A dose of reality

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SchmoodSpur2013

SchmoodSpur2013

wrong nearly always
Yes, yesterday's performance was shite. But there is no need to melt. If you look deeper than a single result we have a hell of a lot still to play for this season. One that, I think, will still produce a cup (or two) and our highest Premier League finish.

Firstly, we have lost 3 times in the League this year. Away to City, Liverpool and Chelsea. There is no shame in that. Those are 3 good sides and albeit disappointing, the fact of football is you have to lose sometimes.

Now, looking at the immediate future we have Gent, Fulham and Gent again to progress in our 2 cup competitions. We should, and will, progress in those bringing us closer to cup glory. I imagine we'll put out strong sides on Thursday and Sunday using the following Thursday as an opportunity to rest players with, what I suspect, will be a comfortable lead from the 1st leg.

Following these games our League fixtures until the middle of April look like this:

Stoke (H)
Everton (H)
Palace (A)
Soton (H)
Burnley (A)
Swansea (A)
Watford (H)
Bournemouth (H)
Leicester (A)

Now, if we take into consideration our season so far, and our only losses are to 3 of the top 6 away from WHL, it is not happy clappy to suggest we will go unbeaten in this period. Also, taking our home form into account we can expect to win the majority, if not all, of those games. In recent times we have all 5 of those sides numbers as well.

A conservative points haul estimate: 23 (I expect more)

During this same period are the following fixtures:

Liverpool v. Woolwich
Woolwich v. City
City v. Liverpool
Chelsea v. City
United v. Chelsea

That means, every one of our rivals will be dropping points over this same period. Probably twice.

If you look at Chelsea's fixtures, I don't think we were ever catching them. Again, I think it's a case of a side winning the League, rather than us losing it. The only games I can see them potentially dropping points are the games above, which wouldn't be enough for anyone to catch anyway.

With Jan potentially back before our next League I think there are many reasons to be positive. I know the melters don't like to look deeper than the most recent result before declaring how shit we are or our season over but you must.

We are in prime position and it's not a mad thing to say that by the end of said period we will have a gap to the sides around us before a huge final NLD @ WHL. Fuck the negativity and get behind the club. These next two months are massive and we all need to pull in the same direction.

Come On You Fucking Spurs!

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Really good thread, I love this club and have an analyogy as to why I don't flip out every time we lose one match, stick with it.....

Imagine I am a parent, and Tottenham was my son, in the 90s / early 2000s at primary school they used to struggle, get in fights, not listen to the teacher, had the occasional day of genius and had great personality but they seemed to be on road to nowhere.

Then came secondary school between 2005 and 2011, they matured as a person, started to make friends, focus and learn. They still made big mistakes at times but improved in all aspects which made me really proud.

They managed to get to university in 2011 somehow which looking at when they were a young kid seemed a miracle, then things went a little off rails but hey they were at uni at least so they were in good shape overall, so any low point is relatively way above where they could ever dream of years ago. Now they are so much more consistent in performance and get better every year ready to graduate and we are talking about a few mistakes on an exam paper rather than years of their lives being a mess as a kid.

Now if I love my son of course I want them to leave Uni top of the class but I also think fuck, I've seen so many lads go by wayside. We have done incredibly to get here and now we are competing against some kids who have spent 10x as much on their primary and secondary education so appreciate how well Tottenham is doing.

Now imagine if Tottenham is your son at this point and they badly dropped points in one exam, would you be supportive or go ballistic?

It is not good but I have an acute memory how kids Villa and Leeds who were once way above my son have turned out and think fuck, why am I worried at all? We are progressing and amongst the very best

COYS
 
Arthur Wensleydale said:
OT Anfield and Stamford bridge, continue to be graveyards for us.
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You can lose to the rest of the top teams twice over, each and still win the league.
Do that with the rest though.

Come the end of the season, Id be happy if we could look back and see that after defeat to Utd away, we took 23 points from a possible 27 before our next loss, and be able to see a similar tally after defeat at Anfield.

Much rather that, than turn up for the big boys, claim a few scalps in a few cup finals but then get turned over by Watford, WBA and Stoke etc, as as been the case on the past, and is the case for Liverpool.

Or do people want it all......just beat everyone, every week? Yeah, that would be nice too in Cloud Lalaa Land.

Yesterday was all about the manner of the defeat for me. That was the disgrace, not losing the game.
 
The last poor performance was united away, after that we put a great unbeaten run together. We can do the same again, we also have key players coming back from injury in the next couple of weeks. I hope the club takes the cups seriously and we play a strong as team as possible.

These guys are professional athletes and if they want to win things then they are going to have to get used to playing more than once a week, all winning sides do it, united did it for years under Fergie with only minimal rotation.
 
Arthur Wensleydale said:
Take a couple of key players out of the team away to a top six side, and we are generally poor.
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You can say that for every team in the League. Hazard and Costa were nowhere last season and Chelsea struggled. Take Ibra and De Gea out of United, they'd be nowhere. Take Sanchez and Ozil out of Woolwich, nowhere. Take De Bruyne and Silva from City, same thing. Coutinho and Mane from Liverpool, same.
 
sammyspurs said:
You can lose to the rest of the top teams twice over, each and still win the league.
Do that with the rest though.

Come the end of the season, Id be happy if we could look back and see that after defeat to Utd away, we took 23 points from a possible 27 before our next loss, and be able to see a similar tally after defeat at Anfield.

