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All the talk of titles and big name signings was beginning to make Spurs fans feel a little giddy. Thankfully Everton were on hand to put their feet firmly back on the ground. A first defeat in 10 games is hardly a cause for tea cup throwing and hairdryer treatment, but if Spurs are to be in a title race, every loss is significant.
Everton won this high tempo game with goals from Luis Saha and Seamus Coleman either side of a Van Der Vaart header. Coleman in particular was a constant threat and he deserved the favourable offside decision from the linesman, allowing him to guide his header past Gomes for the winner. Coleman outshone Gareth Bale on the night as the two did battle down Spurs’ left flank. Bale looked like a man who had been sprinting up and down a touchline for 5 months at full tilt and suffered a set back in the second half when he was withdrawn with what looked like a back complaint. It remains to be seen how long he will be out for, but with Spurs playing in the cup at the weekend, it will provide Redknapp with the perfect opportunity to rest the Welsh starlet.
Spurs had enough chances to win this game and the end to end nature of the tie suited them. Had their finishing been better, they may well have come away with all three points. Crouch was the preferred choice up front and once again he combined well with Rafael Van Der Vaart, including setting up the goal for the Dutchman. If Crouch had shown an equally composed approach to finishing off a good run from Gareth Bale, Spurs may have been ahead before half time. Unfortunately the England International got himself ahead of the play and his neat finish was disallowed for offside.
Overall Redknapp can be happy with Spurs’ performance, Van Der Vaart once again shone in the centre of the park, linking up the attacks well and providing a constant nuisance to the Everton back line. He looked the most likely spurs player to get on the score sheet. Unfortunately for Spurs, Luka Modric does not look very likely to contribute to the goals for column at the moment. A lack of goals is a failing of the small magical Croatian, it’s a harsh criticism of such an influential player, but without the contribution of his Dutch midfield partner, his weakness in this area would be more exposed than it currently is. Aaron Lennon had one of the performances that has frustrated Spurs fans in the past. Full of pace and running, looks dangerous, but gives the ball away far too often. Poor use of the ball is often a criticism aimed at players with pace, just ask Ronaldo, Nani, Walcott and Bale. They have all previously come under scrutiny over providing that killer pass. When you have pace, like Lennon does, then it is inevitable that you will arrive in more goal creating situations within games than other players. Therefore it becomes of paramount importance that you use these situations to benefit the team. Lennon needs to find this killer instinct as soon as possible, at present he is merely advertising the need for David Beckham to book his tickets for a 3 month stay in London.So what now for Spurs?, is it time to start panicking?, has Harry lost the support of the dressing room?. Thankfully the Spurs chairman is not Mike Ashley, so none of these ludicrous thoughts need to come to prominence. Now that Spurs are considered a top four side these minor setbacks will occur from time to time. It is testament to Spurs’ recent success that the feeling after a close fought 2-1 defeat away at Everton, be that of despair and regret. The expectations at Spurs are higher than they have ever been and that’s why every defeat will feel like finishing the season in fifth place.
Next up for Spurs is a timely distraction with an FA Cup tie at home to Charlton, then they return to Premier League action to face unbeaten Manchester United, also at the Lane. Expect full abuse of the squad rotation policy from Redknapp as he looks to rest his hard worked first teamers for the Charlton game. Bentley will be dusted down for a shop window performance as he tries to play himself out of the club. Robbie Keane could play his farewell match if he has not left the club already, maybe even Sandro could get a run out. One thing for sure is that come Sunday 16th January, Spurs will be back to full strength and raring to go as they look to beat the only unbeaten side in English football, and get themselves back in the frame for the title race.
Some Related Spurs Posts:Can Spurs beat the Blues ?Palacios Could Make Spurs’ Season Something To Crow AboutSpurs End 17 Year Run To Beat Arsenal At The EmiratesSpurs Beat Villa 2-1 Thanks To Van Der Vaart DoubleSuper Spurs Beat Werder Bremen, And Make It Look Easy! (Includes Highlights)
Category: Team News
Tags: Aaron Lennon, Game Review, Harry Redknapp, Premier League, Spurs, Team NewsTweet « Can Spurs beat the Blues ? | Home | Comments | Add your comment IOANX | January 6th, 2011 at 6:13 am
Well said.
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