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Match Threads Spurs vs Borussia Dortmund - Match Thread

Match Prediction

  • Spurs to win - Clean sheet

    Votes: 20 11.5%
  • Spurs to win - Concede away goal(s)

    Votes: 81 46.6%
  • Spurs to lose

    Votes: 26 14.9%
  • Score Draw

    Votes: 47 27.0%
  • Goalless Draw

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    174
  • Poll closed .

davidmatzdorf

Front Page Gadfly
Jun 7, 2004
18,106
45,030
Absolutely fascinating, absorbing half. Enjoyable football all around. Dortmund have had the better of it, but that's because they're fucking good and they have Jadon Sancho, who is plainly the best player on the pitch. But we've played well, except for a 10-minute spell in the middle of the half when we stopped pressing and couldn't get the ball.

Watching Juan Foyth is also fascinating. He's just a gigantic talent, with real vision, playing psychic back-heels out of defence to relieve pressure and attacking down the right like a fullback. But he's naive and he makes potentially expensive mistakes.

Our key player tonight, as I suggested earlier, is Winks, because there's no one else in the 11 who can control tempo and possession and prevent Dortmund from passing and moving all around us. Sissoko has been OK, but isn't dominating, because the movement in Dortmund's midfield is too good for him to intimidate them.

Son needs to be closer to the box. On two occasions, Winks has put through not-well-weighted through balls, but I have to think that there have been other occasions when those opportunities might have been available, had we have someone, anyone attacking the space in front of the goalkeeper.

Lloris has been excellent again.
 

faze_coys

Well-Known Member
Dec 14, 2010
3,138
4,796
I have issues with what we are doing both with and without the ball.

This is one of those nights where how we construct attacks is showing. Every week, even in games we are winning and have our best performances, we have too many players stood still or just waiting for something to happen as the game goes on. It's one area where we could really improve as a team, a disciplined unit is making things difficult but we make it easy for them. That's why you get so much play between centre backs and sitting midfielders shuffling the ball about, not usually because they cant technically play a pass.

Without the ball, all I'm going to say is that this season we are light years away from the standards we have set in previous years, in terms of pressing, compactness, shape...... The narrow selections Poch has used doesn't help, but it seems every game we give up space against all opposition. Luckily so far Dortmund haven't punished us.

We've got to step it up here in all aspects of our play. An unconvincing half.

Sissoko ?
 

Tonio

Good bloke, thorough professional.
May 15, 2008
3,814
6,577
check the possession stats. we are completing passes. (its 53-47 for us). better pass accuracy too
I should have quantified that comment by saying "passes that matter". I reckon the majority of our sweet passes go back to defence or lloris tbf.
 

werty

Well-Known Member
Aug 8, 2005
25,074
26,310
I think Winks has had a good game tbh. Sissoko a bit off tonight but he's done some good things. I think they're just defending well tbh but Moura has been poor.
Sissoko looks like he doesn't know where to go when we're building up play. Most of the time he's been backing up into the spaces that are meant for Eriksen, Son or Lucas and he's just further congesting it.
 

theShiznit

Well-Known Member
Jul 26, 2004
17,800
23,813
Need to change something.

They are running the game without really breaking a sweat. Just allowing the three at the back to dawdle passing side to side before closing rapidly.

No idea what the answer is though. But whatever happens we need better from Foyth, Aurier and Moura second half. They are isolating our forwards though and the wingbacks have zero options but to go backwards must of the time.
 

jonnyp

Well-Known Member
Jun 11, 2006
7,149
9,628
Lamela will be useful for spotting some quick passes to release players currently none of them can.

Our players need to make more runs in behind then. They are all too static in the final third bar Son but he also drops deep too much to get involved.
 

deadlight

Well-Known Member
Dec 14, 2006
1,361
788
Blimey! The fact that we're not down a goal is because of Hugo. Our defending has largely been good, but my god - Forth! The guy gives me zero confidence every time he plays the ball...
 

thinktank

Hmmm...
Sep 28, 2004
45,893
68,893
It wouldnt be a bad result either. Not letting them score an away goal is crucial and they would be more worried then us especially with kane and alli back.
They would have players back from injury and their nutty fans.

Would rather take the risk tonight and go for it a little more.
 

thefierycamel

Well-Known Member
Dec 31, 2014
2,015
5,128
I think Winks has had a good game tbh. Sissoko a bit off tonight but he's done some good things. I think they're just defending well tbh but Moura has been poor.
It's more going the other way, they both miss a lot of passes that are barely above a routine level. You watch the best sides in the comp and they dominate play within the other team's half, shifting it around effortlessly. We can't do that, it's very hot or miss with us. Decent defensively but too much of our attack relies on son or Eriksen to pull something out of their arse, rather than being played through for easy chances
 

easley91

Well-Known Member
Jan 27, 2011
18,721
53,768
BT Sport really ruining Jadon Sancho for me. Talk about overhyping young English talent. What he's done so far I've seen Son do every game with no recognition for the same dribbling and movement.
 

werty

Well-Known Member
Aug 8, 2005
25,074
26,310
This would be the perfect game for Dembele :(. We need an outlet to release some pressure.
We're not really under pressure. We're getting the ball to the halfway line with our CBs easily. It's just getting it to the attackers from there is the problem.
 

Col_M

Pointing out the Obvious
Feb 28, 2012
22,639
45,679
we're doing ok. Not doing enough ups front to create sufficient chances.

Foyth overplaying it a few too many times which is risky.
 

Seafordian Spurs

Well-Known Member
Aug 20, 2013
2,157
4,141
Im listening to him, didn't notice seems quite flat talking about us but wanking with his co commentator anytime dortmund touch the ball...

OK yeah I was listening earlier on, seems to be reverting to type now. Well, it's to be expected when we play like that..!
 
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