for their Champions League exit.
It was fitting that a soulless stadium in fake country a fraud of a Spurs team exited the Champions League in the most soulless manner.
Dear god this was beyond awful. A game that summed up Spurs season in it atrociousness.
I don’t know how many times this season I’ve sat there at half-time and thought, well that was the worst half of football I’ve watched so far. I suppose I could quite easily figure it out, I mean take out the Citeh game and well there you go.
And yet with how bad those other games were, yet again I sat there and thought, this is the worst. Worst because of the situation, what was required to stay in the competition they so desperately want to be in, both club and players.
In reality what we got was a par performance from Spurs in the Champions League, a microcosm of their season so far absolutely awful yet they were, somehow, still in it.
Yes it’s been pathetic all the way in this Champions League campaign, last time, the first time, it was a rolleycoaster (© Artie, from The Larry Sanders Show), it was exciting, this… this was dullness to the nth degree.
Right from the moment Son completely butchered a one on one with the ‘keeper to the very end they never really looked like doing anything to stay in this competition, even for just one more game.
But for Hugo the scoreline would have been far, far worse. At least 5-1, instead of 2-1.
In the first half he saved a weak penalty from Faclao, after a lazy challenge from Dier, which followed a lazy swing by Wanyama, and a lazy attempt by Dele. And he made two outstanding saves in the second, the point blank one from Glik especially.
The look Lloris gave after one save, well it said it all. A man sick of being behind a team that so easily plays like this. Sick of having to save the day.
And so did Pochettino, watching that first half rubbish, think to himself “I need to make a change here?” Well he might have but of course he didn’t actually do anything about it. God forbid he should make a tactical change before the 60th minute.
But then looking at the bench what could he do? Bring on Jan would be admitting it was a mistake not playing him in the first place. And when you want someone to come on and show some fight, desire and pride well Eriksen this season ain’t your man.
Sissoko? Do me a favour, panic buy and well you all seemed to want Nkoudou at the club, yet nobody seems to want to play him.
As with Spurs, they kill you with the hope and the penalty just four minutes after Monaco opened the scoring did just that. Hope to hopeless in less than 40 seconds, of which most of that time was taken up getting the ball back to the centre circle.
Summed everything up. The whole campaign.
Now people are saying it’ll allow Spurs to focus on the league. To what extent? To get into the Champions League for this?
People going on about lack of experience. Well for the most part they’re internationals, with plenty of experience. And how much experience do you need to pass the ball to someone wearing the same shirt as you?
Pochettino is now saying they can’t compete on two fronts. So if they do make the Europa on Thursday nights you can’t expect him to try to win that and well that’s the Cup out the window. You know, things they could actually win if they tried.
It now means that Levy will be able to short change everyone in January, hell he’d have low balled it even if Spurs were still in both competitions. Sissoko anyone?
Pochettino, well if he can’t get them up for this and I mean where was the famed pressing game, are they playing for him, has he run them into the ground…