Good morning.
I managed to watch most of first half of the Red Bulls game before the commentary snuck into my brain and began carrying out a living autopsy… so then I opted to forward fast through the second half stopping only to watch the goals.
There’s no need to get to uptight. We won and it was only a preseason. But there are some areas nevertheless of mild concern.
Bentley I want to work. I never had a hate on for the guy. But if Bale is determined to pursue his vision as a number 9 or 7 or whatever then we will need more than him on the wing to facilitate. He was predictable, slow and generally weak.
Obvious positives were Bale and Gilly. Clearly cut from the same cloth is Harry Kane. I’m hesitant with the youngsters but at this stage it’s clear to see why Villas-Boas is interested in him.
Thud started off poorly, constantly giving the ball away, had a couple of nice touches including the shot then fizzled out. Last night he and Jake were no DM pairing of distinction. Jake didn’t actually do very much.
Nice to see Teemu again :wub: and despite carrying a few pounds and coming back from a nasty injury he hustled and moved the ball about nicely.
And so to the Modric business. Strange one this.
The truth is that some players and/or their agents unilaterally wander off and shake hands on a move to a new club. Then the club’s raunchy Presidents talk to each other and start pointing out really dull stuff like ‘contractual obligations’.
So ickle Luka appears to have been busted. Andrès Villas-Boas told ESPN:
“Luka is doing double sessions on his own in London. When we get back to London I will give some of the players some time off and when we return to sessions we will decide what is best for Luka to do,” Villas-Boas said.
“He is a Tottenham player obviously, but he has to be in good mental condition to return to our training because his colleagues are one level up in terms of preparation and fitness.
“So we will have to setup a program for him that gradually brings him up to the team, that gradually brings him to fitness level – and then see what happens.”
Image sent in by Citizen Snarklife.
I like what AVB has said. Basically ” The spoilt little brat ain’t just gonna walk back in my team”. Triffic lad or not.
what an absolute relief to have a manager who handles the media with a bit of class and decorum.
My thoughts exactly. One thing I will never miss about Harry Rentaquote.
I quite like the high line in defense. It creates pressure.
Yeah, but not when lazy Benny tends to play everyone on-side.
The high-line only works if you can compress the play well enough to not allow the oppo to have time to look up and ping ball to make it into that space.
And it helps if defenders are quick enough to get back in when someone springs the trap – Kabs, yes; Daws, no; Jan, don’t know; Walker, yes; Benny, he won’t even try.
fan of our bennie then?
If we can get the best of out Gallas’ last season, and hope Daws matures at long last-just push Jan into left back and use Benny as cover for him-sorted
Jan gave the penalty against Red Bulls because Cahill beat his high line!
I think there is a real risk that Andre is preparing for life without Luka and without a high profile replacement purchased. Certainly for August anyway.
Whether Luka is sold or not, I think it will be difficult to play him, so Hudd needs to step up to the plate and Parker needs to get fit pronto. Sandro should be back by then and we can get a real feel of the current 3 fighting for the 2 CM spots.
Of course, if he goes we have to hope it’s not with Andre on the end of a mobile/hanging out of the window of a Range Rover at 11:59 if we want to spend any of that cash.
Come on Daniel, get rid. However nice it is thinking of him pounding ’round Epping Forest on his own then back to Spurs Lodge to pound ’round the empty pitches on his own, time has come to stop the hard ball and cash our chips in.
With any luck, with his thirty pieces of silver he can sort his gnashers out.
We got away with it last season but a team buzzin from a couple of weeks away can soon be bought down by some whining Eastern European….sound familiar??
he will be able to sort out charlie adam’s as well