The Style v Substance discussion

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halothagod

halothagod

We are not good at the moment. But we are not as awful as some people are making out. Yes, we have played a low block in our run against the top teams but we have basically been putting out fires and trying to create a win at all costs mentality, which is pretty new to the club. So the wheels will come off a bit in the process. Normal.

The question is, would you rather play expansive footy like Brighton have been doing and winning the square root of fuck all?

Put it this way? Would you rather we play exactly like Brighton v Man U and come away with nothing (I know we have better finishers at Spurs) or as we did v Brighton and came away with a late win and all 3 points?

I know which one I’ll take.
 
You can play expansive football and not lose. Why use Brighton as an example and not Liverpool? Anyway this is an argument to have if we're playing ultra dull football and winning things. For what its worth i could tolerate it if we won the league for a season but not for a league/FA cup and 5th/6th/7th in the league. Its not why i got into football and i felt the same under Graham and AVB.
 
Not sure we're achieving any more by ridding ourselves of style. Which is the issue.

We got more points in seasons managed by Redknapp and Pochettino than we have so far this season whilst playing relatively stylish football that received plaudits.

I want to see Tottenham win. But when you're playing a poor brand of football, playing not to lose only to then lose (or drop points). It's quite depressing.

It shouldn't need to be one or the other to succeed.
 
halothagod said:
We are not good at the moment. But we are not as awful as some people are making out. Yes, we have played a low block in our run against the top teams but we have basically been putting out fires and trying to create a win at all costs mentality, which is pretty new to the club. So the wheels will come off a bit in the process. Normal.

The question is, would you rather play expansive footy like Brighton have been doing and winning the square root of fuck all?

Put it this way? Would you rather we play exactly like Brighton v Man U and come away with nothing (I know we have better finishers at Spurs) or as we did v Brighton and came away with a late win and all 3 points?

I know which one I’ll take.
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There doesn't have to be a choice here ad we're not winning anyway, so we are watching shit and are still super unlikely to bring home a pot.
 
Sir Archibald Crooks said:
You can play expansive football and not lose. Why use Brighton as an example and not Liverpool? Anyway this is an argument to have if we're playing ultra dull football and winning things. For what its worth i could tolerate it if we won the league for a season but not for a league/FA cup and 5th/6th/7th in the league. Its not why i got into football and i felt the same under Graham and AVB.
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Yup agreed why use Brighton as an example they are not one of our piers . Teams in the top 6 /clubs is what you should compare with and almost all play a brand football different to ours. Points wise this brand of football has delivered not much more or less than the other teams. So I don’t think it’s a case of playing this brand of football to achieve success. Most of the top teams here and in Europe now play a more progressive , fast attacking football probablt AM in Spain the only ones who don’t .
 
If we win playing shit I don't care.

But if we lose and barely make an effort, it's a fucking travesty.

When our tactics don't work, it makes football unenjoyable.

Football is meant to be enjoyed.
 
halothagod said:
We are not good at the moment. But we are not as awful as some people are making out. Yes, we have played a low block in our run against the top teams but we have basically been putting out fires and trying to create a win at all costs mentality, which is pretty new to the club. So the wheels will come off a bit in the process. Normal.

The question is, would you rather play expansive footy like Brighton have been doing and winning the square root of fuck all?

Put it this way? Would you rather we play exactly like Brighton v Man U and come away with nothing (I know we have better finishers at Spurs) or as we did v Brighton and came away with a late win and all 3 points?

I know which one I’ll take.
Click to expand...

So you want Tottenham Hotspur FC to play like Brighton?
Is that your point? Bit weird. Why compare us to Brighton? Are they the new standard for football? The new Ajax??

I want us to play like Spurs. A team known for playing adventurous and exciting football. Playing on the front foot. But I grew up in the 80s. The history of the 60s and 70s was still fresh (including relegation). Maybe I was spoilt by the players I saw.

And I get it. You can’t play that way every game for 90mins. That is not realistic either.

But to honour the traditions of the club that were formed by Rowe, Nicholson and which is at the DNA of the club does mean playing an expansive style of football.

We have won next to nothing since the 90s. I still love this club. But I do think the next generation of”fans” at the ground will be similar to the clubs we currently mock. Plastics. Look at the state of them down the road.

 
If we win whilst playing defensive ‘negative’ football and get silverware then I don’t mind in the slightest.

If we lose whilst playing defensive ‘negative’ football and win fuck all then I’ll call for the manager’s head.

Mourinho has until the end of next season. I imagine this is an experiment and if it brings us trophies, Levy will try to extend Mourinho’s contract. If it doesn’t work then he’ll look for someone else without having to pay a manager off due to sacking him.

Ultimately, I think whilst flawed, Mourinho’s tactics DO work (as evidenced by his trophy cabinet). But the players in his teams need to A) fully understand Mourinho’s system and B) be good enough. I think there are a number of players in our team that fail at both criteria.
 
SpursUltra said:
So you want Tottenham Hotspur FC to play like Brighton?
Is that your point? Bit weird. Why compare us to Brighton? Are they the new standard for football? The new Ajax??

I want us to play like Spurs. A team known for playing adventurous and exciting football. Playing on the front foot. But I grew up in the 80s. The history of the 60s and 70s was still fresh (including relegation). Maybe I was spoilt by the players I saw.

And I get it. You can’t play that way every game for 90mins. That is not realistic either.

But to honour the traditions of the club that were formed by Rowe, Nicholson and which is at the DNA of the club does mean playing an expansive style of football.

We have won next to nothing since the 90s. I still love this club. But I do think the next generation of”fans” at the ground will be similar to the clubs we currently mock. Plastics. Look at the state of them down the road.

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No. I mentioned Brighton because they do play fine footy but win fuck all, like Spurs. Sure, we can play expansive footy and win pots - but we don’t have the players. Simple.
 
halothagod said:
We are not good at the moment. But we are not as awful as some people are making out. Yes, we have played a low block in our run against the top teams but we have basically been putting out fires and trying to create a win at all costs mentality, which is pretty new to the club. So the wheels will come off a bit in the process. Normal.

The question is, would you rather play expansive footy like Brighton have been doing and winning the square root of fuck all?

Put it this way? Would you rather we play exactly like Brighton v Man U and come away with nothing (I know we have better finishers at Spurs) or as we did v Brighton and came away with a late win and all 3 points?

I know which one I’ll take.
Click to expand...

Question. Why chose brighton? The side that can't find the back of the net because they have Welbeck and Maupay as their strikers.

Why not pick Southhampton, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City as the litmus test? Fuck, even Man U who are back ahead of us, play a more enjoyable brand of football.

We are sitting 5th, and could be 8th if the people behind us get their 3pts.

Shit even Aston Villa play a more attractive game than us and they have 2 games in hand. They could be 3pts ahead of us by the end of it all.

We have the squad to compete with anyone. We have seen that even with playing the most conservative style.

Why can't we turn it on a bit and be more than one dimensional?
 
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