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| Tweet Topic Started: Jul 9 2013, 03:36 PM (912 Views) | |
| Jake | Jul 9 2013, 03:36 PM Post #1 |
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bants
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I'll try and keep this relatively short and sweet, I'll be interested to hear what you've got to say about your club. Tottenham Hotspur After a disappointing end to another roller-coaster Premier League campaign for Tottenham, that sees us once again playing our football in the Europa League, André Villas-Boas has been preparing to step in to uncharted territory as he looks to tackle a second season at Spurs, his first at any club. The off-season thus far has already been busy in N17, with a behind the scenes reshuffle seeing former Roma general manager Franco Baldini taking up the role of Technical Director at the club in a continental setup that Daniel Levy has tried to implement (rather unsuccessfully) multiple times previously. But changes aren't just happening behind the scenes, we will also be looking to change our on-pitch fortunes and better our record-breaking campaign of last season to earn a place amongst Europe's elite in the Champions League. Following the acquisition of Brazilian centre midfielder Paulinho, I could see Tottenham transitioning toward AVB's more favoured 433 formation, which he used to great effect in his time with FC Porto. A dynamic midfield trio of Dembélé and Sandro alongside new recruit Paulinho could be a possibility should Villas-Boas look to implement a high-pressure, high-tempo system heading in to next year. One criticism of this approach however, is the distinct lack of a 'creative outlet' in the midfield. The concern could be considered a legitimate one, especially when you take in to account the woes that we suffered when attempting to break down the bottom-half teams at home last season, with only Norwich and Reading scoring less home goals against teams in the bottom half of the table. One area, however, I fully expect to be addressed further is the forward line. Defoe and Adebayor combined contributed just 24.2% of Spurs' goals in the previous term, as Spurs were time and again 'Baled out' with the Welshman directly contributing to 37.9% of the North London outfit's goals. This is a trend I'm sure AVB will want to buck, and you'd expect a clinical finisher to be high on the Portuguese's priority list. With all the teams around us heavily investing in their squad, it's going to take an unreal effort to get in to the top four. If we keep hold of Bale and continue to invest in key areas of the squad, then it's certainly possible, but after the last few seasons I'm sure you can forgive me for being a tad pessimistic. As for cup competitions, after experiencing an early exit in both the domestic competitions last term, I'm sure we'll look to do far better this time round. Success in these is certainly possible, if we take them seriously. One competition we did take seriously last season was the Europa League, and after last year's penalty shoot-out heartbreak, I'm sure we'll be champing at the bit to improve on our quarter-final finish. Stats via Opta. Edited by Jake, Jul 12 2013, 02:49 PM.
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| DaG | Jul 9 2013, 03:37 PM Post #2 |
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Top Button Wanker
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No use making predictions until after the transfer window closes IMO. Good effort though.
Edited by DaG, Jul 9 2013, 03:37 PM.
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https://twitter.com/mediocentroEN | |
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| Jake | Jul 9 2013, 03:41 PM Post #3 |
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bants
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Fair point, it is a bit early but I was bored and it was something to do
Edited by Jake, Aug 22 2013, 01:48 PM.
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| DaG | Jul 9 2013, 03:43 PM Post #4 |
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Top Button Wanker
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Apparently Spurs offered Barca more for Villa than Athleti did. Snubbed to shit. No Champions League, no:
Edited by DaG, Jul 9 2013, 03:43 PM.
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https://twitter.com/mediocentroEN | |
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| KOL | Jul 9 2013, 03:50 PM Post #5 |
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Big Daddy Welbz
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Paulinho looks a great signing. Other than Man City they're arguably the strongest side in the league in that position, Dembele, Sandro & Paulinho with Parker as back-up is very good. Remains to be seen what else they do but I'm expecting quite a big season from them next season. |
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| DaG | Jul 9 2013, 03:51 PM Post #6 |
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Top Button Wanker
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Paulinho, Dembele, and Sandro are all good players, but IMO they lack a passer. We'll see how they set up, I really do think Bale will be used as the #9. |
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https://twitter.com/mediocentroEN | |
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| Jake | Jul 9 2013, 03:59 PM Post #7 |
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bants
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Yeah, we struggled at home last season against plenty of bottom half sides as we were lacking that creative passer that can unlock a cohesive, defensive unit. Very interested to see how we set up. Edited by Jake, Jul 9 2013, 04:01 PM.
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| ManYou | Jul 9 2013, 05:00 PM Post #8 |
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Thierry Henry
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I'm cautiously optimistic about the season ahead. It was always going to be a huge challenge for the club when the new man stepped in to replace Fergie, and with our two main rivals bringing in world class managers who have an eye on creating dynasties of their own, the challenge is even greater. In David Moyes I think we have a man who will soak up all the advice Fergie will have to offer. So the repercussions of Fergie's retirement might not be that bad. Moyes would be foolish to ignore Fergie's expertise when it comes to the particular demands of European football and managing a squad through a long, testing season, a skill Fergie had mastered after running the course so many times. It'll be interesting to see what signings are made to give us a better idea of where Moyes is going but there is great potential in this side. We all crave another midfielder and you would expect Moyes will introduce a more combative figure into the team. But we're all expecting big things from Kagawa in the coming season and there's plenty of young, exciting talents in the squad - Rafael, Fabio, Zaha, Welbeck, Jones, Buttner etc. Some youth products are lurking around the first-team squad as well. Januzaj who made Fergie's final squad against WBA, could break through this season and he looks a real talent. Roll on to the pre-season fixtures. It's exciting times with a new manager, new coaching staff and hopefully before the season starts, some new players. But overall it'll be the same old Utd, primed and ready to challenge on all fronts. |
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