Spurs Go All Christian Against Norwich

Tottenham came into this game after suffering a defeat at the hands of Arsenal, a long international break and knowing that the upcoming opposition had not lost to Spurs in the last three meetings. What could’ve been a potentially tricky game ended up being a game of possession and dominance as Spurs had 69.3% of possession and completed 568 passes.

Never afraid to rotate the starting team dependent on the opposition, AVB gave starts to Paulinho and Mousa Dembele in a double pivot as Spurs lined up in a 4-2-3-1. As expected, Norwich sat back attempting to soak pressure and counter with pace provided from Nathan Redmond and balls over the top for Ricky Van Wolfswinkel.

Whether AVB would have played this system, had injuries to Nacer Chadli and Etienne Capoue, coupled with international fatigue not limited his selection, is up for debate. Glyfi Sigurdsson, who had starred for Iceland midweek was a doubt himself, due to a dead leg, but with the aid of painkillers he was thankfully fit to play as his two goals were the difference.

Paulinho and Dembele controlled the game and linked the play well between the defence and attacking midfield. It was a pleasure watching Dembele in a 4-2-3-1 again; his performances in a 4-3-3 system had not been at the same level compared to last season. His ability to link play and skip past the opposition far outweighs the creativity he offers further up the pitch. Both Dembele and Paulinho gave the home team a foundation to build the attack on, with the latter also contributing with an assist.

In pre-season Danny Rose was a hot topic for many fans, he had come off from an admirable loan season with Sunderland but still with critics who were not convinced he could play every week for a team challenging for the Champions League positions. His performance against Norwich should win him over a few admirers. He pressed high in the Norwich half and won possession three times, whilst also snatching away two goal scoring opportunities from the feet of Van Wolfswinkel.

Rose was also able to provide width on the left, bombing forward overlapping Sigurdsson, and was found in ample space many times. His crossing still left a lot to be desired though. However, through consistent minutes and hard training I’m sure that it will improve.

[linequote]Rose pressed high in the Norwich half and won possession three times, whilst also snatching away two goal scoring opportunities from the feet of Van Wolfswinkel[/linequote]

Christian Eriksen was given his debut for Tottenham, and he did not disappoint. Much is hoped for from the young Dane whose reputation has been growing as fast as his hairline is receding. Since the start of the season Roberto Soldado has been isolated and creativity in the final third seriously lacking, why buy a £26m striker if you can’t allow him shots on goal?

Unfortunately in this game Soldado still seemed isolated, the Spaniard only received 3 passes in the opposition box and mustered 3 shots in total. However, the debutant was still able to bring others into the attack and provided an assist for the first goal and played the ball to Paulinho to assist the second.

Eriksen completed 46 of his 51 attempted passes, 90.2% completion accuracy, and received the ball across the entire width of the Norwich half. His ability to play forward passes appears more evident on the right hand side, but Eriksen was able to keep the ball moving deeper in the opposition half and maintained possession well.

[linequote]A solid display and provided an exhibition on how to retain possession and break down an opponent with no desire to push forward[/linequote]

Hopefully with Eric Lamela expected to replace Townsend for the next fixture, this combination of new additions will help Soldado have more shots in the box. I really don’t need to pull up a chalkboard to show you how many off target shots Townsend attempted right? Rather infuriating when teammates were finding good pockets of space.

In conclusion, Tottenham put in a solid display and provided an exhibition on how to retain possession and break down an opponent with no desire to push forward. Another clean sheet is always a bonus and we look solid defensively, having only conceded one goal this season in all competitions.

The two English full backs were impressive and Eriksen was able to add needed creativity in the final third, as the team gels together hopefully we will be able to see more performances of Spurs cruising to victory.
[author name=”Jai B” avatar=”https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/1659352356/IMAG0018.jpg” twitter=”Jai_B” tag=”JaiB[/linequote]