is it another false dawn?
After another game of two halves, Spurs came out victorious over the visiting Aston Villa, again putting four goals past them as they did in their previous meeting last season.
It didn’t go to well after last season’s thumping, Spurs went on to win just 4 of the last 11 games of the season, three of which came against teams regelated.
Villa didn’t turn up in that last game, they turned up here but with the strangest of plans. It seemed to boil down to, play not to lose, time wasting from the opening kick-off, hang deep and hope to catch ’em with a set piece goal.
Well for a half it worked. Knowing Spurs are vulnerable to the packed defence and at set pieces. Yup, it’s just like “Back to the Future”, we’ve all seen this one before. Spurs have all the ball, create nothing by going nowhere. Wide players coming inside into that crammed central area, while the fullbacks also go in. No one stays wide, no one gets to the byline and sticks a cross in.
Then Villa, on a rare excursion, get a corner and Spurs are flapping and they’re one nil down. Vicario needs to be stronger. But it’s strange how every opposition puts someone on the keeper, yet Spurs never do the same to the opposition. Why Ange? Yes this might be only the second set piece goal they’ve conceded this season, well it was well into the last season before it became a regular thing. City in the Cup.
Spurs creativity was restricted by Maddison being dropped, while everyone was still raving about Kulusevski, who at the break had given the ball away more than anyone else on the pitch a combination of being dispossessed more than anyone and having a worse passing percentage than anyone else on the pitch. But apparently going most of the half with a passing percentage that was nearly 50%, got you a 7/10.
Solanke was getting his usual… “his pressing game was great”.
It didn’t take long into the second half for people to ask. “Why weren’t you doing that in the first half?”. The returning captain, Son, not cutting fully inside and putting in a cracking cross across the face of goal, for Johnson to nick in and get the equaliser.
Villa’s plan had backfired, they now seemed to have no backup plan. It was front foot Spurs. But then Ange did that thing that Ange does. As soon as a player actually does something good, he takes ’em off. And so Son trudged off disconsolately to be replaced by Richarlison. Son was not a happy bunny ion the bench, while it went flat on the pitch. The moment just seemed lost.
Shortly after and it was just like last season, well nearly just. Romero departed with an injury and with van de Ven sitting in the stands. Spurs were down to the understudies. Luckily they’ve got Dragusin this season and won’t be relying on Emerson Royal. But it still leaves Ben Davies.
The winning goal started with Davies cutting out a Villa break, from there the ball made its way to the edge of the Villa area, where Johnson and Kulusevski looked to be getting in each others way, before the Swede played the ball through into the box and Solanke was actually there, where he chipped the ball over the already prone Martinez in goal. The way Kulusevski’s passing was so off and Solanke was so absent, you wonder f the former actually knew the latter would be there.
Sarr – who did have an excellent game – then picked off another Villa pass and made straight for the box, he laid it off to Richarlison, who was haring down the wing and his cross was perfect for Solanke’s more natural tap-in. Doubling his league tally for the season, in one game.
The pressing stats guys were out saying how great Solanke is but he’s a striker, a striker doesn’t get marks for running about, he gets ’em for goals. It’s 4 goals in 10 league games OK eight but still, so a 4/10. And if he was so great they wouldn’t keep having to post about it, almost as if they’re trying to convince themselves.
Maddison eventually made his way on as Richarlison went down injured. Solanke was brought down on the edge of the area, we were half way through the 10 added minutes – that Villa were benefiting from due to Villa’s time wasting – everyone was ready when Maddison curled the ball round the wall and inside the post. A free-kick, Spurs actually scored a goal directly from a free-kick.
Unai Emery was sat n the bench, his face contorting like Bob Hoskins as Harold Shand in the final scene of “The Long Good Friday”. It’s another thumping against Spurs. Villa got what they deserved.
But again, it’s Spurs having to come from behind. Another two half display. Remember when everyone was pissed off about that under Conte.
Europa game to come this week, then winless Ipswich in the league before a break and City away. Will see how Ange copes with his central pair possibly being absent. And what he does with Maddison.