Tottenham v Wolves 2:00pm, Sunday 01 March, | Vital Football

Tottenham v Wolves 2:00pm, Sunday 01 March,

Spursex

Spursex

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If we are to have any credible chance of finishing in the Top four or Five - which might secure a CL place, then this game is another cliche 'must win'.

We're now 4points behind Chelsea who are in 4th, we dropped to 6th after they put us to the sword last week.

We'll have to hope that their form falls away again and ours miraculously picks up, that said Jose has made it crystal clear that without a recognised Striker all he's looking forward to is next seasons pre-season.

So if ever there was a game to show that he's greater than the sum of his interviews, this is the one to shut up critics like me of his negativity and his pre and post-match despondency. I will be delighted if he does.

I don't subscribe to the theory that without a recognised striker we can't win. Bergwijn has played the central striker at his previous club and apparently did pretty well at it. He may well be the answer to leading our line, if we have a change of tactics and once again show some boldness and belief.

Our home form has been inconsistent (at best) but encouragingly Wolves recent away form hasn't been that good either with just two wins out of their last six. Their defence has been suspect, despite playing some good looking football and attracting many admirers, that said with a net spend of near £140 mill and having had to refinance themselves just a few months ago and apparently looking for my outside financing, Europe for them is an absolute must.

So with their defence and our apparent non-existant attack, a draw looks on the cards.

I'm told that Jose and his team have been stung by all the criticism and are determined to answer it where it matters, for the sake of our own European ambitions, let's hope that he does and the negativity build around the club and the feeling that he's getting his excuses in early, are consigned to the dustbin.

Lose this and surely any pretentions to finishing in the Top4/5 are dead and buried?
 
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Not an easy opponent at all. My gut feeling is they will win this game by bossing the midfield. I don't expect Mourinho to change too much. He will likely revert to 4-4-2 again but we will still play narrow and too deep.

If it was me I'd be hoping to see a little experiment, depending on fitness issues.

Lloris
Tanganga - Sanchez - Toby - Davies
Lo Celso - Winks
Lucas - Dele - Bergwijn
Lamela
 
Matic said:
Not an easy opponent at all. My gut feeling is they will win this game by bossing the midfield. I don't expect Mourinho to change too much. He will likely revert to 4-4-2 again but we will still play narrow and too deep.

If it was me I'd be hoping to see a little experiment, depending on fitness issues.

Lloris
Tanganga - Sanchez - Toby - Davies
Lo Celso - Winks
Lucas - Dele - Bergwijn
Lamela
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I'm sincerely hoping that the criticism has hurt him so badly that he changes tactics and we at least try and play on the front foot and make our own luck.

If we don't, they'll do to us what Chelsea did, Wolves local papers, pundits and fans are smelling blood in the water and an easy win.
 
At Molineux, for all their domination, Wolves created very few clear cut chances. But everything positive that evening came through Traore.

As a match up I really don't fancy Davies against Traore so I would put someone in front of Davies to double up on Traore. If he's fit Sessegnon fits the bill best and he would provide an attacking outlet as well. Given the inauspicious start to his career though I doubt he'll get the nod from Jose.
 
Gary Onedaysoon said:
At Molineux, for all their domination, Wolves created very few clear cut chances. But everything positive that evening came through Traore.

As a match up I really don't fancy Davies against Traore so I would put someone in front of Davies to double up on Traore. If he's fit Sessegnon fits the bill best and he would provide an attacking outlet as well. Given the inauspicious start to his career though I doubt he'll get the nod from Jose.
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If we don't counter their press from the front by counter-pressing and closing the spaces in midfield with the help from our back 4 and NOT letting them be detached, it won't matter anyway.

I'm told there is almost no chance of seeing Sess; if it's another episode with the same hammy that put him out for nearly 6 months, it wouldn't surprise me if he is another we don't see until this season is virtually over.

I'd match him up withTangy, man-mark him and lock him out of the game - he has enough pace and mobility to neutralise him.
 
Traore isn’t the only one who can cause us problems. Wolves have 2 in form strikers whereas our defense is a blunder waiting to happen.
 
