Tottenham Hotspur v Swansea City (14th Dec)

[Millbanks]

MOTD could make Charlie Adam look like Pirlo.

I watched the game mate, and the guy scored a lucky rebound due to the fact Fazio had him covered yet again, and was denied maybe three one on ones by our defence, keeper or by generally being too fat.

Did he make a single run with the ball, take anyone on and have a dig from distance?

If he was skinny, Im not sure people would be admiring his skills to be fair. Being strong is not a talent.

I like strikers who track back and help the midfield, and if they dont, they need to be like Berbatov or Lineker.

Id rather Benteke personally......when is he signing by the way?

You say lucky, but he put himself in great positions time and time again - the goal was coming, and it was always likely to be him. Fazio didn't have him covered. Did you see the goal!? Bony dropped back and Fazio didn't. First shot hit him - second time he scored as Faz wasn't close enough to him to make a challenge. What a strange way to dress up a goal conceded - "the striker is shit and our defence had him wrapped up" - yet he scored! If only Bobby could get wrapped up like that every game...

Yes he did run with the ball. And more importantly, he ran off the ball as well, often untracked by our defence.

"Did he have a single dig from distance" - he was their lone striker, I don't think his role is to be taking pot shots from 30 yards.

Your fat comments pretty much sum up your inability to look at Bony's ability rationally, as he is obviously not "fat" otherwise he wouldn't be running around for 90 minutes scoring against some of the best defenders in the world.

On a more sensible note, I'm surprised to see people call for Benteke over Bony, when the bloke clearly hasn't been the same since his injury. 10 goals in 26 games last season, 1 in 6 this season.

Still living off his 12/13 season for me. Gone downhill, much like Lukaku.

 

[Tomo]

You say lucky, but he put himself in great positions time and time again - the goal was coming, and it was always likely to be him. Fazio didn't have him covered. Did you see the goal!? Bony dropped back and Fazio didn't. First shot hit him - second time he scored as Faz wasn't close enough to him to make a challenge. What a strange way to dress up a goal conceded - "the striker is shit and our defence had him wrapped up" - yet he scored! If only Bobby could get wrapped up like that every game...

Yes he did run with the ball. And more importantly, he ran off the ball as well, often untracked by our defence.

"Did he have a single dig from distance" - he was their lone striker, I don't think his role is to be taking pot shots from 30 yards.

Your fat comments pretty much sum up your inability to look at Bony's ability rationally, as he is obviously not "fat" otherwise he wouldn't be running around for 90 minutes scoring against some of the best defenders in the world.

On a more sensible note, I'm surprised to see people call for Benteke over Bony, when the bloke clearly hasn't been the same since his injury. 10 goals in 26 games last season, 1 in 6 this season.

Still living off his 12/13 season for me. Gone downhill, much like Lukaku.

Perfer Bony but right now would take Benteke as well, Soldado was invisible AGAIN with Bony he is a handful every game need someone like that, apart from up top I don't think this squad is too bad, bit young but it will grow.

 

[sammyspurs]

You say lucky, but he put himself in great positions time and time again - the goal was coming, and it was always likely to be him. Fazio didn't have him covered. Did you see the goal!? Bony dropped back and Fazio didn't. First shot hit him - second time he scored as Faz wasn't close enough to him to make a challenge. What a strange way to dress up a goal conceded - "the striker is shit and our defence had him wrapped up" - yet he scored! If only Bobby could get wrapped up like that every game...

Yes he did run with the ball. And more importantly, he ran off the ball as well, often untracked by our defence.

"Did he have a single dig from distance" - he was their lone striker, I don't think his role is to be taking pot shots from 30 yards.

Your fat comments pretty much sum up your inability to look at Bony's ability rationally, as he is obviously not "fat" otherwise he wouldn't be running around for 90 minutes scoring against some of the best defenders in the world.

On a more sensible note, I'm surprised to see people call for Benteke over Bony, when the bloke clearly hasn't been the same since his injury. 10 goals in 26 games last season, 1 in 6 this season.

Still living off his 12/13 season for me. Gone downhill, much like Lukaku.

Pot shots from 30 yards?

I simply meant creating for himself like Kane did with that late curler from the edge of the box.

Not sure why the uproar.

