Mauricio Pochettino faces one of his biggest test against the Premier League Champions Manchester City. How will he fare?
Andreas Vilas Boas just 14 seconds after the whistle saw his team concede a goal against a rampant Manchester City last season. City went on to score 5 more at regular intervals and defeated Tottenham 6 goals to none. This season however, with a new manager and a slightly revived team, Tottenham will be required to put up a better show and at least earn a draw if not win against the second placed City who are 5 points adrift Chelsea.
Tactical Change
AVB employed a flawed tactic last season by playing slow center backs and a high defensive line. Many football pundits criticised Boas for using his best center back as a left back as Kaboul and Dawson were unable to keep up with the pace of Aguero, Navas and Negredo. Walker on the other hand was fast but still in poor form to aid the team in any way.
Tottenhamai??i??s game against Southampton was a very entertaining affair as the two teams played aggressive pressing football. The Mauricio Pochettino effect is sure to have brought some changes to the team. In the Previous season Southampton although losing away and earning a draw at home, fared much better than Tottenham against Manchester City. However with a slightly more talented squad Pochettino will expect his players to play for a win.
Pochettino will have an inform Captain Younnes Kaboul and Jan Vertonghen available as center halves for the game. The two have looked solid against both Arsenal as well as Southampton and will relish another clean sheet. Pochettino will have ensure his center backs do not venture out too much and keep a deep line while always sticking to the strikers Aguero and Dzeko who have both linked up well in the previous games.
Rose and Dier will be the chosen wing backs and should fight the urge to overlap so as to stay back and mark the likes of Milner and Silva. Silva would look to cut in from the left and play more centrally and this is a threat Dier must look to counter. Milner on the other hand will look to get closer to the touch line and send in crosses which Rose must cut out, as Dzeko and Toure have been known to be aerially sublime.
Capoueai??i??s recent form has made him the best defensive midfield in Premier League, his role of ensuring Yaya Toure is excluded from the game will be cruicial. If he were to cut out all forms of fluidity by sticking to the Ivorian then it will force Aguero to play deeper to receive the ball and hence making the Tottenham defenceai??i??s job easier. Ryan Mason after his two commendable performances in the previous games will play a crucial role in supplying the Tottenham Attack with all the through balls necessary.
With the lack of a goal scoring striker, Tottenham will have to rely on the tactics they used against Arsenal. They will have to sit deep and ensure they do not concede and look to score on the counter attack. Adebayor should be the chosen lone striker playing deeper and crowding the midfield. This will ensure the likes of Fernandinho and Toure have no room to play. His pace might also prove useful if Manchester City uses Demichelis instead of Mangala. It would be wiser to use Harry Kane in the number 10 role and play Lamela and Eriksen on either side of him as the latter two have performed better when played wide. Although Lennon and Townsend are good replacements for the injured Chadli. Harry Kaneai??i??s heading and eye for goal may prove useful in set pieces and a counter active tactic.
Eric Lamela had a poor season last year. In his appearance against Manchester city, he seemed dull and out of touch with his game. This season however the reborn Lamela will look to prove his worth against a tough opponent known to break down some of the best talents in the Premier League. Up against the likes Aleksander Kolarov, Lamela will have to rely on his pace n trickery to get past the Serbian.
Personnel
Tottenham in the last season had an almost full strength squad. Missing only a left back, they started the game on a negative note and suffered to get a grip on the game to pose any form of threat to the opposition. This Season however they have included new personal but are suffering a few injuries.
In the defensive department, one of Tottenhamai??i??s biggest concern is their goal keeper Hugo Llorisai??i?? fitness. The goalkeeper of late has been in sublime form pulling saves that seemed almost humanly impossible. In the game against Southampton however, he seemed a bit uncomfortable and is said to be absent for Franceai??i??s game against Armenia with a thigh injury. If Lloris is declared fit to play it will prove a boon for Tottenhamai??i??s morale as well as a boost for their defense. On the Contrary if he isnai??i??t, Tottenham will have to rely on former Swansea keeper Michael Vorm.
Tottenhamai??i??s concern extends to their midfield where Belgian Nacer Chadli is said to be suffering from a hip injury. Having pulled out of Belgiumai??i??s game against Bosnia-Herzegovina, Tottenhamai??i??s top scorers absence will prove fatal for Tottenham whose strikers have been suffering a goal drought. The favourites to replace him would be either Andros Townsend or Aaron Lennon. Townsend has proved himself the front runner after scoring for England against San Marino. On the other hand the out of favour winger Lennon has always been a hard worker and put up a good performance against Besiktas.
Conclusion
Coming from 2 back to back victories, Manchester City will look to emulate their form and hope to catch up to Chelsea by doing what they did in the last season against Tottenham. However with Tottenham having a fitter squad and more tactical prowess as compared to last season, they will pose a threat to the champions. Spurs have usually struggled against a fast paced teams such as Manchester City and are vulnerable when going forward. 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