Niko spurs a thunder bolt-on
Monday, February 7, 2011 at 12:06PM Challenge Spurs™ 2011: Thou Shalt Not Lose
Spurs 2 Bolton 1
The Spurs way is the hard way is the only way. Textbooky Tottenham does it again.
Challenge Spurs™ 2011 is up and running with the perfect start; three points. Even if we did leave it till the last seconds to carve out the win. A blistering thundering effort from forgotten man Niko Kranjčar in a game that witnessed three penalties, two scored, one disallowed then retaken and one missed - all in the space of three minutes. Along with a further one initially given then not and one for the opposition that could should have been given but wasn't. Consistency the Clattenburg way.
We were also blessed with a goal keeping mishap, Jenas wood (ooh), Bolton wood, a wonderfully worked waltz by BAE to vdV to Defoe but alas disallowed, Pienaar almost scoring and the men up front not (we had a goal from a forward in midweek so best not to complain and be too greedy with our demands). Defoe snapped too often, lacked composure, but held the ball up well but did complete a smart finish for the disallowed effort...offside would you believe? Crouch involved, usually resting on the backs of opposing players. But hey, Roman assisted so it's not all grim in the land of the strikers.
It was gritty, it was in parts laboured. There was effort, but not of the swaggering type. And there still remains a question mark or two about the competency of aforementioned forwards (442 the gift again today). We've dug out six points from the last two games. Winning ugly or to be less harsh, winning when you're disjointed but doing your best to avoid falling back on the excuse of missing players - it's just as sweet as dismantling the opposition (I'd still take the latter on any given Saturday).
Fact is, the five games, it's about the points and it's about coming through a tricky period where we are weaker because of injuries and might require rotation to remain competitive away whilst welcoming back the likes of Bale and Modric and dealing with Europe.
Mental strength last term held us up hight above and beyond. If you believe you can win even if you don't perform well, you tend to do just that. Luck might play a part. Who cares, right? Not every game can be analysed with microscopic depth, attempting to decipher why there was no constant free-flowing football. The very fact Jenas (first half) was probably man of the match means we can probably just accept that we won because we scored one more goal than Bolton. Have that Hansen.
Pienaar (second half), also decent with link-up play and covered ground effectively. Lennon sparked once or twice as he continues to be one of our more consistent performers, and thankfully Fabio can continue his fixation on other muses for the time being. International midweek not too far off. Harry will no doubt continue his fixation with the Crouch and JD double-act.
But if I was to flirt with analytical commentary (just a little), based on the magnificent seven essentials that Challenge Spurs™ is looking out for in the games at hand...
Team cohesiveness - Midfield played well considering the players missing and vdV stuck out on the right (although not super-glued there). Wilson, Jenas and especially Lennon (another plaudit) all played well. Pienaar industrious when coming on. Wasn't pretty, we made hard work of it but it worked when ball was played through the middle rather than launched forward by our back-line. Same with the defence apart from the Gomes hiccup.
Leadership - vdV wasn't (isn't) at his best and hopefully his calf issue is not serious. Again proves at half-pelt he can be influential and we need that quality in abundance.
Work ethic - Doesn't matter when you score right? First minute, last minute. We need to rediscover some our tempo and pace but any team that has four or so key players missing is going to struggle a little but as long as we work hard as a unit we'll make up for it in less marauding ways.
Craft and creativeness - When you've got no Modric to dictate and conduct you're going to lack something big from the small man with magical feet. Plenty of hoofing for the textbook Crouch flick-on meant lack of smart moving groundwork but when it was played through the middle, even JJ looked sparky with ball at feet.
Clinicality - Hardly. Defoe appears to snap at shots he should passing into the net and then getting himself into offside positions when making it look simple. But his work rate was more than decent. Crouch scored against Blackburn so the next one is due in 2014.
Tactical astuteness - Can't fault the selection from Harry. As good as it can get at the minute. We kept scratching away at Bolton, pretty much the old analogy of trying to get through the front door without a set of keys. Subs worked a treat. But then, what other options off the bench do we have?
Fighting spirit - Great to see a fringe player (which is what Niko has become) make such a vital impact. When frustration can birth such thunder, it's best kept close to you than afar. Hope to see him used more often. Could have quite easily ended as a draw so it's not quite the back-end of the 2010 season just yet. Sunderland away will hardly be easy but they can be got at. And Wolves (top tier killers) will be more than interesting in terms of trying to out-quality them, as well as go up pound-for-pound with the physicals.
Conclusion: Gear change required.
So, what about casualties? The van der Vaart calf problem, subbed at half-time. Gomes, nothing to do until he decided to cushion the ball under his body and onwards to the net, just to make things interesting. Thankfully no tears were shed in the end.