I simply dont see the fuss, and think our own Harry had a much stronger game. His performance didnt make me think..."thats what we need".

 

[DeeGee]

Also, I'd like to say that's the first time I've seen Stambouli play and he seemed really solid for his short stint. Calm on the ball, always an option, and good in the tackle. He certainly complemented Bentaleb better than Mason.

He could be the steel we need in there to compete, as Mason and Bentaleb isn't physical enough.


My main observation from the game is the sheer lack of movement from our players. It really is amazing the watch. A simple 10 yard pass, and they stand still. FUCKING MOVE! MAKE A RUN!! I don't know how many times Davies should have been bombing past the full back but instead sat on the halfway line, received the ball and played it straight back to Verts.

It was scary how similar that was to watching an AVB team. The sideways and backwards passing was constant. The lack of options and lack of urgency in our play and movement was horrendous. Everyone just jogs around, no one makes a run in behind. We are SO narrow at times it's frightening.

Personally for the next league game I'd go -

[formation=4231, Lloris, Walker, Faz, Verts, Davies, Stambouli, Bentaleb, Lennon, Eriksen, Chadli, Kane][/formation]

It's been like that for 2 seasons, Eriksen's even guilty of it. However, I think maybe both Walker and Davies were told not to leave too much space in behind. We would have got murdered down the flanks if they would have been bombing forward. Same goes for Mason, his strength is passing and moving, yesterday he looked a bit slower and wasn't getting forward enough. Again, don't know if he was told to sit back, defend hit them on the break. Keep the shape. Lack of one of the 2 forwards coming deep meant we were often out gunned in the middle, exposing the defence. As for first touch yesterday, most of the 22 players had a bit of trouble.

Movement is the biggest problem we have in this team. Players like Lamela suffer as he holds onto it looking for the movement and ends up running into trouble because there is no outlet.
To be fair, Mason is one of the better midfielders for picking out passes to runners. I notice that sometimes our players make the runs and don't get the ball, they then stop making them.
I remember Chadlis' first games when he was making lots of runs which were never rewarded by Dembele, Sandro or Capoue

Inverted wingers need overlapping fullbacks - which was not happening yesterday either by design or because of their persistent width threat - to provide width, to spread their players out making space for our midfielders. Otherwise it's all too narrow.
I think one solution is to maybe play Lamela on the left, Chadli on the right and Eriksen in the centre.
I think you will see more width, more movement behind the defence and probably more goals from the pair of them. With Eriksen in the middle he can pick out passes.

 

[Dannyboy]

There is one concern I have where our full backs are concerned; we continue not to have support from our wide players which leaves Davies and Walker exposed, they have to stick or twist, stick and the attacking player advances, twist and there is space for a pass in behind (see their goal) as a prime example.

This has continued to happen whilst we play inverted wingers, not just under MP, and is a source of constant frustration.

Not too sure we can continue to assume we'll be in with a chance of winning every match in the 90th minute but I do love a last minute winner.

 

[Blanchflower]

On motd they said that when last time they praised harry Kane someone at spurs social media told them not to do it.

Wft would the club not want Kane to get any praise?

They said someone (as in Joe Bloggs) got in touch via social media - not someone form spurs got in touch

 

[Millbanks]

I simply dont see the fuss, and think our own Harry had a much stronger Kane. His performance didnt make me think..."thats what we need".

That's fair enough, but you admitted you haven't seen much of him and I can tell you he is a quality player, and certainly an upgrade on Kane (though I could see them playing together quite successfully).

It's when you start calling professional athletes fat that your argument loses a bit of credence. Generally enjoy your posts though.

 

[Tomo]

They said someone (as in Joe Bloggs) got in touch via social media - not someone form spurs got in touch

Ah right mis-heard, seems a bit weird then mentioning it, oh well. Anyway well done Harry, another fine performance.

 

[Aussie Ardiles]

My player ratings on yet another very un-Spurs stressful last minute away win..


