It goes without saying that Tottenham Hotspur have been the laughing stock of English club football for quite a while. In the Premier League era, they have been under the shadow of north London rivals Arsenal. In fact ever since the Premier League started in 1992-93, Tottenham have won only two major trophies. Both were the League Cup. Once in 1999 and the other in 2008.
In all this time, they have been a good football team to watch. But the main criticism labelled at Spurs is that they don’t have the mental strength to go ahead and win the decisive matches, or win ugly. In recent seasons, they have fallen from seemingly very good positions and failed to achieve their realistic targets. And in most situations, they have been overtaken by arch rivals Arsenal.
The 2015-‘16 Premier League season was no different, although till the last month, it seemed it would be. Tottenham were the best team football-wise last season. They played as a cohesive unit. While champions Leicester City were supreme on the counter-attack, Tottenham were well-balanced and primarily an attacking team. It was a slow start that had them chasing Leicester through most of 2016.
But just when it seemed like Tottenham had finally caught up with the runaway leaders playing a delightful style of football, they imploded. They drew two and lost two of their final four matches as Leicester won the title. This also allowed Arsenal to snatch third spot on the final day. The expression “To Spurs it up” caught on, while this implosion was happening.
But this is a new season and they did look more resilient last time than ever before in the Premier League era. They have retained most of their squad and added a few good players. With wholesale changes happening at rival clubs, they could genuinely mount a title challenge and at least a top four finish.
A balanced squad
Tottenham had standout players throughout their starting eleven last season. Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris captained the side well and was second only to David de Gea of Manchester United in front of goal with his performances. The defence was expertly led by centre-back Toby Alderweireld. Christian Eriksen was the creative outlet from midfield and Harry Kane ended up as the top goal-scorer in the Premier League.
Despite having all these players, it was a little known player who stole the headlines for Tottenham last season. Twenty-year-old Dele Alli had a breakthrough season. The midfielder scored an impressive 10 league goals, including the fantastic strike against Crystal Palace which was voted the BBC's Goal of the Season. He was voted Professional Football Association’s Young Player of the Year for 2015-16. Alli was included in the PFA Team of the Season as well.
Full-backs Kyle Walker and Danny Rose were a constant presence in the opposition third. Belgium’s Jan Vertonghen was excellent in central defence along with compatriot Toby Alderweireld. Erik Dier and Mousa Dembele worked very well in central midfield. South Korean Son Heung-min was an able partner for Kane in attack.
Others like Eric Lamela, Nacer Chadli, Kieran Trippier, Kevin Wimmer, Ryan Mason and Tom Carroll were also very good throughout the season. Somehow though, they fell short in the end. While at the beginning of the season most Tottenham fans would have gladly accepted third spot and automatic qualification into the UEFA Champions League group stages, the way it panned out seemed like a missed opportunity.
Who are the new names?
Victor Wanyama was bought by Tottenham from Southampton for £11 million. The Kenyan is a powerful presence in midfield and has been playing in the Premier League since 2013. His experience and defensive abilities will add more steel to the squad.
At times last season there was a feeling that if Kane got injured, Tottenham’s season could fall away. He was the only recognised striker they had in their ranks. South Korea’s Son Heung-min is not exactly a striker. He played well with Kane as a second striker or as a forward but scored only four goals in 28 matches. For this reason, manager Mauricio Pochettino bought Vincent Janssen from AZ Alkmaar for £17 million.
The Netherlands striker was the top scorer in the Dutch Eredivisie last season with 27 goals in 34 matches. Janssen is a proper No. 9 and could actually play along with Kane in a 4-4-1-1 formation. Kane is versatile enough to play as the No. 10 striker or forward. So, this duo could be very effective and Spurs could end up scoring a lot of goals.
Hardly anyone from the first team squad has left the club. So Tottenham have a very good chance of carrying on from where they left off to mount a challenge for the Premier League title and the domestic cups.
No major concerns
In fact, if they can stay clear of major and long-term injuries, Tottenham have a very good squad that does not have any major concerns. In Michel Vorm, they have an able experienced understudy to Lloris in the goalkeeping department. Kieran Trippier, Kevin Wimmer and Ben Davis proved to be solid replacements in defence when called upon. Right-back DeAndre Yedlin has returned from being loaned out to Sunderland. Tottenham have two quality players for each of the four defensive positions.
Tottenham usually played in a 4-3-3 formation last season with Eric Dier in central defensive midfield. Ahead of him on both sides were Alli and Dembele. Eriksen and Erik Lamela played wide on the wings with Kane up top. Some of their replacements in midfield were Nabil Bentaleb, Mason and Carroll. Chadli was the substitute winger.
But it seems like Tottenham needs another one or two options in the winger/forward roles as they will need the numbers, especially while playing in the Champions League this season. The challenge of playing against the best teams in Europe every second week in the first half of the season could take its toll later in the campaign.
Facing the spotlight
Spurs were the best team to watch last season. They had a clear structure and pattern of play that Pochettino had instilled. They have a very young squad and if all of them improve in unison, Tottenham could have an even better season.
They have a habit of slipping under the radar and getting into promising positions. But as soon as the spotlight is on them, Spurs tends to buckle under the pressure. And with the addition of Champions League games, Pochettino’s team will find it incredibly difficult to focus solely on the Premier League.
Many of the big teams had poor seasons last time around. While Leicester stole the march and won the title, an encore looks far-fetched. The big guns like Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool will come back strongly. Arsenal, as always, may not win the title but will always pose a constant challenge.
A title charge can happen, but that draws too much attention. Can Spurs handle it?
Our prediction: Fourth
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