Re: Tim Sherwood - Head Coach
http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/tottenhams-win-over-manchester-united-proves-tim-sherwood-is-happy-to-switch-systems--unlike-his-predecessor-andre-villasboas-9034548.html
There is more to Tottenham under Tim Sherwood than a 4-4-2. Victory at Old Trafford may have confirmed plenty about Manchester United’s on-going frailties but Spurs exploited those vulnerabilities with intelligence and resolve.
Sherwood has been painted as something of a tactical Neanderthal in certain quarters because of his inexperience; Spurs’ defeat by West Ham — essentially Sherwood’s first stage interview for the job of succeeding Andre Villas-Boas — seemed to imply a naivety often associated with a 4-4-2 system that seems antiquated in the days of more complex formations.
However, here was evidence that labelling Sherwood’s version as simplistic and regimented would be doing him a disservice, as Christian Eriksen floated in off the left flank to help outnumber United in the central midfield area that remains their weakness.
There were occasions when Eriksen left Danny Rose exposed to the opposing combination of Chris Smalling and Antonio Valencia but his ability to drift infield caused United considerable problems on the break. Eriksen wandered so far at one point that he ended up on the right flank to deliver a fine cross for Emmanuel Adebayor to head the visitors in front.
United had been the better team in the opening period by some distance but they gradually lost the midfield battle as Etienne Capoue and Mousa Dembele recovered from nervous starts to gradually assert themselves, ably supported by Adebayor’s impressive work rate which extended to dropping deep to help stifle the hosts.
Aaron Lennon worked diligently to help protect Kyle Walker from the ever-industrious Adnan Januzaj and Eriksen’s stooping header to put Spurs 2-0 up came during a period when they operated with a degree of comfort despite United’s best intentions to the contrary.
The champions rallied, with Danny Welbeck immediately halving the deficit with a well-taken finish, and they were unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty when Hugo Lloris appeared to foul substitute
Ashley Young in the box — referee Howard Webb’s non-award was declared “scandalous” by United manager David Moyes — but Spurs’ resilience deserved its reward.
Wayne Rooney’s remonstrations with Webb at the final whistle failed to mask the uncomfortable truth for United that they simply failed to muster enough momentum to sufficiently unsettle Tottenham.
Sherwood switched to something resembling a 4-2-3-1 late on to protect the lead and the notion he is able to motivate his players in a way Villas-Boas was unable to finds credence in the key role played by Adebayor and the emergence of Harry Kane and Nabil Bentaleb as substitutes.
There is a togetherness about Tottenham that bodes well — particularly given they were not at their very best here — but, of course, it remains to be seen how long that can last. Last season’s win on this ground was hailed as a vindication of Villas-Boas’s methods. Given how that turned out, one should tread with caution in declaring this a similar landmark for Sherwood but it is hard to deny Spurs look galvanised as they sit just two points behind fourth-placed Liverpool.
United’s future looks more uncertain. They undeniably retain the ability to end this campaign in the top four but their reliance on Rooney, who played the full game despite failing to recover from a groin problem, and teenage winger Januzaj is an indictment of their lack of midfield creativity.
The problem is, of course, nothing new. They have lost four home Premier League games now partly because they lack the ability to manoeuvre possession quickly enough to their wingers; United are one of the few top sides not to attack predominantly through central areas and rely on swift distribution to the flanks in order to make inroads.
Michael Carrick is yet to return to full fitness and United should improve in this respect as he rediscovers match sharpness but here that failure to move the ball well enough contributed to one of Moyes’s decisions backfiring spectacularly.
Sir Alex Ferguson often used Valencia at right-back to provide additional width but these days United do not control games sufficiently enough to allow Valencia to bomb forward from defence, which ranks as the principal benefit of using the Ecuadorian in that position.
Instead, his defensive weaknesses were exposed as Eriksen stole in with Valencia floundering to head the winning goal.
United have lost their aura. “What was vital is that the manager said before the game that we had to respect the opposition, don’t think that because they are sixth in the league it is going to be an easy game,” said Rose.
Note the implication that there may have been complacency for a visiting team at the home of the champions. Once, there was only one pre-match emotion for many opponents: fear. United can, of course, recover but it is Tottenham who have the greater impetus at present.
The traditional narrative of these two sides is that United always come good and Tottenham often falter. It is too early to predict anything different but this most unpredictable of Premier League seasons has taken another intriguing twist.
