Match Threads Spurs vs Liverpool - Match Thread - Champions League Final

[spursfan77]

We lost the final because of 3 things

1) Poch has been incredible for us. If there is one criticism I have, its selection in major finals. I still cannot digest the fact that Moura didn't start. Its as bad as starting Son in LWB against Chelsea in the previous finals. Its not Moura vs Kane, its Moura vs anyone in that XI. When he came as sub, there was a new energy change in crowd not just in stadium but also various pubs , fan parks & homes where Spurs fan watched the game. Its not that Moura has to be included because of his hatrick its because he had the tools to worry the Liverpool defense.
I am sure, people have differing opinion on this. I respect that. But IMO, We missed an opportunity to test Liverpool defense against a confident & hungry Moura.

2) Sissoko Penalty : Its not about whether ball stuck arm or armpit or chest. Thats a different argument. For me, its our player who put the onus on the referee to make a decision. First minute of CL final, instead of concentrating on your game, you put your hands out in the box and asking someone behind you to watch out for the ball. This is a great & harsh lesson for our lads. You make even the slightest mistake in these big games, you will pay for it. Only hope is, our lads learn from it. There is no place for individual errors , especially when a game starts. Its amateurish. At pro level, this cannot happen.

3) Liverpool Game management : Liverpool were 1st or 2nd gear the entire night. They seem to acknowledge themselves that they aren't playing that well, so they kind of managed the game well. Their defense was great. They showed experience at this stage matters.

Regardless of above 3 things, we still played well & shows the hunger till the end.
If we have to move to the next level, we got to get learn from this game and improve.

Spot on. Great post.

 

[Paceyjg]

This.

Klopp did his homework. High risk and it paid off.

Really gutted Poch lost out so bad tactically in a match that matters... His stubborness remained at the wrong time.

I disagree, the early goal dictated how both teams responded. You could almost have written the script for how the match would play out after that penalty! Poch went as attacking as he could have gone after that with his subs.

 

[Krule]

There's something very wrong with the game when a penalty is handed out under the circumstances it was last night. The ball was struck at high velocity against Sissoko's chest and and was completely unavoidable; clearly no intent whatsoever and in no way deliberate. 23/24 seconds and a Champions League final addled before it even got started. If this becomes the "norm" then players are going to deliberately concoct penalties by shooting straight at opponent's arms. Crazy.

Totally agree, it will possibly become a new tactic next season but under CL rules it was a penalty. The link I posted earlier this morning explains why far better than I ever could.
We'll have defenders wearing straight jackets next to avoid penalties.

 

[Paceyjg]

Totally agree, it will possibly become a new tactic next season but under CL rules it was a penalty. The link I posted earlier this morning explains why far better than I ever could.
We'll have defenders wearing straight jackets next to avoid penalties.

Yes it is a shit rule, but the players all knew how the wind was blowing with penalties already given in Europe so far this season.

I say again what was Sissoko thinking?????

 

[Krule]

We lost the final because of 3 things

1) Poch has been incredible for us. If there is one criticism I have, its selection in major finals. I still cannot digest the fact that Moura didn't start. Its as bad as starting Son in LWB against Chelsea in the previous finals. Its not Moura vs Kane, its Moura vs anyone in that XI. When he came as sub, there was a new energy change in crowd not just in stadium but also various pubs , fan parks & homes where Spurs fan watched the game. Its not that Moura has to be included because of his hatrick its because he had the tools to worry the Liverpool defense.
I am sure, people have differing opinion on this. I respect that. But IMO, We missed an opportunity to test Liverpool defense against a confident & hungry Moura.

2) Sissoko Penalty : Its not about whether ball stuck arm or armpit or chest. Thats a different argument. For me, its our player who put the onus on the referee to make a decision. First minute of CL final, instead of concentrating on your game, you put your hands out in the box and asking someone behind you to watch out for the ball. This is a great & harsh lesson for our lads. You make even the slightest mistake in these big games, you will pay for it. Only hope is, our lads learn from it. There is no place for individual errors , especially when a game starts. Its amateurish. At pro level, this cannot happen.

