OMT The Mighty THFC vs Abu Dhabi City

[Raziel]

I think sometimes you just get teams who match up well against you and IMO Emirates Marketing Project are a team who are a good match up for Spurs at the moment.

We play a high line relying on Sanchez’s pace to get us out of trouble and push our full backs high up the pitch to provide us width and stretch the opposition to create space for Eriksen and Ali centrally. Emirates Marketing Project’s attacking pace means that they are good odds to get onto a ball in behind us to expose our high line. Sanchez is able to win the foot race against the attackers of most teams in the league, just not Emirates Marketing Project (or Liverpool). Also the fact that Emirates Marketing Project play two very attacking wide players in Sane and Sterling means that our fullbacks find it very difficult to get forward due to the risk of leaving us exposed to Emirates Marketing Project’s pace from wide areas. Silva was also too mobile and clever with his movement for Dier, which gives them a central focus point to launch their attacks. On the occasions when we did get forward Kane was unable to bully Kompany, so we didn’t really get any joy there, and our fullbacks being deeper than usual means that Emirates Marketing Project were able to defend the central areas with numbers making it very difficult for us to create chances. To beat Emirates Marketing Project with our current personnel I wonder whether Pochettino will have to move away from his reasonably purist tactics, look to defend deeper, protect the middle, keep two central midfielders deep at all times, go longer towards Kane and have three attacking midfield runners (say Son and Moura for their pace and then either Eriksen or Ali to add a bit of guile) in behind Kane to feed off the scraps able to exploit the fact that Emirates Marketing Project have so many players high up the pitch.

Agree, much like Pool seems to fudge with City's system.

Poch has to adapt (much like we did against Pool after a couple seasons of being fudged) to City, not try to force the match up. I'd argue even if we believed we could have played our style, based on City's situation last week, I would have said the most important thing would have been not to let them score in first half, let the mental pressure build, let the initial pressure (which was going to come) fade.

I will say the fudging ref was terrible ... fudge I get tired of that ...

Mistakes in the tactics, bad day at office. If we lose 1 every 14 we will be ok however. Might be a good kick in the ass for final run in.

 

[Gazza Dazzla]

They tore us a new one twice, we’ll just have to live with that this season unfortunately.

 

[90291Spur]

Agree, much like Pool seems to fudge with City's system.

Poch has to adapt (much like we did against Pool after a couple seasons of being fudged) to City, not try to force the match up. I'd argue even if we believed we could have played our style, based on City's situation last week, I would have said the most important thing would have been not to let them score in first half, let the mental pressure build, let the initial pressure (which was going to come) fade.

I will say the fudging ref was terrible ... fudge I get tired of that ...

Mistakes in the tactics, bad day at office. If we lose 1 every 14 we will be ok however. Might be a good kick in the ass for final run in.

Agreed. And don't let them score two in less than five minutes is a solid intention...

 

[Finney Is Back]

Exactly. We didnt perform. And we are all disappointed because of that. Not because we were outclassed/outplayed but because we didnt deliver what we know we can.

Thats the point Im making. People know this team could have given City a real game - what is that if not being closer to being competitive with them than not?

Again I disagree with you here slightly. I don't think it was because we didn't perform. I think it is because City are better than us and our preferred way of playing exposes this. However Emirates Marketing Project are the only team in the league where this happens. Against all of the other teams our normal way of playing is typically good enough to get us the result. Our tactics play to Emirates Marketing Project's strengths. Not many other teams would even attempt to play a high line against Emirates Marketing Project. The question is whether that is brave or foolhardy? (I would say the latter).

 

[Bedfordspurs]

Again I disagree with you here slightly. I don't think it was because we didn't perform. I think it is because City are better than us and our preferred way of playing exposes this. However Emirates Marketing Project are the only team in the league where this happens. Against all of the other teams our normal way of playing is typically good enough to get us the result.

Would help if we started the game in the right way

Saturday was a poor showing full stop

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Again I disagree with you here slightly. I don't think it was because we didn't perform. I think it is because City are better than us and our preferred way of playing exposes this. However Emirates Marketing Project are the only team in the league where this happens. Against all of the other teams our normal way of playing is typically good enough to get us the result. Our tactics play to Emirates Marketing Project's strengths. Not many other teams would even attempt to play a high line against Emirates Marketing Project. The question is whether that is brave or foolhardy? (I would say the latter).

I disagree, and for one simple reason. We didnt play our normal game.

Had we gone full press, we would have done better (see: Liverpool). City arent used to pressure like that and dont handle it particularly well.

Our "normal" game could well have been fruitful against them.

Had we gone full defensive and tried to play on the break? Not my preference but its a sound option, and again something we have employed on occasion.

We did neither. We got caught between sitting back and stepping on and as a result handed City all the space they needed.

 

[Finney Is Back]

I disagree, and for one simple reason. We didnt play our normal game.

Had we gone full press, we would have done better (see: Liverpool). City arent used to pressure like that and dont handle it particularly well.

Our "normal" game could well have been fruitful against them.

Had we gone full defensive and tried to play on the break? Not my preference but its a sound option, and again something we have employed on occasion.

We did neither. We got caught between sitting back and stepping on and as a result handed City all the space they needed.

Again. I disagree. We couldn't go into 'full press' because City are too fast and too good on the ball so can play through it (just as Monaco did to us in the CL last season). I think a lot of that comes from Silva being such a good player and so clever with his movement. He constantly found space and was able to get on the ball and dictate the game from central areas quite high up the pitch with Dier not able to stop this happening (as he is able to do with a lot of other attacking central players).

