This was a horrible goal for us – a gift for Everton who broke fast and furiously and caught the Spurs backline too high up and half asleep.
Rodon commits himself and is wildly out of position. Toby to his left (our right) is suddenly in the unenviable position of now facing our goal.
The cross is inevitable, and yet Sissoko, Rodon, and Dier all processing the information using dial-up. Bear in mind that the goalscorer Gylfi is the player in the blue shirt in between Aurier and Moussa at this point. He knows what he wants to happen.
What’s incredible, is the outfield Spurs man that watches all of this, Eric Dier, has no awareness of what is going on. His body is still facing the direction of the cross until the last minute, and yet the only Everton player that’s any threat is Gylfi Sigurðsson, who incidentally was untroubled by Aurier who didn’t bother to even try and get goal side of the Icelander.
By the time the shot is struck, we have Dier STILL without his body open looking to block Siggy, and Aurier and Sissoko wandering in as if it’s all someone else’s responsibility.
If you only half watch the video it all happens so fast, Everton looks like Argentina. But the truth is, if some Spurs players had put sugar in their half-time mug of tea as opposed to beta-blockers, then this could have been prevented.
Failed in what task he was given? Qualifying for the Champions League every year? He didn’t fail in that case.
Seeing that the ball is in play statistically for 65 out of 90 minutes that is saying something.
Dier was the main culprit in this action. The moment before the video he hoofed an aimless ball up in the air that turned over possession to Everton. Dier was then sliced and diced and unable to stop the cross. Neither Sissoko nor Aurier tracked the run of Gylfi. One of the big problems in our squad is the French contingent. Aurier, Ndombele, Sissoko and to a degree Lloris. It looks like they have all decided this is their last season at the club and they have just switched off. I cannot see Ndombele wanting to stay around if the others leave. I think they would all rather be wearing the colours of PSG. However, the fact that Mourinho keeps playing Sissoko and Dier and leaves Bale out has done it for me. Our best defense is to attack and I do not care about the Bale rhetoric because he has contributed more in assists and goals than those being chosen instead of him. Mourinho’s ego is too big and he is asserting it but to the detriment of the team and its performances. His demeanor on the sidelines is as flat as the team’s performances. No energy, no passion so it is no surprise the team is the same reflection
I didn’t mention in my earlier comment that my major beef with Aurier is that he gives off the vibe that he just doesn’t care if the team loses. So many times he loses possession around the half way line and he then just jogs back following the ball but not busting a gut to put right the problem he has caused. For me that is unforgivable. Contrast with Ben Davies who is probably less athletic and weaker physically and similarly not good at positioning, yet he does try hard to recover mistakes, and appears to feel it when we concede.
Im not sure I’d regard the Poch era as failure. Highest league placing since 1962 first ever Champions League Final.
What does that make the current manager and all the others over the last 30 years?
I think Mourinho under estimated the task in hand, it does seem to me though the players arent as fit as they were under Pochatino either that or maybe as Mourinho has played to win cup games the players are feeling it more. We must be the only team in the premier league who start with an 11, knowing at least one of them wont have the legs to last 90 minutes
He was by far the worst player yesterday… I actually feel a little bit for Mourinho here as a few years ago Aurier would have been off at half time, but these days players dont have the mental strength to deal with those kinds of decisions..furthermore Tanguy & lo no show dont have 90 minutes in their legs…so the latter id they start..being we’re 2 subs light leaves us fecked if we either chase the game or some others aren’t playing well or get injured.
I just didn’t understand your comment and its relation to mine, that’s all. I’m not defending Poch, just criticising Aurier and Sissoko. Awful footballers.
I think the philosophy stuff bothered people because it was in line with ENIC’s endless jam tomorrow schtick as well as the idea that we were somehow doing things differently and in a superior way to the sides that actually won titles in the here and now.
Add to that “trophies are only good for the ego”, which he said as manager of a club whose last trophy came in 2008, and it’s not a good look overall. One can’t help but think that this mentality regarding trophies set us back in the crucial moments (cup finals and semifinals).
He had (and to a large extent, built) the best side we had in recent years. And we won nothing at all. Rose, Walker, Toby, Verts at the top of their game, Dembele, Kane, Son, and we didn’t even win an FA cup or Carabao (how many FA Cups did Arsenal win in that time, who were vastly inferior?).
As for calling out Levy, that’s a risky one, and I don’t think Jose would stay on long if he did so. But he’s probably getting sacked anyway, so who knows, maybe he’ll surprise us. Poch came close with “time to be brave” but then he signed a new deal and that was it.
He failed………just like Jose is doing.
Erm…. Poch failed to deliver in the games that mattered most, the must win league games , the semis and even finals. How many chances do you need ?
This is a mixture of buying other people’s rubbish, players not caring enough and poor coaching. We had the chance to buy castagne but bought Doherty to add to dier.
And to think we considered Walker stupid. He at least has the pace to get out of his self-inflicted problems.