Lloris (7) 100th game for Spurs only wish there’d be 100 more. Made the saves we ‘expect’ of Hugo, seriously we are so lucky to have him!
Walker (7.5) Great 2nd performance from him. Passed well and did very well tracking Montero. Safe to say all of our other 3 RB options would have been absolutely run rings around by their winger
Fazio (4) Back to the error prone version of about a month or so ago. Ordinary on the ball and struggled to deal with Bony for the first 60 odd mins. Did improve towards the end which saves him from a 3 rating.
Vertonghen (5.5) Also struggled with Bony but deserves a higher rating than Fazio due to not being a ticking timebomb on the ball.
Davies (6) Did well with a goal saving tackle & the assist for Eriksen but was terribly caught out for their goal. Really was comical how lost he looked in the build up to that.

Mason (6) An ok performance. Said pre-game that he and Bentaleb wouldn’t be suited to combatting Swansea’s style of play and that was the case in the 2nd half. Was good in patches
Bentaleb (6.5) Just slightly better than Mason. Used the ball well getting it forward just as often as sideways! As always looks calm and composed beyond his years

Lamela (4) I’m one for giving this guy time and haven’t really been harsh on him at all but he was infuriating yesterday. Little to no game awareness whatsoever (Eriksen taking great corners and he goes over to take one!), loses the ball in dangerous positions and spent more time looking for a red than anything else.
Eriksen (8) The opposite of Lamela, such a smart smart footballer! His interview post-game about how he finished that goal was as class as he was when on the ball. Great set piece delivery for most corners and FKs which was a nice change
Kane (8.5) MOTM effort from again. He really is a workhorse striker/#10 great game! Great harassing lead to another goal! Great leap for headers for not just the goal but any ball.

Soldado (6) Gets above a 5 jut because he didn’t fluff any chances because he wasn’t given any. Lacked service as Swansea took a strangle hold of the ball

Dembele (6.5) Thought he was pretty good in the role just behind Kane. He is dangerous closer to goal with his ability to ride 1 or 2 challenges. Les Ferdinand was so right about him during the week, talent to burn but would rather invite a challenge and burn them and play a simple pass rather than burst forward and shoot. Think he could enjoy the role behind Kane if given a chance there more often.
Stambouli (7) Not sure why he hasn’t figured more often in the league! Implements the press well and uses the ball well. Strong in a tackle and looks like the sort of player that would stick his head in front of a boot to get a point for his team
Chadli not on long enough

Pochettino (7) Apart from picking Lamela over Chadli I thought his first XI was good but was very impressed with his substitutions. Not sure he set us out to sit back and absorb that much, but it’s a dangerous game to play because we really could have been 4-1 or 5-1 down!

Onwards and upwards? Who knows. I’m not holding my breath the way we’ve gone this season we will get knocked out by Newcastle mid-week and not score at home to Burnley

 

[1882]

Last minute winners are the best winners.

They're also a little bit cunty!!

I have to stand by the fact that I hate hate haaaaaate it whenever it's done to us, or worse still, the Arsecum do it... whilst a win is always welcome, what would be more welcome is a QPR'esque-styel canter to the finish line, so we can all relax for the final 10-15 minutes... Christmas is stressful enough FFS!!
:carrollwtf::lamelashock:

 

[Millbanks]

Movement is the biggest problem we have in this team. Players like Lamela suffer as he holds onto it looking for the movement and ends up running into trouble because there is no outlet.
To be fair, Mason is one of the better midfielders for picking out passes to runners. I notice that sometimes our players make the runs and don't get the ball, they then stop making them.
I remember Chadlis' first games when he was making lots of runs which were never rewarded by Dembele, Sandro or Capoue

Inverted wingers need overlapping fullbacks - which was not happening yesterday either by design or because of their persistent width threat - to provide width, to spread their players out making space for our midfielders. Otherwise it's all too narrow.
I think one solution is to maybe play Lamela on the left, Chadli on the right and Eriksen in the centre.
I think you will see more width, more movement behind the defence and probably more goals from the pair of them. With Eriksen in the middle he can pick out passes.

Precisely the problem. A right footed Eriksen on the left wing, a left-footed Lamela on the right. It just doesn't work, and it seems to be taking far too long for our managers to realise this. We don't even have to drop any players - just swap the wings over for fuck sake!

We actually started with inverted wingers in a 4-4-2 yesterday. That's a first for me - never seen that before. Completely bizarre, and played into their hands as they had 3 in the middle. That formation lends itself to having width, and we had none.