Question marks on selection (not my opinion - just the vibe of discussion I'm getting from you lot), as a few of you are asking questions surrounding the whole bare bones sound-bite our gaffer likes to beat the drums to when we have players in the squad that should be given more game time and plenty of yoof players loaned out and doing well at other clubs.
Rotation the key, and more importantly - players should be in the side based on performance and the will to perform well. Harry loves JD, but if JD is struggling to regain form then bench him and allow him to come on and do a Niko and then surf on the success of it. Just a thought. Of course when the only option is Pav (he wants to leave...again), as much as you might want to embrace your anti-Harry agendas, the alternatives (thanks to deadline day) don't leave us with much in choice.
Harry has never fancied him (Pav), even with the goals scored towards the end of last season - he's still 3rd choice. Which means he'll never play enough for us to see him 'bed into' the side so we can find out if he works or is just plain ordinary.
Regardless of whether we got lucky or not, a win is a win is a win. Even if another minute less added time would have had us drowning our sorrows on more points dropped. A Spurs lull that still generates the points. Let's try not to forget what we can do when we actually turn it on full pelt. And slowly, them missing will return.
I don't quite buy that we are fighting a downward spiral. Not yet. But then I'm always blinded by optimism. We all know we are capable of so much more offensively. But unlike past swaggering teams, at least this one has a winning mentality. We can dream about having Teddy and Jurgen up front for us or a Berbarotica/Keane love-in, and irony might send you loony, but it's wasteful to dream. But boy, what a dream!
Second best home record in the league in the last 6 games. 3rd best away record in the last 6 games and one defeat in 14 in the league. One more point (44) after twenty-five games than we did at this stage last season (43).
And as mentioned, next game, away to Sunderland. Remember that fixture last season? Lose and 4th goes with it. And what happened? And then what followed in the remaining fixtures?
Exactly.
Keep the faith.
Onwards.
Thou shalt not lose.
Reader Comments (42)
I love your blog dude but the colour scheme makes my head hurt for ten minutes after reading it! When will you revert to 4-4-2? Sorry, I mean, Blue on White?
What's wrong with the colour scheme? Always thought the blue background was crisp, neat and easy on the eye.
I'm willing to listen to suggestions but not sure about a white back drop.
Way I see it our first team is as follows:
Gomes
Ekotto
King
Dawson
Kaboul
Bale
Modric
Huddlestone
Lennon
Van der Vaart
Defoe
I make that six of our first eleven out of the team (at half time). I'm sure any club or fan would take a win with half of their first team out.
Onwards and upwards indeed. Massive game up at Sunderland (as they all are nowadays).
Please play the strongest team, we can get a result in both our upcoming games. Cannot wait for Meelan.
LEVY OUT!
Always enjoy reading this column: thanks again. Agree with most of what you say. I think we will do well to come through the next few away fixtures in one piece, especially with the number of key players we have out, but let's hope, eh?
I also like the colour scheme. Maybe turn down the brightness on your screen Matt Hill?
Sorry, it's just the white text out of a dark background makes my eyes see white lines for about ten minutes! As a website designer it's a bit of a no-no :)
...it's still the best Spurs blog around though...
I know what you mean Spooky. It would be best if we played brilliantly and destroyed teams but this season everyone seems to be too scared to really hit form, any type of form. We are battling through and our record is more than decent. Just know we have so much more left in the tank. Perhaps keeping it for the CL games and the run in.
Matt - suggestions?
Personally never had issues with the scheme. Had more complaints when attempting lighter backdrops. Although most blogs do have black on white (I called it the Tori Black).
Wilson has been improving week by week. Can't pass for toffee but he is far more anchored in his role than a month or so back.
Agree with you on all counts.
We need to rotate, and make more use of players like Niko, Pav, Sandro.
Last year, we were playing almost non-stop but we had a winning momentum, and equally important, we had (forgotten) players who could come in and contribute. Bentley, Pav, Gudjohnsen all played some part in important wins. There were bitter losses (Portsmouth in the FA Semis, Sunderland away, Man Utd away) during the crucial period, but also a strong belief we could overcome the odds. We rotated so that tired limbs could be replaced by match fit personnel.
This year, the CL has replaced the FA Cup as our glory trail. We need to make the most of our chance and at least stay on for a couple more rounds.
I still believe Chelski and Man City are there to be overtaken. Of the key games, we still have Arsenal (H), Chelski (A), Liverpool (A) and City (A) and of all of these, with the right attitude, who knows.
