minority here but I thought his subs were spot on as well.
it also seems his emphasis on conditioning was paying off towards the end as we had a little more steam to push on towards the end.
5 - Manchester United had five shots on target vs Spurs but all of them came in the first half. Splutter.
think Poch should be applauded for whatever he said to the players at the half. We looked a different team and our high line seemed to be a bit higher in the second half. don't know if i'm in the minority here but I thought his subs were spot on as well.
it also seems his emphasis on conditioning was paying off towards the end as we had a little more steam to push on towards the end.
braineclipse
Steve Sedgley
Agreed. We adjusted really well. Of course that could be turned to "why didn't we play better in the first half", but with very little time on the training ground before the game, some players with little game time rotated in and United having some really classy players I think it's better to focus on the positives.
Agree with the subs comment too. A lot of people were screaming for changes early and during the second half it seems. But we had adjusted well having just seen how well United can play in the first half, making changes when the current lot were doing well in their positions (particularly defensively) isn't automatically a good choice for me.
I wonder what people would have said at half time if offered no shots on target from United in the second half apart from "I'll have some of what you're smoking". Of course that's not going to stop people from having plenty of complaints about decisions made at half time and during that second half.
milo
Jack L. Jones
We've played ten more games than them this season and it was us who were running them ragged at the close! Hopefully, people can start to see the benefits of Poch's methods now.
Robspur12
Nick Barmby
Thought the Coach deserved a mention as we have played our last game of the year. Arrived at Spurs where the fan base had become so polarised in recent seasons, anti redknapp pro AVB, anti tim you get the drift. He has quietly gone about his work. Not moaned about the quality of the squad, or fans ruining the atmosphere at the stadium despite enduring boos at games such as Palace. He's not told the fans "that this is as good as we'll get" Failed to get some of his 1st choice players in the Summer not heard anything about him being livid, but moved on quickly to suitable alternatives.
Under his watch already players like Harry Kane, Ben Davies and Ryan Mason have blossomed. Eriksen is looking like a world class player, Lamela is still a work in progress but at least he is getting some game time. Poch is astutely rotating the team to deal with the heavy schedule of games something he never had to do at Soton and Both Martinez and Rodgers appear to be struggling with this season.
He has instilled a certain defensive resilience in us and made us joint top scorers of late goals an attribute usually reserved for the scum down the road.
Is every thing perfect? - of course not, our home record needs improving we need to improve our defensive shape in midfield and we need a clinical striker. But we are on 31 points 2 points off 4th, 2 points off the scum and 5 points of a utd side that spent 200 million in the summer.
Is he the one? Who knows, we have had too many false dawns to start making predictions. But I am quietly confident we may have got ourselves one of the best coaches we have ever had at this club. I am going to allow myself a caution toast to Maurizio Pochetino (or however you spell his name) at new year.
Under his watch already players like Harry Kane, Ben Davies and Ryan Mason have blossomed. Eriksen is looking like a world class player, Lamela is still a work in progress but at least he is getting some game time. Poch is astutely rotating the team to deal with the heavy schedule of games something he never had to do at Soton and Both Martinez and Rodgers appear to be struggling with this season.
He has instilled a certain defensive resilience in us and made us joint top scorers of late goals an attribute usually reserved for the scum down the road.
Is every thing perfect? - of course not, our home record needs improving we need to improve our defensive shape in midfield and we need a clinical striker. But we are on 31 points 2 points off 4th, 2 points off the scum and 5 points of a utd side that spent 200 million in the summer.
Is he the one? Who knows, we have had too many false dawns to start making predictions. But I am quietly confident we may have got ourselves one of the best coaches we have ever had at this club. I am going to allow myself a caution toast to Maurizio Pochetino (or however you spell his name) at new year.
braineclipse
Steve Sedgley
Definitely. Although we had also rotated a touch for this game whilst they didn't. Them tiring more than us makes some sense, they also put in a huge amount of effort in the first half I thought.
No doubt more players like Mason, Kane, new Eriksen etc instead of Capoue, Adebayor etc gives us an edge physically in terms of stamina and work rate. Tremendous effort from a lot of players today I thought.
milo
Jack L. Jones
Top post
braineclipse
Steve Sedgley
Very solid post.
Remember too that a rather large number of first team players have been identified as either not good enough, not fitting the system or in serious need of away from the pitch improvement to fit in. That's a significant amount of change and upheaval to add to the upheaval already present last summer when he took over.
I will join you in that toast good sir!
milo
Jack L. Jones
Absolutely but he has managed to largely keep any dissatisfaction or decent from the players away from the media. I think that is a real achievement considering the damage the Adebayor circus did to AVB.