3) Liverpool Game management : Liverpool were 1st or 2nd gear the entire night. They seem to acknowledge themselves that they aren't playing that well, so they kind of managed the game well. Their defense was great. They showed experience at this stage matters.

Regardless of above 3 things, we still played well & shows the hunger till the end.
If we have to move to the next level, we got to get learn from this game and improve.

Absolutely on the money...especially with point 1...Impossible task for Harry to just come back and give a 'match fit' performance and a wonderful opportunity for Moura to carry on from where he left off. How I would have loved to see Kane come on as sub with 20 minutes left, us 3 goals up and Lucas go off to a standing ovation...

 

[1882andallthat]

I suspect it is not going to be popular with everyone, but if I am just analysing the game itself whilst it did appear that Liverpool were 'there for the taking', were they really ? There is no doubt that the heat played a factor and but I felt as though Liverpool had extra gears or two they could click into if they needed to call upon then, which they didn't, because our lack of composure in failing to capitalise on good situations with the final ball never put that theory to the test. They could afford the luxury of game management and playing within themselves because of the absolute gift they were given in the first 30 seconds.

It was a soft penalty but we need to learn fast. We were not cute enough with the rules and they were. Surely with the amount of penalties that have been given in this CL this season where the ball is struck at the arm or accidentally hits it that players should have the intelligence and quick wit to learn that you simply cannot dangle your arm out in a position like Sissoko did and not risk giving away a penalty. Sissoko knew he was inside the box so why the f*ck was he flailing his arm out there. Mane saw that and had the quick witted intelligence to deliberately strike the ball at him in the hope it hit an arm and he hit the f*cking jackpot. That's where they had the edge on us as they took advantage of situations like that that they probably learned through being in this competition in the last two years in two major final. They saw the way the rules have been developing this year and they ruthlessly exploited them and we didn't. That gave them the luxury of being able to conserve energy and play within themselves, and we didn't learn those lessons,plain and simple, and we compounded things by not having the composure at that decisive moment to test their resolve, and for that reason, we will never know the real answer to the question of whether they were really there for the taking. We didn't put it to the test, we don't know whether they would have responded, I think they would have done, as there were small signs when they occasionally cut loose and looked far more dangerous when they got into our last third and at the final ball stage than we did.

 

[Romulus]

I did think Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, Tripper and Winks were fantastic though

 

[Primativ]

We had 90 minutes to get back into it.

We were shit. We played it like a preseason friendly. Hardly laid a glove onto them. Feel sick

 

[Jaddas]

The morning after the night before and I couldn't sleep as I kept thinking what if. The 3 weeks break between matches made the game look like a pre season friendly and they lucked out with penalty decision. If only we could start the match again.

Still, the Moura hat trick and City game provided me with the highest rush I've ever experienced being a Spurs fan. For that I'm eternally grateful at a difficult time for me personally with my dad passing away recently. Over the past 4 years, Poch has got us challenging for cups/titles deep into the season. Previously, it used to be over by Feb when we were inevitably knocked out in the 4th/5th round of FA Cup and finished mid-table.

With investment, I'm sure Poch can make us into winners. He has improved as a manager and does seem to learn from his mistakes. I'm 44 years old and I never even thought we'd make it to a CL final but we did. I see no reason why we can't improve and regularly challenge or win EPL & CL. To think, 18 months ago we were a better team than Pool but they invested over £300m and we did nothing.

It really is time for ENIC to back the manager and give us long suffering fans the glory we deserve.

 

[Hoddlegenius]

Nothing more to say that hasn’t already been covered here. Just hugely disappointed as Liverpoo were there for the taking and it was a great opportunity. Still really proud of what we’ve achieved with a really stretched squad. The atmosphere at the stadium was fantastic pre match considering the team wasn’t even there, obviously it went a bit flat as the game went on but even afterwards, loads of fans were singing in the high road trying to lift spirits. We have to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and hopefully with a freshened up squad, go again next season and do something amazing - COYS!

