With 2014 coming to a close, it is safe to say the Premier League table hasn’t shaped up as many would have expected. Plenty of teams have surged past their expectations; others have slumped well below. Many will feel that Tottenham Hotspur will fit into the latter category, despite their strong start to the season. Spurs have struggled to adapt to Pochettino’s high pressure system and are hoping for positive changes come January.
After two solid wins in their first two games, things looks positive for the Lilywhites. The players seemed motivated and focused in their roles, with a clear understanding of what they were set out to achieve. However, Tottenham soon hit a very inconsistent run, suffering disappointing defeats to West Brom, Newcastle and Stoke. It wasn’t just the result that many considered poor, but the manner of the defeats. Tottenham never really seemed to get into the game and were largely ineffective in their efforts going forward, with the opposition never really having to break a sweat to keep them out. Furthermore, Spurs continued their less than favourable run against the big teams, suffering big defeats to Liverpool and Manchester City. Regardless of this, they managed to pull themselves together and achieve a credible draw away at Arsenal in the season’s first North London Derby. Although their run has been patchy, it hasn’t been disastrous so far as Spurs find themselves in 7th after sixteen games.
What has been positive for Spurs is their runs in the many different competitions they find themselves a part of. They managed to finish second comfortably in their Europa League group, pipped to first by Besiktas after failing to overcome them in the last game of the group stage. However, they cruised through fairly untroubled.
After a solid win at home to Brighton, Spurs moved into the quarter finals of the Capital One Cup, with the opportunity to progress into the semi-finals should they overcome a resurgent Newcastle side at White Hart Lane. The draws have been kind to the boys from North London, with a draw against fellow Premier League strugglers Burnley awaiting them in the FA Cup 3rd round. A lot of their success has to be put on the shoulders of young English striker Harry Kane, whose goals in the Europa League and domestic cups have proved vital in their progression through the early stages. Already netting over ten goals this season in all competitions, he is fast becoming Spurs’s shining light this season and if he and Spurs keep up their performances in the cups, there is no reason they cannot go on to win their first trophy since 2008.
Pochettino has probably had a harder time than he anticipated after making the switch from Southampton to Tottenham, but he is starting to make his positive marks on this Tottenham side. Although the team may not be performing to the emphatic expectations that many Spurs fans demand, his influence on many individuals is clear to see.
The scapegoats of last season have really stepped up their game, notably Danny Rose and Nacer Chadli, with the latter currently joint top of Tottenham’s Premier league scorers list alongside Dane Christian Eriksen. Erik Lamela deserves an honourable mention after his difficult debut season in North London. He managed to force his way into the starting eleven of Pochettino’s side for many of the games this season and put together solid appearances across all competitions, including netting a sensational rabona finish in the Europa League which wowed pundits and spectators alike.
After a fairly quiet transfer window in the summer, with arguably the most significant acquisition being young Welsh full back Ben Davies from Swansea City, who joined along with Dutch shot stopper Michel Vorm, allowing Icelandic internationl Gylfi Sigurdsson to join up with new team mates at the Liberty Stadium. The left-back, who came through the Swansea academy, had a wealth of Premier League experience under his belt and, more importantly, allowed significant competition to under-performing full back Danny Rose, who had a very disappointing season under Andre Villas-Boas and Tim Sherwood. This has allowed both players to really push on and reach new heights of performances this season, with the two of them putting in very impressive shifts in the games they played.
Much of the reason Pochettino was introduced and approached by Tottenham was based on his successful tactic he implemented at the Saints in the previous season, impressing with high pressure and fluid football going forward, coupled with solid defensive awareness and understanding at the back. Upon moving to Tottenham, it is clear that the Argentine has done his best to achieve similar success with the Spurs squad with reasonable success. In some games, it has appeared to be very effective, especially against London rivals QPR and Arsenal; in some games the system has proved problematic, with a lack of width being a prudent issue.
With Pochettino favouring the concept of inverted wingers in Chadli and Lamela for the most part, natural width is hard to come by as both much prefer to cut inside the pitch on their strong foot. Additionally, with the injury problems and suspension issues often forcing Eric Dier to play makeshift right back on a number of occasions, the natural centre-back will never provide as much of an attacking threat as is maybe needed to exploit the space ahead.
Then there is the troubling case of Roberto Soldado’s Tottenham career. At Valencia, the Spanish marksman thrived off crosses and balls drilled into the penalty area and, due to reasons just outlined, he is never going to thrive off the service that Tottenham players provide to him. His recent partnership with Harry Kane has allowed relief of some of the pressure that he had in leading the line on his own, but he is still struggling to rifle in goals consistently, which is proving to hinder the Spurs team.
Much praise has to be given to Pochettino for introducing youngster Ryan Mason into the first team and being brave enough to partner him in midfield with Algerian Nabil Bentaleb, with neither having excessive amounts of Premier League experience, yet both have been very impressive and continue to keep out more experienced and bigger money signings. Both look very composed on the ball and have impeccable attitudes on the pitch.
Tottenham Hotspur have once again started their Premier League campaign inconsistently and currently find themselves below where many believed they would finish. Pochettino’s tactics are becoming more familiar to the team every week that goes by and it is only a matter of time before the team looks comfortable consistently in their roles. All in all, it is likely that Spurs will fall short again of the coveted Champions League places that everyone at the North London club craves and it is likely to be another lacklustre season for the boys in white, with a sixth or seventh place finish looking more and more likely. However, if they can stay strong in the cups, it would be wrong to rule them out of a potential piece of silverware.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @_HowittLWOS. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for?
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands of fans atr/football.
