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Match Tottenham Hotspur v. Manchester United - F.A. Cup Semi-Final

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John Thomas said:
Mate, we have lost 8 semi finals in a row. 2 or 3 and maybe you could put in down to bad luck. 4 or 5 and you'd be stretching it.
But EIGHT!!
Come on. Surely fans have every right to question this so called progress you talk of. For a club as big as Spurs with the fantastic support we pull from at home and abroad, Something within the clubs philosophy cant be right mate.
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I think it is a really difficult one but my view is not whether the philosophy is wrong because this season only City of the top teams did we fail to overcome.

The 8 losses is bizarre and painful. It's also what sport does at times.

Colin Montgomerie and Jimmy White, to name 2 individuals, and then teams through the years, who just don't quite get there.

In the sunshine of a Sunday morning the pain is no less acute. Another troubled night pondering what might have been but the facts are that for now we have one of those weird records that will get talked about until it's broken.

So not a philosophy because that is bred through what happens and then named retrospectively.

It will make Pochettino stronger if he learns the lessons but in all 3 cup losses we have scored first, so it is about dealing with that and maybe the pressure it brings.

Who can say. It is hard for all concerned that's for sure so sticking together is essential but sadly for this fantastic group of players it's another year without the pomp of a Cup final.

Just get a top 4 place to ward off the detractors and we can go again next season.
 
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GaulPascoigne said:
Their badge says "We'll pay you a fuck load more"

You think if we could offer players £150K pw more than United they'd still choose them?

Yeah, we should be beating that current United team, but the point is, in the long hall the team with the bigger budget always comes out on top.
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I don’t overly agree although I do see your point. Man Utd are the biggest club in the world, look what they’ve won.

They aren’t even signing every top player under the sun, in fact they have signed silly money for worse than what we have.

So again, Lukaku isn’t better than Kane because he’s on twice the money.
Smalling isn’t better than Toby, but Smalling plays for Man U so wants to die for it.

It’s a simple fact....players don’t become better because they earn more.
If Lingard is better than Dele just because he gets paid more, or Herrera better than Dier for the same reasons, then that is a damning assessment of our players outlook on us.
It means they are not trying because they want more money basically.
That’s nothing to defend in my book, and thankfully I don’t believe it.

Poch has tried to create a culture here, and talked us up into the elite. Sadly the players still see us as the perfect step before joining an elite club though.
 
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John Thomas said:
Mate, we have lost 8 semi finals in a row. 2 or 3 and maybe you could put in down to bad luck. 4 or 5 and you'd be stretching it.
But EIGHT!!
Come on. Surely fans have every right to question this so called progress you talk of. For a club as big as Spurs with the fantastic support we pull from at home and abroad, Something within the clubs philosophy cant be right mate.
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If you don't think the club is progressing, I really don't know how we can have dialogue. Accept that we are progressing but not at your desired pace, give us some common ground to work from.
Many clubs celebrate getting to an FA cup semi final. I'm not celebrating it, but I'm not melting yet either.
 
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Just so I know what level of reality we are operating on, are we seriously using us losing semi finals in the nineties as a stick to beat this team with?

We are actually saying that losing eight in a row is a “mentality” thing? When loads of our team yesterday weren’t even alive when this “run” started?

I’m not sure how I’d even categorise that. Stupid doesn’t seem to do it justice.
 
John Thomas said:
Mate, we have lost 8 semi finals in a row. 2 or 3 and maybe you could put in down to bad luck. 4 or 5 and you'd be stretching it.
But EIGHT!!
Come on. Surely fans have every right to question this so called progress you talk of. For a club as big as Spurs with the fantastic support we pull from at home and abroad, Something within the clubs philosophy cant be right mate.
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The problem is that we are not established “winners” and we don’t set out to be winners in every competition we enter.
The league cup, the Europa League - have we ever really tried? Really tried? I think that’s the difference between us and others.

Second string teams and half hearted attempts in the last 5 years. I don’t really think the FA cup is high on the priority list either.

I think as a club the goal right now is CL football. Anything else is a bonus.

And realistically the majority of fans will be ok with that. Better to be in the CL than not in it ask any Woolwich fan.

The crazy thing is the only teams who have won the FA cup in the last 11 years outside of the top four are currently playing league 1 football - so what does that say about the “winning” mentality it takes to win the FA cup?
 
Mick Cooper said:
SUPPORT SOMEONE ELSE THEN!
JUST FUCK OFF
Why are you making the rest of us suffer with your constant whining? You start and prolong fights with Spurs supporters on here, you denigrate and whine about the players, the manager, the tactics, the supporters, the singing
You make out you have the answer to everything - and yet you refuse to take over the leadership of the club and take us to the glory we all crave.
Why is that?
Is it because you are just a massive gobshite?

Support the cub or just fuck off
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I support the club more than individual players. I’m 100% behind the manager and chairman.

You think the players are the club, they aren’t.

Right now I’d be happy with 11 academy products stepping out into the new stadium next year....I said as much yesterday.

That’s supporting the club. Fuck Toby and his like.

Not sure why you’ve tried to turn the thread into a bore fest of abuse, the debate has been interesting and civil. Everyone can see what you’re doing.
 