 

[Hoddlegenius]

Oh and I forgot to say - massive shout for Harry Winks, considering he’s been out and not played competitively for several weeks, I thought he was outstanding and bossed the middle. Fantastic player and hopefully he can go the whole of next season injury free and show the world that he’s one of the best as I really think he’s up there.

 

[mark87]

I'm gonna watch Brooklyn Nine Nine all day today to try and cheer myself up.

 

[spurs mental]

From the greatest feeling I've ever had as a Spurs fan when Moura put the 3rd away in Amsterdam to the absolute lowest feeling I've had last night. Still gutted. This will take some time to get over.

I can only hope that we get some good news and some investment in the squad soon so we can kick on. Liverpool were found wanting last season and addressed their issues. Look at them now. Time to make it count.

 

[SirHarryHotspur]

This is the venue for 2020 Champions League final in Istanbul , makes London Stadium look compact, think I will be down The Lane again for another screening.

 

[Guernman]

I was all for Moura starting and bringing Kane on, but some of the criticism of Kane and Poch is pretty ridiculous IMO. No way can I accept that Pochettino got out thought or got his tactics wrong because we were 1-0 through a freak incident inside 30 seconds. We have no idea how the game plan would have panned out. It is so easy for us to romanticise about Moura carrying on from where he left off against Ajax, in my case all too easy as I have been re-watching the semi-final incessantly for the last three weeks! But reality is, Moura tends to blow hot and cold. I love him, and he is a great talent, but he started the season against United like a world class player and then faded quickly. Again, after he scored the hatrick against Huddersfield I thought he would go on a rampant run for the next few games but he didn't. Kane has shown time and time again that he truly is world class and will finish more chances than any of our other players. It is also abundantly clear that he is one of our key leaders. I wanted Moura to start because like many of us I expected a very open first half an hour where Liverpool could potentially blow us away. Moura and Son to counter their full-backs made sense to me, but once that penalty was given all of that thinking goes out the window. Liverpool sat back, and I think it is hard to argue that Moura would have had any greater an impact on what was a strange game than Kane did, or eriksen, or son, (or salah, firminho or mane for that matter). Moura didn't show anything to suggest it was the wrong call in the 35 minutes he had during a time where we were playing our best football. Kane was fit, that much is clear, aside from that, no he didn't look match sharp but then no-one looked match sharp. Salah's shooting was much worse than Sissoko's FFS. None of the incredible attacking talent on either side shone last night. Bottom line is there is so much luck and randomness in football, games will play out in unexpected ways. If you play that game 100 times each will be different but there will be trends. You can't judge a decision on the one outcome or game that happened to transpire, you have to judge it on the liklihood of it working out as you intend. Replay the game 100 times and Liverpool win more than we do, but Kane scores more often than Moura does!

 

[riggi]

cos we're owned by Shylock, an owner who sees the club as an investment (and he's perfectly entitled to) and doesn't give a flying bird poo about glory or winning or backing the best manager the club has had in half a century

Best not to use that phrase.

 

[ValenciaYid]

Still in Madrid and very proud of our team...what a journey weve had this season...we dared and we almost did and Bill was dead right, 'It is better to fail aiming high than to succeed aiming low. And we of Spurs have set our sights very high, so high in fact that even failure will have in it an echo of glory”...YIDS

 

[easley91]

Last night was something I never thought I would experience. Tottenham Hotspur in a CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL. Am I gutted we lost? Totally. The thought that neither side were at their best and it came down to clinical finishing. But, the atmosphere pre game, the build up and even the crowd singing at TV screens is something I will never forget. I'm glad to have been there with my brother, rather than just watching it at home. I still have belief in this club to continue towards more finals and crucially trophies.

UP THE SPURS?

 

[wirE]

This was a great achievement from the lads. Glad i I got to experience it. COYS

 

[John48]

Getting there was an achievement, but such a poor performance, especially in an attacking sense, deserves criticism.

There were poor performances from Eriksen, Dele & Trippier. Son was buzzing around & got into some good positions, but simply didn't make the most of them.

As for Kane, he had quiet game, but we didn't create any chances for him & the balls into the box lacked quality & didn't him anything to attack, so I wouldn't be over critical of him.