Good afternoon?
Well I’ve had worse I suppose. The game itself wasn’t our finest hour nor was it quite self harming territory. The bottom line is that this competition was the last of our priorities. Nice to win a pot but for those believing we ought to have gone all out …I’ve two names for you. McLeish & Dalglish.
The appearance of Bale was a welcome surprise and had he not featured it’s a cheerless exercise to dwell on how we would have performed. He was the spark, the drive, the creative.
The young guys given a chance did their best. Falque is an interesting chap. There’s a raw energy there. A fast paced mind at work. But he needs managing training and guiding. I look at him, Livermore, Townsend and Walker all whom are ‘products’ of our academy or whatever it’s trading as this week and worry.
Are we producing footballers or people who simply look like footballers, impressionists?
Maybe I imagined it, but Livermore looked to have more about him when he debuted. Now we have this Jenasesque fella that looks like he’d be more at home in one of those partially naked calenders that firemen do for charity. Walker looks like a rep for a company that services gym equipment. Falque like an assistant manager at Toni & Guy.
My point is why are their footballing IQ’s so low? Falque took two maybe three corners and the ball didn’t beat the first man once. In fact the damn thing was smacked in a light speed at knee height. Jake concedes the most cheap and hopelessly unnecessary fouls. Walker’s dive for the penalty was the work of an impressionist.
This was pretty much a Norwich B team vs a Spurs B team for want of a better description. I’m just saying I would have hoped for more given the opposition.
We went a goal up and then proceeded to act as as if the thing was won. Slowed the game, passed as if we were playing the time out. A child could have predicted this wasn’t a very good plan. Any child able to use a clock or a watch.
Our traveling firm were great value. ‘Norwich City, your sister’s your mum’ followed by a Grant Holt’s arrival prompting a chorus of ‘Grant Holt, he eats when he wants.’
Norwich scored twice and we missed a penalty. This beast on Twitter was quick to voice her support direct to Clint on Twitter. Despite being at the game in person!
I take the view that if people are on Twitter they have to take their chances, maybe not everyone thinks you’re as wonderful as your mother repeatedly told you you were. But why would you Tweet Dempsey that? Jeez, he knows that he missed. My best guess is he didn’t do it on purpose.
Is there a moral to last night’s story? Probably not. But we do need a striker and we need Moussa Dembélé. Like a rose needs rainwater, like a leopard needs its partner in the jungle, like… I don’t know what like.
We started the season with 2 defensive minded players in Sandro and Livermore and lost but played well, we then continued like this for a few more games drawing them and looking bland.
Livermore was injured and Dembele came in and it changed our whole outlook, we looked more exciting and creative and won 4 in a row and beat Manure.
Then Dembele is injured and we revert back to 2 defensive midfielder’s, we then suddenly look bland again with no real creativity so it begs the question, why does AVB insist that we play 2 defensive midfielder’s when we do not look like the same team.
Last night Carroll came in and we looked a lot better and Falque looked good but then after being 1-0 up he takes off Carroll who I believe is worth the first team bench and puts on Vertonghen and once again 2 defensive midfielder’s again and therefore a loss.
Sigurdsson is useless imo, he’s doesn’t seem to ever do anything, Dempsey looks lost and just going through the motions. We need attacking players to spice up the midfield just like what Chelsea did in the Summer. I like AVB but getting frustrated that we didn’t replace VDV which is a huge loss.
Paul
It seemed to me like a substitution for the sake of it. We were winning, Carroll was doing okay so what was the point? Taking off Dempsey or Sigurdsson I could have understood, but why Carroll?
Not for the first time, the entire emphasis of the game changed completely and immediately once AVB made a substitution. And, in case it needed spelling out, not in our favour.
Carroll’s passing was very erratic.
A handful went astray, but by and large his passing was very good. Which is a hell of a lot more than could be said for the other two I mentioned.
Completely agree with you on the 2 DM system. For it to have any chance of success both players need to be exceptional, like Parker and Sandro might work, but generally the sooner it’s consigned to the dustbin of history the better, and it’ll fit in well with all the other ‘double-up your fullbacks’ and ‘midfield is a dumping ground for defenders’ systems.
I think because Vertonghen is so talented, AVB wanted to have a look at him in that role and maybe the Capital One Cup is just the place to do that kind of thing but I hope, like Bale at left back in the 1st half against QPR, it’s lesson learned.
AVB does seem quick on the uptake and it’s still early and experimental days.
We need More than a striker and Dembele back.
We need a decent midfielder who can pass and who can tackle without crippling or reds.
BTW whatever walker and Livermore have, it is catching as Verto seems to have caught it also.
Next we will have Lloris dropping balls in the penalty box.
We have not really moved on too much in the last twelve months.
A half decent striker signed last January would have got us into the Champions League. Even Stephen Fletcher. We probably should have signed two in August but the only one we did (re)sign cannot get a game becuase of AVB’s insistence on playing Defoe and now he has the arse ache, stomach ache and seemingly a focus elsewhere.
Sigurdsson could have worked but hasn’t yet and its looking like Reading and Swansea was his proper level. Disappointed in Dempsey. He always looked a handful when we played Fulham but he seems a bit overawed by it all. Maybe he will come good but it may have been best to let the pair of them go to Liverpool and save our money.