Much rather that, than turn up for the big boys, claim a few scalps in a few cup finals but then get turned over by Watford, WBA and Stoke etc, as as been the case on the past, and is the case for Liverpool.

Or do people want it all......just beat everyone, every week? Yeah, that would be nice too in Cloud Lalaa Land.

Yesterday was all about the manner of the defeat for me. That was the disgrace, not losing the game.
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I honestly think that some on here genuinely expect us to win every game. It's Utd under Ferguson levels of expectation, and they couldn't do it - not even close.
 
Joe Clash said:
I honestly think that some on here genuinely expect us to win every game. It's Utd under Ferguson levels of expectation, and they couldn't do it - not even close.
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Win every match 4-0 while playing attacking fluid football, only having English players from the academy, and an English manager and a chairman that is willing to lose all his savings but is not a money man like the Sheikhs or Abrahamovich. If you disagree with any of that it is because you are just not as much of a fan
 
scott said:
Honestly, we could play liverpool away again next week & people will attack anyone who says they are worried about the match.
Unless you say "an easy win for us, liverpool are shit & we are great" then you will most likely get attacked on here.
I did for saying liverpool will be harder than some seem to think it will be. I didn't even say we would lose.

Its become a strange forum where you have to pretend the team & manager have no flaws.
If you say openly they do then you get attacked.
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People see our flaws, but they also acknowledge how far we've come.

You seem to be very keen to show that you are aware we arent good enough, very often.
But you also seem, like many others, keen to weigh up your critique against our target of winning a title.

For example, if someone (thats someone Scot, not specifically you before you dwell on the "where did I say that" and take the point somewhere else) thinks we are will be lucky to get top 6 now, why are they comparing us to Chelsea, City and Liverpool etc? Why are they not comparing us to Everton and WBA?
Make no sense saying we are not good enough, and we have no squad, but basing the critique on that of a team challenging for titles.
Lower your expectations....if we are barely top 6, then you should be fucking over the moon that we are 2nd.
 
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scott said:
I think injuries will play a big role in how all the top 6 do. For all the deep analysis, luck with injuries & ref decisions have a big impact on who finishes where.
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And the point is we have been bloody unlucky with injuries this year. Kane out for weeks, Toby out for weeks, Verts out for weeks, Rose out for weeks & Lamela out for months.

All of these are certain starters for Poch when fit. Lamela, in particular, personifies Poch's pressing philosophy & before his injury he was shaping up to have another great season.
 
Record against top 6. Posting this because the narrative being built is we are shit against the top 6. Open your eyes!

Chavs = 8 games played (5 home 3 away): 13pts from 24pts W4 D1 L3
Spurs = 8 games played (3 home 5 away): 9pts from 24 W2 D3 L3
Woolwich = 6 games played (3 home 3 away): 5pts from 18pts W1 D2 L3
Dippers = 7 games played: (3 home 4 away): 13 from 21pts W3 D4 L0
Citeh = 6 games played: (3 home 3 away): 7pts from 18pts W2 D1 L3
Manure = 6 games played (4 home 2 away): 6pts from 18pts W1 D3 L2

Out of all of the top 6 we and Chavs have only 2 games to play, both of ours are at home where we are unbeaten this season (inc against the top 6). Chavs 2 remaining games are away from home where they have only won 1 game against top 6!

Dippers currently have best record against top 6 sides having not lost a game. They have 1 away game remaining too, so they look to be in a strong position. That said it is 100% crystal clear how to beat or at least get a draw from them, let them have the ball and counter, thanks to us yesterday no other team will play against them they way we did.

The rest are all a bit meh.
 
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I'm not sure we need this much analysis.
Liverpool did to us what we did to chelsea a few weeks back. We played at the top of our game that day and the scousers did the same. Our players weren't allowed to find their feet and the 2 quick goals did us. Its too hard chasing a game against a very good team, and one that counters with such pace. If Son or Dele had scored then it might have been different.
I don't see why we've got to be so critical of the performance, from the manager to our best players. We just got done over by a very good team, with a very good manager at a ground we've never done well at.
We didn't play as well as we could but we weren't allowed to. Yes, we need to learn how to manage a game like this and perhaps killing it, playing differently to our normal game and being prepared to take a point is better than going balls out. I think back to the away game against the scum when chadli scored - we played that perfectly - but that was back when we had less expectation. And I also agree that the back up players need to be given more of a role so that they can offer something - rather than an out of shape last 10mins.
 
Notabadsquad said:
In other words the worst of the top 6 and thetefore average when you consider we trail City by a couple points and Chelsea by 10.

Next you will argue with the stats.
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Fucking hell you are a bundle of joy.

Why are you going out of your way to prove the fact that we are shit? Every single post from you is about how poor we are, when you are challenged and shown that your are talking out of your backside you then go out of your way to find another way to talk about how shit we are. You never answer the question you are asked to back up your theories.

So here we are again. You say we have an average away record. Facts state that we don't. When shown this you then twist it and say its average against the top 6, despite paying absolutely no attention to the fact that there are 3 other clubs who have 0% win rate against the top 6.

Fuck me.
 
The team has been progressing in a positive direction since Poch had taken over.

We do need to strengthen in the summer, and resist poaching attempts from others e.g. Pep breaking the bank for Dele Alli.
 
Yesterday was a disaster but it happens, wish it wasn't against those lot though.

Next window we need to close the gap between our 1st 11 and the rest of the squad , strength-wise. It won't be easy though as a lot of that type of player could probably be starters for many clubs.
 
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