Purple drain

It is a measure of how far Spurs have grown when a second string XI leave team the field disappointed with only collecting a draw against Fiorentina. Much has been made of rotation, freshness and who to play and when, but in a tricky run of games, where morale, belief and spirit are perhaps just as important as fitness, I think Pochettino called it right last night.

The Argentine is at this season’s crossroads. The next two weeks, although they shouldn’t, will define his reign. The worst case scenario is we lose ground on the top four, exit the Europa League and lose a cup final. Theoretically our season could be over by Easter, therefore I admire Pochettino’s stance that we go into this period united, with everyone playing a part.

Isolating a player or players now needs to be handled carefully. Despite the final being only just over two weeks away, there are a minimum of 180 minutes to traverse first, any slip, mis-timed tackle or foolish red card could have repercussions on our Wembley visit.

[linequote]They had no response to the sheer ferocity of Spurs, the pressing was so intense that Tatarusanu, their keeper, was nearly alongside me in the Park Lane[/linequote]

It is also ludicrous to believe that Kane, Eriksen, Rose, Dembele, Mason and Bentaleb, pillars in our current set up can feature in all games, therefore using them sparingly is the only option. You have to approach these games with caution, last night Pochettino believed he had a team capable of beating, and for the first 15 minutes they seemed capable of obliterating their Tuscan opponents.

Fiorentina spent the first quarter of the game being run over, then reversed over and just as they gathered themselves up being hit again, repeatedly. They had no response to the sheer ferocity of Spurs, the pressing was so intense that Tatarusanu, their keeper, was nearly alongside me in the Park Lane. There was nowhere for them to go, they looked like a little kid in Godzilla film mesmerised and frozen into place by sheer brutality.

However like good all good teams, with a manager able to comprehend what is happening (in other words not Wenger,) they adapted. I was very impressed by what I saw from Vincenzo Montella and his team, he acts just like the manager the hype has us believe he is, and his team is built in a similar fashion to Spurs, they work, they fight, defend and attack as one. Despite being constantly deprived of their best players by oil money or weak knees, they continue to prosper.

Last night though, regardless of how talented Montella is, Spurs should have done better and should have been out of sight. Townsend, who had the Viola defence falling over themselves faded as they became wise to his tricks. In order to combat this he attempted to do something different, but unfortunately he just kept on repeating the same thing. My father who was taking in his first Fiorentina game since he emigrated here in 1970 used an Italian phrase “cortille” to describe Townsend.

The literal meaning of the word is a player adept in playing football in the courtyard (in the mid-1950s there were no PowerLeague/Goals.) This player has tricks, he has speed and in close situations is good, but the moment he lifts his head, or he is let loose on to the open areas of a football field he struggles. In football not everything is done at 100mph, the key is being able to switch from 0 to 50mph, slow, slow, slow then bang. The modern greats Messi, Ronaldo, El fenomeno and Zizou could/can go from stand still to 99mph, whilst the good 0-50mph, Townsend the moment he stops he stalls.

[fullquote]It was almost as if scoring has become such a feat of mental and physical exertion that he has nothing left after the event, he is a footballing male drone bee, the moment he has done the one thing he exists to do, he dies[/fullquote]

He was a threat, but slowly they learnt how to deal with him. Serie A may not be the defensive utopia it used to be, but occasionally you see some of the old traits reappear, last night they got the measure of Townsend and once they did Pochettino should have spared him the calories and removed him. He has to mix it up, he needs to adapt, in his current form he will remain useful but never vital.

The English winger wasn’t the only one to stutter as the game went on though. Soldado started brightly and was putting in his best Spurs performance of his career, but the goal seemed to stop him. It was almost as if scoring has become such a feat of mental and physical exertion that he has nothing left after the event, he is a footballing male drone bee, the moment he has done the one thing he exists to do, he dies. Perhaps this is why we never see him play the game after he has scored, he is just too physically broken, spent, exhausted?

However I am a firm believe that Pochettino and his team are learning, and last night was a great lesson in how to play the classic European tie. La Viola dropped deeper, denied space and when they scored a scrappy equaliser were happy to play on the counter, without ever really opening themselves up.

[linequote]This result, coupled with the defeat at Anfield does serve as a timely reminder that despite moments of mesmerising greatness, Spurs are far from the complete article[/linequote]

For the crowd though it was enough for us to start to doubt ourselves again. From the euphoria of beating Arsenal, slowly doubt has crept back on to us. This result, coupled with the defeat at Anfield does serve as a timely reminder that despite moments of mesmerising greatness, Spurs are far from the complete article. Deprived of key individuals we lack the intensity and zip to unlock and organised defence, however, in pursuit of multiple goals and an ultimate identity we are going to have to accept a result like this.

Failing to beat Fiorentina is not an issue, provided we beat West Ham. Failing to beat West Ham isn’t an issue unless we fail to beat Fiorentina, the circle never ends. These are the conundrums facing not only Pochettino but every single manager. Had we blown away the Italians like we threatened to do, we would have left N17 full of pride and confidence in our manager, in football there is a fine line between glory and shame.

Once again we are back were we started in the unknown. However, by using his squad sparingly Pochettino has given himself what he feels is the best chance of achieving his goals, we have little choice but to trust him.