Walker pushed up quite a bit, but Davies seemed hesitant to do so.

I don't agree with Eriksen out wide, but I'd still rather have him on the right that the left, at least he'll be able to put in a fuckin cross!

 

[Yorkshire_Spurs]

On motd they said that when last time they praised harry Kane someone at spurs social media told them not to do it.

Wft would the club not want Kane to get any praise?

Because look at Raheem Sterling. Played well, looked bright, got made out to be the next coming of Jesus and is now shite.

Keep him low key. It is better that way. We all know he is good. That is enough for me.

 

[sammyspurs]

That's fair enough, but you admitted you haven't seen much of him and I can tell you he is a quality player, and certainly an upgrade on Kane (though I could see them playing together quite successfully).

It's when you start calling professional athletes fat that your argument loses a bit of credence. Generally enjoy your posts though.

He is fat, and if he wasnt he might get on the end of more

 

[DeeGee]

I thought Montero made the most of the arm thing. I think if someone wants to do you with the elbow or forearm they will do a better job. Not to mention he's a Uruguayan and Lamela Argentinian. He was acting up all game Montero.
I thought Williams kicking Kane was worse, after he had pushed him over.
The worse tackle out there imo was Ki S Y on Mason. Completely late, no intention of playing the ball and done his ankle. Luckily, for Jon Jo, Kane never went over theatrically rolling around holding his leg or Shelvey would have gone. It was wet and slide tackles will go a miss. Vertonghen's and Lamela's were both ones where they pulled out and made minimal contact.

Fuck me I remember 'Livermore is shit', 'Dawson has to go', 'Sigurdsson has been disappointing' and 'I never want to see Hudds in a spurs shirt again' then when they are at other clubs it's 'we should never have let them go'. We could do with Livermore's 'tenacity in midfield', Hudds 'range of passing', Dawson's 'solid defending' and Sigurdsson's 'assists and goals'.
Could it be they were not as bad as most thought and it's just that some expect fucking miracles week in week out.
Everyone was saying Davies and Vorm was good business and now Sigurddsson should never have gone.

I even heard we should be rolling Swansea over 5-0 at their gaff. Now, that is so unreal. When was the last time Swansea lost by 5 clear goals at home in the EPL then? When was the last time we won by 5 clear goals away?

 

[Yorkshire_Spurs]

He is fat, and if he wasnt he might get on the end of more

He has outscored everyone in 2014 in the league we happen to play in... He has 8 in his last 10.

I don't get the hate for him. He is better then anything we have, and is up there with the best we could probably attract / afford.

 

[sammyspurs]

He has outscored everyone in 2014 in the league we happen to play in... He has 8 in his last 10.

I don't get the hate for him. He is better then anything we have, and is up there with the best we could probably attract / afford.

Swap hate for rate and you mind not be so excited by my simple opinion being different to yours?

 

[Tomo]

He has outscored everyone in 2014 in the league we happen to play in... He has 8 in his last 10.

I don't get the hate for him. He is better then anything we have, and is up there with the best we could probably attract / afford.

Exactly, we will never get Aguero, Costo and the like, we might just might get this guy.

Give them Soldado, Ade, Naughton and a pack of chips or whatever Swansea people like for the deal.

Have to say Swansea looked quite good in the second half, although that might be cos we were not that great.

 

[DeeGee]

He is fat, and if he wasnt he might get on the end of more

The average weight for a person 1.82 m tall is 61.3kg to 82.8kg. Bony is 1.82 and 86kg (5ft 11 and 13.5 stone)
The average weight of a EPL forward is 76 kg (11.9 stone)
Drogba is 1.88 and 2kg lighter.
Gomis, who was called a beast yesterday, is 77kg. (12 stone)
Bony is overweight.

 

[Mick Cooper]

I thought bony meant thin?

 

[sammyspurs]

The average weight for a person 1.82 m tall is 61.3kg to 82.8kg. Bony is 1.82 and 86kg (5ft 11 and 13.5 stone)
The average weight of a EPL forward is 76 kg (11.9 stone)
Drogba is 1.88 and 2kg lighter.
Bony is overweight.

Thanks for backing me up.......but I could see he had a big fat arse anyway....maybe it was my stream