IMO Liverpool's pattern of play is quite different to ours (and is actually quite a good match up for City). Their press is more manic, but they also have a deeper defence than we do. They also get the ball forward a lot quicker than us, playing a lot more long diagonal balls for Salah and Mane to chase down. We don't have that same pace in our wide midfield players, especially with Son not starting.

 

[nayimfromthehalfwayline]

Again. I disagree. We couldn't go into 'full press' because City are too fast and too good on the ball so can play through it (just as Monaco did to us in the CL last season). I think a lot of that comes from Silva being such a good player and so clever with his movement. He constantly found space and was able to get on the ball and dictate the game from central areas quite high up the pitch with Dier not able to stop this happening (as he is able to do with a lot of other attacking central players).

IMO Liverpool's pattern of play is quite different to ours (and is actually quite a good match up for City). Their press is more manic, but they also have a deeper defence than we do. They also get the ball forward a lot quicker than us, playing a lot more long diagonal balls for Salad and Mane to chase down. We don't have that same pace in our wide midfield players, especially with Son not starting.

Obviously people see games differently, thats all part of it, isnt it?

To me they didnt play us into trouble, we out played ourselves. We got caught between two stools and consequently gave them all the space they needed because we were incoherent. They made much the same point on MOTD as well, nicely illustrated if you can be bothered to look.

Of course, its the threat that City pose - as you describe - that put us in two minds. We should really have committed fully one way or the other, rather than neither as happened.

 

[thfcsteff]

I disagree completely. We showed no energy in the first 20 minutes. Our high press was half hearted and virtually non existent. It left four of our players isolated too far up the field. The City midfield were then one man over and given lots of time and space to pick a pass. We started really slowly. Even Poch said that we didn't compete in the first twenty minutes. I can hardly recall a single crunching tackle in that period as we simply stood off them. This has been an issue for us in many games this season.

Nothing to do with lack of energy and everything to do with Dembele being hassled and our midfield not being able to keep the ball. We did not stand off them, we kept losing the ball! We could not keep the thing. As for the “high-press” you will have noted 50 or so posts back I tabbed Kane’s lack of fitness as our other issue alongside Dembele being targetted. Funny thing is, someone else agreed with my assessment and you agreed with them agreeing with me! Not that it matters at all, just inconsistent.


Sitting on my porcelain throne using glory-glory.co.uk mobile app

 

[diego_maradona]

Again. I disagree. We couldn't go into 'full press' because City are too fast and too good on the ball so can play through it (just as Monaco did to us in the CL last season). I think a lot of that comes from Silva being such a good player and so clever with his movement. He constantly found space and was able to get on the ball and dictate the game from central areas quite high up the pitch with Dier not able to stop this happening (as he is able to do with a lot of other attacking central players).

IMO Liverpool's pattern of play is quite different to ours (and is actually quite a good match up for City). Their press is more manic, but they also have a deeper defence than we do. They also get the ball forward a lot quicker than us, playing a lot more long diagonal balls for Salad and Mane to chase down. We don't have that same pace in our wide midfield players, especially with Son not starting.

I dont agree with that entirely. We were not at it. Our press is systematic, and when we are on it, flawless. It seemed to break down, City were very good in possession. But I dont think we squeezed the way we usually do. We were pretty much on it for the first 10 mins of the second half before we let them keep the ball. We looked tired after that first 10 mins.

 

[Bullet]

The first goal came because we allowed Kompany loads of time to pick out a through ball to Jesus. Sanchez let him run, rather than dropping off and giving himself a head start.
The second goal came because Dier filled in at right back for 10 seconds, Trippier was off up the wing, Dier waltzed back into midfield and we had no right back... so City said CHEERS LADS and just ran straight down that channel. Then THE HUMAN HATCHET came steaming out of goal and tried to chop someone in half.
Game over in a few minutes. Professional? No. Experienced? No.

 

[Raziel]

I dont agree with that entirely. We were not at it. Our press is systematic, and when we are on it, flawless. It seemed to break down, City were very good in possession. But I dont think we squeezed the way we usually do. We were pretty much on it for the first 10 mins of the second half before we let them keep the ball. We looked tired after that first 10 mins.

We have actually not played the manic press in quite some time, first half of season we did it a bit, 2nd half has been a little more possession, little less press and more committed attack (occasionally leaves us exposed, saw it against Stoke)

I wouldn't quite describe it like @Bullet , but we pushed too high up for first goal (Sanchez was on half way line), it's dangerous against a team that has both pace (Sterling, Sane, Jesus) and good passers.

I get the idea that City is vulnerable defending (and we saw moments of it, and if Kane was in form, I'd expect we would have scored at least one more), but, they were mentally coming off a really bad week, the last thing we wanted to do was give them a goal to settle them into their normal routine, 0-0 60 minutes in would have been a perfect platform for us. A little naïve from Poch.

 

[Pirate55]

Nothing to do with lack of energy and everything to do with Dembele being hassled and our midfield not being able to keep the ball. We did not stand off them, we kept losing the ball! We could not keep the thing. As for the “high-press” you will have noted 50 or so posts back I tabbed Kane’s lack of fitness as our other issue alongside Dembele being targetted. Funny thing is, someone else agreed with my assessment and you agreed with them agreeing with me! Not that it matters at all, just inconsistent.


Sitting on my porcelain throne using glory-glory.co.uk mobile app

You really can't blame it on one man - or even two if you consder Kane unfit. The whole team didn't perform in the first 20 minutes and Poch agrees with that. Or do you disagree with Poch?

 

[SteveAWOL]

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