Hope

Photo by Pol Sifter

As a long-time Spurs fan, one thing Ed has in abundance is hope:

At the end of the day, neither Spurs nor Chelsea should be happy about their 1 - 1 draw this past weekend. Spurs shouldn't be pleased because they missed several other good opportunities to win, including Gylfi Sigurdsson's close call near the end of the game. But more importantly, Spurs looked very second-tier in the second half and were happy just to hang on. As I said prior, this game was big for Spurs because they needed to show they could beat teams like Chelsea, not merely pull out a draw at home. They must somehow aim and reach higher or I fear even fourth place all be tougher to land than might seem the case right now.

As for Chelsea, they allowed themselves to be dominated for a half of the game by a side that should be substantially below them. Sure, they pulled out a draw and looked the better team in the second half, but if they were that much better why should they be satisfied with a draw?  If Chelsea are intent on winning the league -- which they are -- a draw at Spurs just shouldn't be enough.

By the way, it was me (and AVB) who questioned Gylfi's spot in the lineup. The last few weeks he has showed me to be completely wrong and has been a creative and goalscoring force from the left. Moussa Dembele also looked the part against Chelsea beating no less than 8 players off the dribble. Paulinho, however, looked less than impressive. Similarly Roberto Soldado, who just hasn't shown much of anything since joining Spurs. We can only hope he improves as Spurs need a finisher who, well, finishes!

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Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge were fun to watch this weekend with their quick but purposeful play. Sturridge has always had the athletic ability, but now he seems very sure of himself. This confident keeps him from rush decisions, and as of now he always looks to have time on the ball. Suarez has picked up his jail break frantic style. He's an impossible player to like, but he is definitely dangerous.

Perhaps most interesting about Liverpool is that they don't even try to play the tiki-taka style that Rodgers used at Swansea. With Steven Gerrard as a holder that's frankly impossible. Stevie G is the kind of the long cross field one touch pass. He's not going to keep swiveling and moving it backwards and sideways. But Kudo's to Rodgers in not forcing something that isn't there. The tiki-taka style is more than half personnel; Liverpool don't have those kind of players, but the kind they do have are pretty good.

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Last year as Manchester United ran the table we used to joke that they were a mid-table team without Van Persie. Well, Van Persie has cooled and, predictably, gotten injured, and United looks very much the mid-table team. David Moyes was criticized on this site for stating that they don't have enough top-tier players to win the Champions League. I suspect the Special One wouldn't be criticized for saying the same thing. Plus, Moyes is right. The mystery at United isn't so much why they fell to 12th place as it is why so many formerly elite players look so mediocre these days. What exactly happened to Nani and Antonio Valencia? Even Ashley Young looks bad these days. In fact, only Wayne Rooney and RVP appear to be top tier talent. That should be enough to win a lot of games in the BPL -- presuming RVP isn't hurt -- but won't be enough to win in Europe.

Spurs (and Such)

Ed Composing
photo by Max Braun	via PhotoRee

Ed's got more than a few thoughts on the young season:

o The loss of Willian to Chelsea didn't seem to affect Spurs that much against Swansea yesterday at White Hart Lane.  Unlike in their first game, Spurs out-athleted the Swans AND looked good on the ball.  Capoue was particularly good both on the ball and in defense, allowing Spurs to push both Dembele and Paulinho forward and to play with only one holder, in basically a 4-1-4-1.  This is close to the preferred lineup of AVB, and not surprisingly, of Jose Mourinho.  It simply takes the right person to be that holder, and with both Capoue and Sandro on the roster, Spurs should be able to field this lineup with regularity against teams other than the top four or five.

o For years American fans have questioned the athleticism of European soccer players, that is:  "Wouldn't it be better if the players were bigger and faster?"  Spurs are riding that experiment now, and after the smallest of samples the first reviews are positive.  Dembele, Paulinho, Chadli, Aboue, and Sandro are all big and fast.  They were able to completely stifle the Swansea passing game for most of the match.  Even though United beat this same Swansea team handily, United could barely touch the ball and had no answers to Swansea's position.  Indeed it was merely the supremely talented Van Persie that was the sole difference maker in the sides. Spurs, however, dominated the ball but both struggled to score and were somewhat unlucky to have not scored.  And this remains the deficiency of Spurs -- the lack of a true creative number ten.

o AVB is not unaware of this deficiency, attempting to pull in Willian for £30 million.  But the deal fell through at the last minute when Mourinho gleefully stole him out from under their noses at £32 million. It's fine for Spurs to be angry at Mourinho and Chelsea for this, but frankly they have no argument.  Even if the sole reason that Chelsea stole Willian from Spurs was to keep their rivals (okay too strong a word) from getting him -- as it has been reported that AVB and Mourinho seem to think -- that's still just a whine and not an argument.  If you want to keep Willian, either offer more or convince him that he's not going to play at Chelsea like he will at Spurs.  Or that with him, Spurs have a realistic chance of actually winning the league.  Are they really that far from Chelsea?  I'm starting to think not.  

o It seems now that Spurs are targeting a new number 10.  What's nice about this is that it's clear that AVB understands that Gilfy, though a nice player, is not the solution for a top-tier club at the number 10 position.  He is simply outshined from an athletic standpoint by so many of his teammates.  And while we are celebrating all of these new Spurs and the acumen it took to pick them up, we can't forget Holtby, who frankly has yet to impress and seems now more an extra than anything else.  That said, this transfer period has seemed miles and miles ahead of teams like United (they couldn't use Capoue or Paulinho?), or of course Arsenal, a team that annoys me more each year (there's nothing worse than arrogant mediocrity, it's so. . . . French).  