Aurier is at best a squad player. He might be good for the dressing room but I would like to see him play well over a sustained period of time, which he hasn’t really done in his time here.
It’s hard to see where this team goes from here when looking at a squad loaded with underachievers. In particular the three mostly costly signings have to be considered flops when looked at objectively in terms of their overall contributions rather than being dazzled by the odd flash of skill. Unfortunately I have to believe that although Levy is clearly the main villain when it comes to poor transfer decisions he was ably assisted by Poch whose talent spotting skills were questionable at Southampton. The Ndombele transfer would appear to have been made to keep Poch happy as it was one of the few that Levy drove over the line early in the window. The choice between Clarke from Leeds and Bowen from Hull went the way of Poch’s old mate Bielsa. Poch almost drooled over Sanchez when he first arrived so it’s hard to believe he was purely a Levy chancer buy. As outsiders it is hard for us to know exactly what influence Poch had on incoming transfers but the evidence would suggest he at the very least supported some poor moves, two of which have proved to be busts in the key areas of central defense and defensive midfield, positions where this team continues to fail in spectacular fashion. I would be one of the last people to make excuses for Levy but Poch certainly displays 20/20 hindsight as he remembers only the good deals that failed to happen while quietly ignoring those that did and bombed.
Whatever anyone thinks of Poch, many people mocked his references to a “philosophy” or a “belief in the collective”, they now look like tangible values to adhere to. When you see a team so directionless and unconnected you begin to realise that these things are not just empty words or fanny. They are the building blocks of any half decent side.
He also got in in the neck for not calling out Levy etc, is Jose doing that? The supposed ‘don’ of football management?
Most of the things our last manager did that were used as criticism now just look like cheap shots and pettiness to me…
Because he plays for Ivory Coast probably, hardly giants of world football? He’s good at certain things but his complete game is terrible.
Exactly. By the 15th minute last night, I saw Aurier mess up about four times and Ndom losing the ball constantly and complaining instead of immediately pressing to get it back. Half the team was jogging about. Found it hard to care afterwards – my only feeling was a bit of sadness for Kane, Son and PEH, and seeing the French contingent laugh at the final whistle was the last straw. They really couldn’t give a toss.
The problem is that when Jose gets sacked or leaves, it won’t suddenly make me (and I suspect – and hope – many others) care for the players who have been taking it easy since the late Poch era. They got our best coach in recent history sacked and will likely get the most decorated one sacked too. Why should anyone think Sarri or some other newcomer will do well? The players didn’t play for Poch at the end and aren’t playing for Jose either now.
In my eleven years as a Spurs fan (short time, I know), I’ve sometimes felt indifferent to a few players. But now, knowing that most of them don’t actually care about the fans, the manager whose job is on the line (be it Poch or Jose), and the famous badge on their shirts, I am utterly furious with them.
We are right to blame ENIC, Levy and Jose too, but this group of players – unable to produce a decent performance in the best league in the world for tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds a week, because the manager was being mean to them – is toxic in its own right. Most are not to be trusted and have to be replaced – and the list grows with each passing game.
Half the team at fault for that goal…
Classic Aurier play was in the 7th minute. He gave an unnecessary hospital pass to PEH leaving him stranded and having to resort to a foul to recover and then getting carded. As a result PEH had to dial back his aggression for the remainder of the game. Many other sloppy passes and lack of control causing balls to be lost all add up to a utter drag on the team’s performance. How this man is an international I don’t know.
Nobody’s at it there, in the whole build up to the goal. About 5 players were either out of position or just not aware of what was going on. No shape, no discipline at all. Who’s picking up Siggy’s run from midfield as well? PHE, Sissy where are you too?
Erm, what?
But NOT in the games that mattered .
Rodon did nothing wrong, why aren’t people looking at speedy Reg who is way out of position, he is as culpable as anyone, but this is what you get with WB’s, that’s why Dier had to come across, but also look at the lethargic Sissoko who has no idea of the danger of Siggy running behind him.
Proper coaching is undeniably the reason for these drastic errors and even Toby has fallen foul of Mourinho and his methods, it is not working and better players would still be made fools of with the present set up.
Truth Is most of this team don’t care and are happy to earn a dishonest living off players like Kane, Son, Hojbjerg and even Moura who are busting themselves every game like real men.
I have the highest regard for them the rest are a bunch of low life wasters not fit to wear a Spurs shirt.
Thats not dier that’s Toby near aurier and sissoko just to let you know. But it was a shambles and same as usual
I’m afraid my patience with Serge Aurier has finally run out. Watching the game, apart from this goal, he was caught high up the field before the “penalty” incident, leaving his flank absolutely unguarded (Sissoko was jogging back reluctantly, which unsurprisingly didn’t help much).
As for Sissoko, apparently yesterday was his 200th game for Spurs – and that, I think, speaks volumes about the recruitment quality we’ve had to endure.
But maybe, just maybe, the next guy will make both these players world beaters unlike Poch and Jose who both failed to make them consistently decent. Fingers crossed!