Could be Jose’s farewell game then because although past performance is no guarantee of future performance I can only see a comfortable Wolves win as things stand.

Unless we compress and contest the MF higher up the pitch it will only be a question of time before Wolves score and we don’t.
 
So how does Jose tactic his way out of this one ? I get pressing higher ( which no team can do for long ). He has to trust an error prone defence to keep a clean sheet and an attack to get goals with no striker.
 
I would stick with the same system but this time put the right players in the right positions

-------------------Llloris
-------Tanganga--Toby---Sanchez
Aurier-------------Winks------------Davies
-------Gedson----Dele------Gio-----------
------------------Bergwijn------------------

Subs: Gazza, Dier, Vertonghen, Ndombele, Moura, Lamela, Parrott

We need wing-backs to play as wing-backs. We need the 4 midfielders to gain control in the middle of the park and we need Toby to bring the back 3 out and trust the pace alongside him.

Most of all we need a high tempo game.
 
I would like to think that at home, we should be setting up in a more balanced (dare I say) positive formation, and not the negative approach to Chelsea.

On one hand, I can see why damage limitation may be the preferred option right now until the end of the season with all the injuries, but surely he can work with the squad on a system where we are hard to break down, defend well in numbers and then for short periods go on the attack and press!?

I know it's been mentioned and it's what Liverpool and to a degree City have been doing, but it's just so plain to see, I don't get why they can't as a set of players all buy in to this way of playing! - I mean I know footballers aren't all blessed with high degrees of intelligence, but surely even this, they can grasp?!!
 
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muttley said:
I would stick with the same system but this time put the right players in the right positions

-------------------Llloris
-------Tanganga--Toby---Sanchez
Aurier-------------Winks------------Davies
-------Gedson----Dele------Gio-----------
------------------Bergwijn------------------

Subs: Gazza, Dier, Vertonghen, Ndombele, Moura, Lamela, Parrott

We need wing-backs to play as wing-backs. We need the 4 midfielders to gain control in the middle of the park and we need Toby to bring the back 3 out and trust the pace alongside him.

Most of all we need a high tempo game.
Click to expand...

The only really quick and strong defender we have is Tangy and Aurier if he has a brain in his head on Sunday.

I'd have Tangy hunt Traore all over the pitch and drive him nuts - he's temperamental and will soon lose his rag. Tangy can own him.
 
muttley said:
I would stick with the same system but this time put the right players in the right positions

-------------------Llloris
-------Tanganga--Toby---Sanchez
Aurier-------------Winks------------Davies
-------Gedson----Dele------Gio-----------
------------------Bergwijn------------------

Subs: Gazza, Dier, Vertonghen, Ndombele, Moura, Lamela, Parrott

We need wing-backs to play as wing-backs. We need the 4 midfielders to gain control in the middle of the park and we need Toby to bring the back 3 out and trust the pace alongside him.

Most of all we need a high tempo game.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, Aurier and Davies can’t play as wing Backs but at least if they are pushed further forward it might help a little....LoCo needs to play centrally so would push Alli out on the left...Lamela should probably start, maybe instead of Alli....but good effort Mutters.
 
Spursex said:
The only really quick and strong defender we have is Tangy and Aurier if he has a brain in his head on Sunday.

I'd have Tangy hunt Traore all over the pitch and drive him nuts - he's temperamental and will soon lose his rag. Tangy can own him.
Click to expand...

I actually thought Sanchez was pretty quick, perhaps I'm wrong. In my setup I just want Sanchez and Tanganga around Toby as Wolves do so much damage in that inside channel. It can be either way round, left or right.

For me, Jota is the player that makes them tick as much as the Neves / Moutinho pairing a little deeper.
 
What makes me larf is that the media are , to a man , praising Pep Guardiola , for his innovative, brilliant decision to out fox Real Madrid and play without a recognised striker in the No 9 position .
It worked brilliantly , they are saying , and totally confused Varane and the other thug , as they had no one to mark .
‘Kin ‘Ell , we have been doing this for months and not one bit of praise has been forthcoming . !
I can only assume Pep got the idea when we beat them recently ! You couldn’t make it up , could you
 
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