mattie g
05 Dec 2007, 10:41 AM
I was doing some thinking about our defensive woes and throughout the season and decided to do a bit of research on exactly how our league season has gone so far.
We all know we've lost points late and that we've given up leads, but here are the numbers that confirm it. Again, these are only league results.
The first set of results is those in which we've lost points in the 90th minute or
later.
Game 1:
Sunderland 1-0 Spurs
Chopra 90+
Game 5:
Fulham 3-3 Spurs
Kamara 90+
Game 9:
Liverpool 2-2 Spurs
Torres 90+
Game 11:
Spurs 1-2 Blackburn
Samba 90+
Game 15:
Spurs 2-3 Birmingham
Larsson 90+
That means we've lost seven points on goals in the 90th minute or later. SEVEN points given up to backbreaking goals at the end of the game. Now...we did level with Villa in extra time, but I'm only looking at what we've lost. Besides, losing six points that late is still really poor.
Now, let's take a look at the games in which we had leads, but let them disappear. This is even more gut-wrenching:
Game 5:
Fulham 3-3 Spurs
Spurs leading 2-0 after Berbs' goal in the 28th, until Dempsey's goal in the 42nd. Spurs then back up 3-1 on Bale's goal in the 61st, only to see our lead disappear on Smertin and Kamara's goals to close out the game.
Game 6:
Spurs 1-3 Arsenal
Spurs go up 1-0 on Bale's 15th-minute free kick, only to see our lead evaporate in the second half, with three goals between the 65th and 90th minutes.
Game 7:
Bolton 1-1 Spurs
Keane's 34th-minute follow-up goal was offset only five minutes later by Ivan Campo's header.
Game 8:
Spurs 4-4 Villa
Spurs went up 1-0 from Berbs opener, then we all know what happened after that...
Game 9:
Liverpool 2-2 Spurs
Keane's two strikes within two minutes put us up 2-1 in the 47th, with Torres' 90th-minute header robbing us of our rightful three points.
Game 11:
Spurs 1-2 Blackburn
Keano's 49th-minute penalty gives us a 1-0 lead, only for us to see that lead disappear on Benni McCarthy's deflected strike from outside the box. Then, of
course, the all-too familiar 90+-minute strike teaves us without a point on the day.
Game 12:
Middlesbrough 1-1 Spurs
Darren Bent gets in the score column with a 35th-minute strike past Schwarzer, but former Spur Luke Young blasted one past Robbo from 20-plus yards to level terms at 1-1.
Game 15:
Spurs 2-3 Birmingham
The most recent failure to hold a lead. Spurs bossing Brum around, going up 2-1 on two consecutive Keane goals early in the second half, and looking to add more. Then another long-distance goal, this time from Cameron Jerome, levels terms...and once again, a 90+-minute winner for the opposition.
Of the ten games in which we had leads, we've ended up winning two (Derby and Wigan for six points), drawing five (for five points), and losing three (no points); our other point came from the 1-1 "come-from-behind" draw at West Ham. If you assume that we would have taken another 24 points had we kept those leads, that means we've lost a total of 19 points from games in which we've taken the lead at some point.
And while taking the lead doesn't mean we should automatically expect to win, it's a sickening statistic that tells the story of our season's woes.
We all know we've lost points late and that we've given up leads, but here are the numbers that confirm it. Again, these are only league results.
The first set of results is those in which we've lost points in the 90th minute or
later.
Game 1:
Sunderland 1-0 Spurs
Chopra 90+
Game 5:
Fulham 3-3 Spurs
Kamara 90+
Game 9:
Liverpool 2-2 Spurs
Torres 90+
Game 11:
Spurs 1-2 Blackburn
Samba 90+
Game 15:
Spurs 2-3 Birmingham
Larsson 90+
That means we've lost seven points on goals in the 90th minute or later. SEVEN points given up to backbreaking goals at the end of the game. Now...we did level with Villa in extra time, but I'm only looking at what we've lost. Besides, losing six points that late is still really poor.
Now, let's take a look at the games in which we had leads, but let them disappear. This is even more gut-wrenching:
Game 5:
Fulham 3-3 Spurs
Spurs leading 2-0 after Berbs' goal in the 28th, until Dempsey's goal in the 42nd. Spurs then back up 3-1 on Bale's goal in the 61st, only to see our lead disappear on Smertin and Kamara's goals to close out the game.
Game 6:
Spurs 1-3 Arsenal
Spurs go up 1-0 on Bale's 15th-minute free kick, only to see our lead evaporate in the second half, with three goals between the 65th and 90th minutes.
Game 7:
Bolton 1-1 Spurs
Keane's 34th-minute follow-up goal was offset only five minutes later by Ivan Campo's header.
Game 8:
Spurs 4-4 Villa
Spurs went up 1-0 from Berbs opener, then we all know what happened after that...
Game 9:
Liverpool 2-2 Spurs
Keane's two strikes within two minutes put us up 2-1 in the 47th, with Torres' 90th-minute header robbing us of our rightful three points.
Game 11:
Spurs 1-2 Blackburn
Keano's 49th-minute penalty gives us a 1-0 lead, only for us to see that lead disappear on Benni McCarthy's deflected strike from outside the box. Then, of
course, the all-too familiar 90+-minute strike teaves us without a point on the day.
Game 12:
Middlesbrough 1-1 Spurs
Darren Bent gets in the score column with a 35th-minute strike past Schwarzer, but former Spur Luke Young blasted one past Robbo from 20-plus yards to level terms at 1-1.
Game 15:
Spurs 2-3 Birmingham
The most recent failure to hold a lead. Spurs bossing Brum around, going up 2-1 on two consecutive Keane goals early in the second half, and looking to add more. Then another long-distance goal, this time from Cameron Jerome, levels terms...and once again, a 90+-minute winner for the opposition.
Of the ten games in which we had leads, we've ended up winning two (Derby and Wigan for six points), drawing five (for five points), and losing three (no points); our other point came from the 1-1 "come-from-behind" draw at West Ham. If you assume that we would have taken another 24 points had we kept those leads, that means we've lost a total of 19 points from games in which we've taken the lead at some point.
And while taking the lead doesn't mean we should automatically expect to win, it's a sickening statistic that tells the story of our season's woes.