A new year and supposedly a new start for Tottenham Hotspur; out goes Tim Sherwood and in comes a proven Premiership manager, Mauricio Pochettino, whose style and tactical approaches led to him being a well thought of figure in English football. The well-balanced nature of Southampton’s squad allowed them to take such a high intensity pressuring approach into every game and reaped the rewards, securing a solid 8th place finish last season. Pochettino has tried to bring back the attacking style of football Spurs fans crave, but so far, not everything has gone according to plan for the Argentine.
With only three wins in their first nine games, Pochettino already seems to be suffering the same problems that André Villas-Boas and Tim Sherwood were plagued with during their spells at White Hart Lane. Sherwood often criticised poor mentalities within the Spurs squad, complaining of capitulations within the side, especially in the big games against the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea, and it seems these lingering doubts within the squad have not disappeared. After big losses against Liverpool and Manchester City already this season, although the City game showed many positives in terms of performance and ability in the Spurs side, it’s hard to dismiss the idea that they still can’t shake this lack of confidence when facing tough opponents. Individual errors seem almost impossible to cut out of the games that Spurs play, and it’s understandable that Pochettino appears to be getting more and more frustrated on the touch line every week.
On the more tactical side of things, many people have criticised Spurs for lacking pace and intent going forward; it’s hard to disagree. Aside from the 4-0 win against QPR in the second game of the season, the Lilywhites have struggled to consistently maintain that dynamic attacking style that they should be capable of. Just coming off the back of a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Newcastle, Tottenham’s weaknesses really were exposed and put on show for the whole world to see. One position that was really exploited was Spurs’ right hand side, evident through both goals. Eric Dier is by no means a bad player, but he really seems uncomfortable in that full back position, looking increasingly shaky each game. With both Kyles out injured, Eric Dier unfortunately seems to be the only option to fill the gaps left by Naughton and Walker, and in reality, it’s just another dent in an already suspect defensive line.
Sticking with the right hand side, Érik Lamela in the Newcastle game, and even the North London Derby a few weeks previous, offered very little going forward and was also very debatable in his retention of the ball, specifically in the build up to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s equaliser for Arsenal. The lack of protection he gives to Eric Dier in terms of cover and defensive responsibilities is very significant, especially in the high pressing style Pochettino seems set on trying to implement. His desire to constantly drift into the middle of the pitch, which can work and he has shown this in a number of games, was also very predictable and easy to defend; the way Danny Rose was easily getting behind down the left hand side had the game screaming out for Aaron Lennon, who when eventually introduced late on, received very little of the ball to make an impact.
With Nacer Chadli also intent on cutting inside more often than not, Spurs have become a very narrow side indeed, with often only Rose providing any real width in the last few games. This is incredibly contrasted to the famous Spurs of old, with quick wingers charging for the by line, unafraid of taking on two, maybe even three, defenders.
With Tottenham’s style clearly taking a drastic change, it appears the pressure is already on Pochettino to make it work, and fast. Almost everyone will agree he needs a lot more time to implement and assess the squad himself for what may be a very important January transfer window, but knowing Daniel Levy and his tendencies, will he be given the opportunity to do so?
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