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sammyspurs said:
All the people excusing the defeat because Utd have more money and can buy better players....is Lingard now better than Dele then? Lukaku better than Kane? Pogba better than Eriksen?
Jones better than Jan?

It’s bollocks. Utd are average, but that little fucking badge on their chest means something to their players.

Our badge says stepping stone.
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Football is a competitive, emotional game. you win or you lose-you're happy or sad. Obviously you are sad and fudging your comments with emotion. Yesterday was down to Jose making it happen for Utd second half and we we couldn't respond tactically. I feel we need some change just to freshen things up but what we don't need is a negative vibes that are wobbles at best. Yesterday could have gone either way but JM just has that bit more experience than Poch and it showed. It wasn't down to players, Poch has to take this one on the chin.
 
Maybe we just aren't good enough?

We have too many players who simply aren't good enough (who we tend to overrate, let's be honest) to consistently win honours and too many players who switch the form button on and off.

If we are happy to compete with qualifying for Champions League then we are probably fine. It'll get harder though because Chelsea will be better next season and so will Woolwich.

If we want to win things and compete in all competitions then we need better players. Simple as that.
 
It hurts, it hurts, it hurts. However, enough shouting at the wall!
The manager, coaching staff and physios (and maybe the psychologist) need to dust the team down and prepare them for Watford.
We need to get behind them and raise the roof on the 30th.
We all know there's only one club?
 
Totti said:
Maybe we just aren't good enough?
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I feel this has to come back onto Poch-he is the manager, the coach, the tactician.
Maybe he's taken them as far as he can coach and the players have more to give?
I believe they are good enough but yesterday we couldnt change with the game the longer it went on and failed to adapt to JM defensive second half display. Utd went defensive on us because we were outplaying them, then the game changed.
 
Totti said:
Maybe we just aren't good enough?

We have too many players who simply aren't good enough (who we tend to overrate, let's be honest) to consistently win honours and too many players who switch the form button on and off.

If we are happy to compete with qualifying for Champions League then we are probably fine. It'll get harder though because Chelsea will be better next season and so will Woolwich.

If we want to win things and compete in all competitions then we need better players. Simple as that.
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The market value of the squad suggests otherwise and when a mediocre United side can win an FA Cup, UEFA Cup and League Cup in last 3 years whereas a mediocre Woolwich win 3 FA cups as well then that argument doesn’t hold true.

We have had a tier 1 team for the last 3 years but I don’t like saying it but we have a tier 2 manager and that is one of the primary reasons why we haven’t won anything.
 
Mr S Pippo said:
I feel this has to come back onto Poch-he is the manager, the coach, the tactician.
Maybe he's taken them as far as he can coach and the players have more to give?
I believe they are good enough but yesterday we couldnt change with the game the longer it went on and failed to adapt to JM defensive second half display. Utd went defensive on us because we were outplaying them, then the game changed.
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They can't be good enough though.

Before every single season. Before every big game they all come out with the same bullshit of "we deserve to win things", "we want to win this" but then they perform like shit. Every single time.

Whilst I'd put blame on Pochettino for the Juventus loss. I wouldn't blame him for yesterday. The players didn't want it. Look at that embarrassing second half performance. Outfought, no desire, no heart, not a care in the world.

They performed like the FA Cup wouldnt change their lives.
 
Am I the only one who thinks the game hinged on a terrible refereeing decision...how the hell was Valencia's 2 footed challenge not a sending off? And how the hell can the Fa appoint a referee from greater Manchester for a fucking Man utd match?
 
Archie said:
Am I the only one who thinks the game hinged on a terrible refereeing decision...how the hell was Valencia's 2 footed challenge not a sending off? And how the hell can the Fa appoint a referee from greater Manchester for a fucking Man utd match?
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We really need to stop looking for blame in stadiums, other teams,referees it is doing us no favours. We lost yesterday because we didn’t show up.
 
Totti said:
Maybe we just aren't good enough?

We have too many players who simply aren't good enough (who we tend to overrate, let's be honest) to consistently win honours and too many players who switch the form button on and off.

If we are happy to compete with qualifying for Champions League then we are probably fine. It'll get harder though because Chelsea will be better next season and so will Woolwich.

If we want to win things and compete in all competitions then we need better players. Simple as that.
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Thinking that players "switch the form button on and off" is an uncharacteristically stupid thing for you to say Totti. Sportsmen (of all levels) have committed suicide because they've lost form and can't do anything about it. I'd like to see you go up to Harry this morning and slag him off for 'choosing to play badly'. I suspect he'd say 'if that's your idea of support you can piss off and take it somewhere else'.

And, well it might well be "as simple as" getting better players but how, in this modern footballing world where money is everything, do we get better players? We become Man City.

Some people on this forum demand that we win every match we play, win the cup, win the title, win the CL, it's just not a healthy attitude to life. Accepting the pain of defeat with grace and composure is not 'being a loser'.
 
Totti said:
They performed like the FA Cup wouldnt change their lives.
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This was down to Poch - the players were on it first half (he got it right) and Utd were second best for 25 mins. The second half they looked lost. Poch is the puppet master and like JM should make changes that influence the game. He failed to do that IMO. JM on the other hand changed things to nullify our game and it worked.
 
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