no thread? and it doesn't appear to be televised. what the hell? 7 minutes in and nil-nil, according to the matchtracker. Spurs with a bit more possession. gonna be a long couple of hours.
and they've equalized. apparently dembele gave the ball away in a terrible position. gifted, to judge by commentary at SC.
Fox Television in the USA, main broadcast channel. Gosh we should have been up 2 or 3 by the time ManU got their game going... sad... but, we seemed to catch on to the import of the game just before the end of the half... hope that we come out fully committed in second half... this is our trophy to win this year. We have the team, the stadium and space in our schedule. Just effin' do it.
Spurs are playing the better football. Dembelè was limping prior to getting caught out by Pogba for their goal.
We played so much better in the first 20 minutes... so sucks that we are losing this. But, if you don't finish your chances you get what you deserve.
Poch’s biggest failing is getting the team up for really big games. It’s one thing to win at Chelsea or beat Madrid when the result is the difference between acceptable and good, but when it comes to do or die matches he’s just not come up with the right formula. Meanwhile Arsenal, Man U, Liverpool manage to keep putting trophies in the cabinet with objectively inferior sides.
There have been two consistent issues all season that have hurt Spurs against good competition. Way too many games where two goals were conceded on three shots on frame, soft goals conceded, etc. Hard to remember a game against good competition where the goalies came up big and won an evenly played game for Spurs. Of the top 5 teams in the Premier League this season Spurs probably got the poorest goal keeper play of the 5. Hard to win consistently against top completion when goals like yesterday's second for United are conceded. Other issue is that with Rose basically out / not playing well when he is available, Spurs have a pace / offensive attacking disadvantage at outside back compared to other top teams. Davies and Tripper are solid players but not quite the level other top 5 teams have in pace or attacking. If Rose leaves need a replacement with pace and attacking ability and need Aurier to develop into a top outside back to compete in this area.
A little worried about Mauricio’s “Spurs must continue to progress with me or another” line. I’m disappointed he’s not figured out big games, but still think he’s the best manager in the league. I’d hate to see him go or get pushed even if this season looks to e disappointing relative to the last two.
Same old same old. A good start ruined by a sloppy giveaway (where have we seen that before?) and then we were never in the game. The manager still doesn't get the importance of the competition, and until he gets it through his head, I am afraid I think we will never win anything with him in charge. Frankly, I am tired of listening to him denigrate the FA Cup at every turn, and his comments about playing the kids next year were a disgrace and an insult to Tottenham supporters of every generation. The players take their cue from the gaffer, and when the gaffer is saying the competition doesn't mean anything, then you are giving the players an excuse. The win at Chelsea should have galvanized us for the run-in, but since then, we have been rubbish and if we are not careful, we could be on the verge of throwing away the consolation of getting into the CL.
The problem may also be cultural. Poch is from Argentina, where they don't have a proper domestic cup competition, so the whole "magic of the Cup" thing doesn't seem to resonate with him. Big picture, we are at an important crossroads. Yes, we are moving into a shiny new stadium, but the noises out of the club are it's business as usual (translation = we are going to double or even triple our match-day revenues, jack up ticket prices, but keep the same wage structure while selling some of our top players). We should be kicking on, but I can't help but get a sinking feeling.
I remember Arse Wenger saying the same thing about the FA cup while his team was doing well in the CL. It seems to be the right idea to rest players in an intensive season with Premiership is first priority, then Champions League next and then FA Cup. It gave him a good run in the CL semis for a while and the Arsenal youngsters surprised people in the FA cup with good runs into the quarters and then the seasoned players returned and keep throwing it away. He was holding 2nds and 3rds in the premiership and by then Chesea and Man U had a better placing than them in all three competitions. The truth is, that it is a very busy end of the season which is also the business end of the season to win any competition. I think that if you are going to run the youngsters in the FA Cup then sure, go for it, but then I expect those same youngsters to have a more premiership games under their belt against some of the struggling PL teams for experience but also to rest their seasoned players for the CL to stretch the already long the season. I hope we have a deeper squad next season.
It is not the first time he has made this kind of comment in the press. The club board loves him because he never says anything outrageous à la Conte, Mourinho or Guardiola, but he does have his limits. The last 2 seasons he has had to compete while knowing some of his top players want to leave the club for higher wages elsewhere. Last year it was Walker, this year it has been Toby and Rose, who will it be next year? Poch knows if he left Spurs, there would be a queue of top clubs ready to sign him. If our board is not ready to match his ambition, what point is there in his staying? And what point is there in moving into a new stadium if we are going to regress?
one thing is for certain: if we do get into the new stadium with Poch and the majority of our big talent intact ... 2018-19 has to be the year we kick on. if not, we'll look quite different come '19-20.
The guys we have need to learn how not to choke. Two big games in a row, we took the lead and wound up losing - at home.
Even if the budget was increased by £100m, would anyone want to keep the exact same team together for another year? I wouldn't. Alderweireld, Rose, and Dembele can't be individually blamed for the collective failure of the club the breakthrough but, if they want to leave, I say let them leave. Each one of them has served the club well - no hard feelings. Something has to change because even Alli has said "this can't keep happening." If a shakeup in the dressing room is what's needed, then I welcome it. This current squad have shown that they're not good enough. Get some new characters in here who have been where we want to go. If I were Poch I'd be calling up Iniesta right now to ask him if he really wants to go to China. If he has any interest at all in us, I'd make him an offer he can't refuse. Modric just mused about going to MLS. I'll take him back in a heartbeat.
It may be a case of maximizing assets. Alerweireld and Rose have not fully recovered from their injuries, while Dembélé has to be wrapped in cotton wool between matches. And none of them are spring chickens anymore. The problem then is replacing them - we have to get the recruitment spot-on.