Agree about Livermore. He looks more like a Charlton/Crystal Palace type player and must rank after Sandro and Parker so why keep him. The risk is he plays with one of those two and then we really are stuffed. Falque might be worth persevering with. I prefer him to Townsend.
Surprised to see Smith loaned out given Walker’s dire form all season.
How can you expect to move on when we sold Modric and VDV. Anyone who has watched our recent perfomances must be able to see that we miss a distinct sprinkling of star-dust.
We have a collection of good, solid professionals, but we need more players that can change a game.
If/when Bale goes then we’ll be decidedly average for the foreseeable future.
Still, best not to worry about it, because you’re kidding yourself if you think we’re challenging for anything other than the race for 4th and a cup or two.
I’m happy with that – because I’m a realist. If I wasn’t, I’d go support Man Utd
Still, best not to worry about it, because you’re kidding yourself if you think we’re challenging for anything other than the race for 4th and a cup or two.
If by ‘challenging’ do you mean ‘pretending to be competitive for’, because we’ve won 1 trophy since Levy has been here (the one most people are apparently happy to write off today as ‘low priority’) and it doesn’t look like that will improve. And on the basis of what we’ve seen so far, the only way we will finish 4th is if Everton get a couple of bad injuries.
There’s a long way to go for the unbridled glory and jubilation of a 4th place finish. I expect us to be in the mix.
Kaboul/Parker/Benny will improve us, but we’re so far away from “challenging” for anything higher than that it’s not even worth contemplating.
We can’t compete, we just cant. Its a fact. We have a 35k seater stadium, a refusal to pay over £20m for players, and only a decent training centre to attract anyone else (Johnny Foreigner isn’t going to look at the trophy cabinet and immediately sign on the dotted line is he?).
4th and the latter stages of the Europa/FA Cup will do me – in fact when you consider our circumstances I think it’s pretty bloody respectable – we are only the sale of Bale away from doing a Liverpool if you ask me.
But then I remember those dark days of perennial mid-table mediocrity, so perhaps I’m easily pleased.
But then I remember those dark days of perennial mid-table mediocrity, so perhaps I’m easily pleased.
I said on the last blog that people are always quick to bring up this comparison with the ‘bad old days’. The fact is that we have moved on, and this message is coming from the board and the manager – we now aim for CL qualification and trophies.
The other fact is that we did actually manage to win the occasional trophy while we were mid-table mediocrity. Not so much now. In other words, we strive to be Arsenal – qualify for the CL, bank the profits and win fuck all. And we are quite a way from that heady goal.
Yes, but then the playing field was more level – metaphorically speaking.
The evidence suggests that until we get ought by a billionaire sugar daddy our current status is about the best we can hope for.
Thats just the state of the game today though isn’t it?
This is news to me. Where has Smith been loaned out to?
Millwall, 3 month loan.
Cheers. Hopefully that’s an indication that Benny will be back soon so Naughton can cover both the full back slots if need be.
Benny should be back this weekend, according to PhysioRoom.
“Back” means starting back into training, NOT back playing, he won’t be fit enough to play for at least another two weeks.
Indeed. Though the site regularly lists dates such as the one referenced above by myself, then later on will add notes such under “Next Match” as “late fit test”.
They also had “no return date” for Adebayor’s *Expected return (*to full training).
The club has announced subsequent to my post Ade is in the squad for Wigan though. And no mention of Benny. So looks like both he and Moussa will be absent.
But do bless me and let me know if you think Adebayor will be fit enough to do himself justice or if he should wait another two weeks. :finn:
When Dembele and Kaboul and BAE return
and I believe both Sigg and Dempsey will both get a lot better
Play Lloris as the main goalie
Buy a striker in Jan
Use Ade as a second striker
and if poss get that creative midfielder
(number one is a striker)
Walker is not brilliant defensively but will do when the others all kick in
But this Norwich lot we should have crushed
I agree Ronnie!
I also believe that AVB didn’t sign Deuce and Siggy, everyone knows Levy did!
I’m sure that if we signed Moutinho like he wanted to, our starting eleven would look like this,
Lloris
Walker Kaboom Big Jan Benny
Sandro
Moutinho Moussa
Azza Ade/Defoe(as he keeps on playing him!) Bale
This could be us in January(minus Ade), I wish but I doubt it as a Spurs supporter I’m used to not getting my own way.
No Siggy and Dempsey will get worse if they are not used properly which is in conjunction with a holding forward that can hold the ball and thread it through for them. They are technically gifted but slower then what we are used to. We need Ade. Hell we need Holt.
Please explain to me how Siggy and Dempsey can get any worse?
Siggy looks like he’s way in above his head, and as much as I would love to see Dempsey succeed with us, he belongs in a team who fights every ball, plays with all their heart and bullies teams!
Were just too nice!
I hear that Ade is fit this weekend, I think its time to try 4-4-2!
Lloris
Walker
Billy
Caulker
Verts
Azza
Deuce
Sandro
Bale
Ade
Defoe
Before people say we’ll get opened up, we’ve got a BIG problem if we can’t play 4-42 at home against a team who fight relegation every season!
I don’t think its panic stations yet, but last night and even the second half of the Soton game reminded me so much of the old Spurs.
Now we all know that we’ve come a long way since those days, but I don’t think its as far as we think.
Were definitely up there, but when do you see UTD, The Goons, City and Chelsea winning a game and then sitting back until they concede?
They difference between us and being mediocre or a top team is us learning how to kill teams off!