A word on Defoe. Dont understand his goal drought. Something needs to change, or I like your idea of using him as an impact sub, like what he did against Arsenal.
Lastly I miss Kaboul. Vastly underated.
If you want a white back drop, just highlight the txt with your cursor, innit.
Loving the optimism Spooky.
And agree with Danny Boy, there's a lot more this team is capable of.
People always talk about Man Utd finishing strong, and with tough away games in April and May let's hope we are building up to some form.
The best thing about our run-in, is that our fate should remain in our own hands if we can just pick up points over the next 6 games.
Defoe is the most overrated player in the league; why cant so many spurs fans see that? i was glad when we got rid of him the first time; when he wants to look up and link up play he can be decent and i will argue also that playing with pav brings out more of the best of him as we keep the ball on the deck. have to admit it would be frustrating for anyone to play with a human tree who could provide nothing but knock downs.
but the guy doesnt score enough, isnt clinical enough, doesnt score enough in the big games; is selfish and doesnt no the offside rule. As frustrating as bent was (useless outside the box) you have to say he is the superior player in the greedy goal hanger role
With all that's going on at the moment such as can we actually get top four again this year?, problems with injuries, up and coming CL matches and of course Challenge Spurs 2011, people want to talk about the bloody colours of the blog. FFS !!
Ian... chuckle, chuckle !!
I think the site looks classy Spooky, by far the best looking blog / site for any team Ive seen.
Dont think the fact we have a 1pt more then this time last season should be a positive, we have more away games against the top sides still to come and we have only one once away agst these sides in 60+ matches.
Still if we avoid mishaps at home agst Stoke and away to Wolves & Sunderland this time around that should more then cover the tricker big games we have this time around.
COYS
I'm glad we have to play most of the top teams again. It brings the best out of us. I'd rather play them than the mid/bottom teams that we seem to slip up against. Plus we're taking points off them.
I'm afraid we do need to take a hard look at our hatred of Crouch. We just seem to play better when he's on the pitch... scratch that. We get better results, often through the long ball route.
If we play Defoe up front, then teams just sit deep and he's got no way of using his pace, and we don't have any way through them. If we play Crouch up front, teams play high up the pitch as he's obviously got no threat running onto the ball. Playing both causes teams problems, even if it's neither of them actually getting the goals.
Playing just Defoe up front isn't going to cut it...
Spooks,
Did you hear the roar at the Lane when the scores of the Arsenal match came up on the big screen. I think that gave the players an extra lift and boy what a feeling when that ball went it. I almost passed out - the joy and relief, words cannot describe. Brilliant!!!
Bit embarrassing if we have to rely on other teams mishaps. But know what you mean.
Anyone know why the atmosphere at the Lane has degraded over the past 2 seasons?
Pressures of progression?
haha @ Ian
Prehaps (dare I say it) we're picking up 'glory hunting' fans?
Niko:
Did you see the Arsenal score flash up just before you scored?
“I didn’t, no. Maybe the fans did. We don’t think about other results, and I didn’t score because Arsenal went 4-4, that’s for sure.”
The problem is that the pressure of supporting a club that is challenging on the outskirts (let alone the reaction we'd have if we were genuine title challengers) is too much for some. Every mistake or loss is magnified and made to be a disaster. I guess fans of Utd feel the same but on a grander scale.
May I venture a guess here - I could be talking through my you know what, but anyhow - it seems fans are only able to big up or crank up themselves for the big games - atmosphere at these matches - Arsenal, Chelsea, Man U last season, and Chelsea, Young Boys, Inter, Man U this season - phenomenal. - It probably comes from 'development' for want of a better expression. - i.e. we see those other matches as foregone conclusions and the teams as beatable (wether or not that's the reality) and as such the team does need as much 'support' to get going - Like I said - long shot - but just a thought. Anyone agree?
Defoe will come good...eventually. Probably just in time for the RUN IN (c). He always takes a long time to find his form after a lay off. I think we will be regaining form at exactly the right time, we're getting the scrappy wins without playing particularly well at the moment, a sign of a top team. Looking forward to the Hudd returning to play Defoe in with the defence splitting passes.
Spang - I don't necessary agree with your assessment of Crouch but I thank you for my new favourite word...Spang!
In terms of atmosphere, I think there is more expectation of the team now.
Sunderland home was an example, everybody expects we should win. Then some boos at a draw, the next game they go and do Chelsea at their place.
Plus don't think it can be put down to glory hunters.
Of 36k, 25k are season ticket holders, only about 6k members each game + corporate and away, so really ST holders can be asked what they find of people sitting around them. Quiter, louder, more worried?