Easy Street: Tottenham Hotspur 3 - Internazionale Milan 0

photo by NCBrian	via PhotoRee

If James is writing, Bale is scoring:

Spurs strolled through an Inter Milan side today that appears to be a shadow of the team that Tottenham shocked in the Champions League group stage in 2010.  The Nerazzurri, struggling through transition, injuries and only one point off the pace for a Champions League places in Serie A, appeared as if they were happy to focus only on that for the rest of the season.  Spurs, on the other hand, are on a quest for both a European trophy and Champions League next year and, based on recent performances, are well on course for both.

Inter’s meek display should take nothing away from a dominating performance by the Lilywhites.  A fair score would have been five -- or even six -- to one or two.  Spurs took the lead only six minutes in on a headed goal from You Know Who off a fantastic cross from the ascendant Gylfi Sigurdsson (official MOTM).  It was Siggy who doubled the lead only twelve minutes later after a nice exchange from Mousa Dembele to Aaron Lennon, who gave Inter fits all night.  Also excellent were Jan Vertonghen who scored off a corner on a Bale delivery in the fifty third minute (Spurs scored on a corner!!!), Dembele and Scott Parker (unofficial MOTM).

Spurred Onward: Thoughts on Tottenham's Pre-Season

Photo by Dark Dwarf on Flickr

The farlieonfootie corporate staff had the opportunity to see Tottenham Hotspur during their recently concluded tour of the United States, as they took on Major League Soccer's New York Red Bulls in beautiful (not really) Harrison, New Jersey. But if the game's surroundings were not picture perfect, the soccer-only stadium they've built on the outskirts of Newark was not too shabby, offering great sight lines from every seat, and up close views of the stars from North London.

Spurs needed two goals in the second half to overcome a tough and determined Red Bulls side, 2-1. On a night in which Tim Cahill made his MLS debut, Gareth Bale headed in the equalizer, while newcomer Gylfi Sigurdsson offered a glimpse of what Spurs' fans can only hope will be his regular season form with the game's third goal, the game winner.

In no particular order, here are some thoughts on the game and Spurs heading onto the 2012/13 season:

o Tottenham lack a target man up top. Unless Spurs can re-sign Emmanuel Adebayor, they may be in trouble against any defense which is stiffer than New York's.  While the Lily Whites moved the ball easily between the 18s, their attacks continually broke down for lack of a man in the middle.

o Sigurdsson's form last season was not an aberration. The guy is going to be very good, and by the end of this season may have Spurs fans asking the question "Luka Who?"  Although he may not be as silky smooth on the ball as the Croatian playmaker, and is clearly not a like-for-like replacement, Gylfi is much more direct in his style, and easily a greater threat on goal than the soon-to-be-Real-Madrid man.

o What is Huerelho Gomes still doing on Spurs?  Just asking....

Gareth Bale orders a taxi for Maicon 

o Jan Vertonghen looks to be a serious upgrade for Spurs in central defense, an area that has plagued the North London club at times over the last few seasons. Looking steady and assured, Vertonghen appears to give Spurs' back line some defensive muscle and a steadiness they can count on....

o ...that is, if new manager Andre Villas-Boas' preference for playing a high-line defense doesn't continually put the team under pressure from the ball over the top. Chelsea never really caught on to the plan -- or didn't have the personnel -- to compress the pitch, so it will be very interesting to see if Spurs sink or swim under the pressure of trying to learn something new.

Coming Up Trumps: Round 34 in the BPL

o Paul Lambert may be having a Manger Of the Season type year, but his Norwich City troops displayed a tactical naïveté when they came out playing way too open a game in their Saturday contest against Manchester City. It was just what the doctor ordered for the Sky Blues, as evidenced by Kun Aguero even managing to find the net --  for the very first time on the road this season outside of Manchester or London.

o Chant of the Week (sung by City fans -- note the irony): "He wants to go home, He wants to go home, Carlos Tevez, He wants to go home." And with his hat trick on England's east coast, the Argentine sausage-like wantaway is our Player of the Week.

o It's all coming up trumps for Andy Carroll as the season begins to wind down. Two late winners inside of a week's time.... I wonder if he'll choose to go out to and celebrate with Roger Johnson and Anderson, or just spend a quiet night taking in a Boyzone concert with the King.  My guess is that wherever he goes, Carroll won't be celebrating with a Kaliber.

o Gylfi Sigurdsson has turned into a helluva mid-season loan for Swansea City. Just when I had begun to write-off the Swans as undergoing a late-season wobble, up stepped the Icelandic midfielder to grab a goal and an assist to help steady the ship. I don't know what the terms of Sigurdsson's loan deal are, but I would suggest in the strongest terms possible that Swansea lock him up for next season -- although my sense is that a few other teams may also be interested in doing the same.

o Wolves and what appeared to be their seven traveling fans -- wait, does it really matter how I finish that sentence...?  Think about it -- seven people traveled from Wolverhampton to see Wolves take on Sunderland. That's preposterous, as were the three virtually empty sections of seats behind the Visitors' goal at the Stadium of Light on Saturday.