Remember going to see them play in Eindhoven a few years back they had an allocated singing section - maybe an idea for the future.
Also - can people who are sending me 'guest blog' articles, thanks by the way, but push them across to these guys:
http://friendsoffreund.blog.com/
I don't want to be a bastard basically and turn selected (articles) people down, so I'm turning you all down - unless the article sort of fits into the style (not necessarily the opinions) of this blog.
Friends of Freund are looking for aspiring bloggers so go for it.
All JD needs to do is score one and he'll be back scoring them. Has been unlucky with injuries this season and the red card didn't help either.
Unfortunately he's in the England Squad for Wednesday .... see you next season Jermaine
Defoe playing for england could be good for us, if he gets injured.
On another note we have at least 7 days before we play again after both CL legs, so no reason for hangovers.
PS Plus 1 for keeping it a white on blue blog.
Pav could really shut up and stop crying all the time, I don't have much time for the lad to be honest, his work ethic on the pitch just seems so careless and lackadaisical. Crouch is currently our best forward indeed...Defoe's understanding of the offside rule still saddens me...We're fortunate to have at least one penalty taker these days.
I can understand Pav's anger. He's our highest scoring striker, isn't he? And yet he can't get a start. Whether or not one thinks Defoe is a better striker than Pav (ie. more 'class'), you can't argue for him getting a start ahead of Pav on form.
Glad to see Charlie back in the team, maybe Kranjcar will get a run too now - remember we got 4th last year with this lot!
"We can dream about having Teddy and Jurgen up front for us or a Berbarotica/Keane love-in, and irony might send you loony, but it's wasteful to dream. But boy, what a dream!"
Yeah what a dream indeed but I reckon if we had either pairing vdV in the team would disrupt it.
I dont actually mean that the way it probably sounds. I do wonder how many defoe/pav/crouch would have scored if we played flat 4-4-2 without vdV all season.
Dare I say Krankie LW Lennon RW Pal/JJ CM in a 4-4-2 against Sunderland with Defoe/Pav up top?
Sunderland wont sit deep against us up there...they'll be going for it...defoe in behind with Pav running the channels could actually work pretty well.
t'Would also give vdV a breather and help sort that calf out.
#justsayin
Bimspur? Crouch our best striker? you stupid fucking cunt
watch another sport, you are clueless
lol that Bimspur bloke
Crouch 2 goals all season is our best striker hahah
some people dont have a clue about football and listen to whatever uncle harry tells them. the idea that crouch works super hard is nonsense. He looks busy as every long ball is lumped up to him. Supporters of crouch being in the team praise the 2 or 3 occasions that he wins a header likes it proof that it was right to start him.
He is shit! he cant score any other type of goal unless its a close range tap in or floated high ball.
Pav is far from the perfect striker but anyone whos actually watched the games this season should be able to see the better standard of football we have with him going forward. His movement is very good; running round like a headless chicken gets you nowhere. He also pulls out wide and can deliver a good cross something which many detractors choose to ignore. Most importantly he scores; he has a very good strike rate and will punish teams.
One can only hope he gets a run in or you can say goodbye to the CL this season and next. the idea that crouch is good in europe will come undone against milan as the class of defender goes up. We need to keep the ball on the deck against them and need to finish the few chances we are likely to create. There needs to be tactics this time round especially in the San siro. If Crouch does play, pray that bale comes up with another supershow.
Crouch is poor end of; if we stoke or wolves yes but we are in the CL now competing to win. Some other observations
1, He did not play well against Inter Milan despite what some choose to think; he got his tap in goal but his so called work rate did nothing to Inters defence and he won no headers of note; his only other attempt in the game was a prime example of his lack of shooting ability
2. The man city game, he is credited for putting us in the CL despite the fact that most of us watching the game were probably calling for his head after quite a lame duck display and the missing a terrible sitter which could have ender the dream, cue great run by kaboul plus confusion the box-empty goal header. Right place right time yes. a goal thanks crouchie, But overall again showed he is not good enough.
I can see Crouch starting in that game - if nothing else to give our defenders an 'out' when they're under pressure. Whether he wins the long ball clearances is another matter...
I hope Pav gets a run in the team but Harry seems to ignore him even with the failing JD and Crouch. He reminds me of Berbatov (a lesser version) , not a great work ethic but a natural goalscorer. But he lacks the amazing skills the sulky one has , he worked even less than Pav but boy the Bulgarian has an abundance of skill.
I secretly hoped he would do average at Man U again this season and come back to spurs , i'd forgive him for his sulkiness in an instant.
Sorry I meant Pav is obviously our best striker....How cuntish of me to say Crouch is...
I'll start watching Lacrosse now.