Windy's Blog

Youth/loan update - December 2012

2012-12-27T12:15:00.001Z

Please note that WindyCOYS.com has been revamped, and the new site can be found here. I will continue to update the old site until the NewsNow links get changed across.

It's been nearly two months since my last youth/loan update, so I thought it was time to write a summary of how things are going for our young players.

U18s

FA Premier Academy League
Sat 10 Nov (at Southampton) Southampton U18s 4-3 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorers: Dombaxe (pen), Michael-Percil, Zapata-Caceido

Priestley

Ward Gardiner Ogilvie Smith

Lesniak Dombaxe Winks

Michael-Percil Akindayini Miller

Subs:
Zapata-Caceido for Akindayini, 25.
Lameiras for Winks, 46.
Sonupe for Michael-Percil, 76.

Unused sub: McGee.

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FA Premier Academy League

Sat 17 Nov (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 4-3 Stoke City U18s

Scorers: Michael-Percil, McEvoy 3

McGee
A McQueen Ball Ogilvie Smith
Dombaxe Lesniak Onomah
Michael-Percil Coulthirst McEvoy

Subs:

Lameiras for Lesniak, 63.

Miller for Onomah, 74.

Gardiner for McEvoy, 78.

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FA Premier Academy League

Sat 24 Nov (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 1-2 Aston Villa U18s

Scorer: Coulibaly

McGee
Michael-Percil Ball A McQueen Ogilvie
Lameiras Dombaxe Onomah McEvoy
Coulthirst Coulibaly

Subs:

Miller for Lameiras, 71.

Winks for Onomah, 80.

Ward for Michael-Percil, 81.

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FA Premier Academy League

Sat 8 Dec (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 4-0 Sunderland U18s
Scorers: Coulthirst 3, Michael-Percil

McGee

A McQueen Ball Ogilvie Ward

Dombaxe Bentaleb Onomah

Michael-Percil Coulthirst McEvoy

Sub:
Miller for McEvoy, 88.

Unused subs: Priestley, Gardiner, Lesniak, Winks.

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FA Youth Cup 3rd Round

Tue 18 Dec (at Whaddon Road) Cheltenham U18s 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur U18s

Scorer: Coulthirst

McGee
A McQueen Ball Ogilvie Ward
Dombaxe Veljkovic Onomah
Michael-Percil Coulthirst McEvoy

Sub:

Miller for Michael-Percil, 64.

Unused subs: Smith, Priestley, Lameiras, Zapata-Caicedo.

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NextGen Series

NextGen Series

Wed 7 Nov (at Mini Estadi) Barcelona U19s 1-4 Tottenham Hotspur U19s

Scorers: Coulthirst 3, Pritchard

McGee
A McQueen Ball Stewart Barthram
Bentaleb Veljkovic Onomah
McEvoy Pritchard Coulthirst

Subs:

Dombaxe for Onomah, 58.

Ogilvie for Barthram, 74.

Lesniak for Bentaleb, 74.

Winks for McEvoy, 85.

Michael-Percil for Pritchard, 85.

Unused sub: Priestley.

------------------------------------------------

NextGen Series

Thu 13 Dec (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U19s 0-2 Anderlecht U19s

Vigouroux
McQueen Ball Veljkovic Stewart
Bentaleb Onomah
Michael-Percil Munns Ward
Coulthirst

Subs:

Miller for Onomah, 63.

Lameiras for Bentaleb, 75.

Unused subs: Ogilvie, McGee, Lesniak, Winks, Zapata-Caicedo.

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U21s

U21 League

Mon 12 Nov (at White Hart Lane) Tottenham Hotspur U21s 4-0 Southampton U21s

Scorers: Falque 2, Obika, Coulibaly

Vigouroux
Fredericks Hall Luongo Stewart
Carroll Mason
Falque Parrett Ceballos
Obika

Subs:

Coulibaly for Parrett, 68.

Pritchard for Ceballos, 77.

Unused subs: McGee, Veljkovic.

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U21 League

Sun 18 Nov (at Nantwich Town) Stoke City U21s 1-4 Tottenham Hotspur U21s

Scorers: Pritchard, Ceballos, Mason (pen), Townsend

Miles
Fredericks Hall Luongo Veljkovic
Mason Parrett
Ceballos Pritchard Townsend
Obika

Subs:

Stewart for Hall, 62.

Coulibaly for Obika, 71.

Unused subs: Vigouroux, Gallifuoco.

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U21 League

10 Dec (at Academy of Light) Sunderland U21s 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s

Scorer: Ceballos

Vigouroux
Barthram Hall Veljkovic Stewart
Parrett Parker Luongo
Pritchard Obika Ceballos

Subs:

Coulibaly for Parrett, 60.

Gallifuoco for Veljkovic, 78.

Munns for Pritchard, 78.

Unused sub: Priestley.

------------------------------------------------

U21 League

Mon 17 Dec (at Villa Park) Aston Villa U21s 0-3 Tottenham Hotspur U21s

Scorers: Mason, Parker, OG

Vigouroux
Fredericks Hall Luongo Barthram
Carroll Parker
Falque Mason Townsend
Obika

Subs:

Gallifuoco for Parker, 68.

Coulibaly for Obika, 68.

Unused subs: Priestley, Stewart.

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Loanees

Currently we have the following players out on loan:

Bongani Khumalo - PAOK

John Bostock - Swindon Town

Danny Rose - Sunderland

Harry Kane - Norwich City

David Bentley - FC Rostov

Nathan Byrne - Crawley Town

Jermaine Jenas - Nottingham Forest

Adam Smith - Millwall

Jordan Archer - Wycombe Wanderers

Jonathan Miles - Brentwood

Bongani Khumalo (PAOK) continues to be a regular in the PAOK side, and has now made eighteen starts in the Greek Super League/Europa League. PAOK currently lie second in their domestic league.

John Bostock (Swindon Town) is still a little 'in and out' for Swindon, starting six matches in total, and coming off the bench in two. He has been linked with a permanent move to the club, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see him move there in the January transfer window.

Danny Rose (Sunderland) continues to win rave reviews playing at left back for Sunderland, and has made sixteen starts in all competitions. Martin O'Neill would like to keep Rose, who has recently been linked with a January move to QPR - Redknapp having been the first manager to use him consistently at left back.

Harry Kane (Norwich City) has just returned from a lengthy injury lay-off, and has featured on the bench once since his recovery. He also bagged a couple of goals against West Ham for Norwich's U21s.

David Bentley (FC Rostov) is now back in England, as there is a Winter break in Russia. He has recently missed a lot of games for FC Rostov due to an injury. Back in November there was an interesting feature about him on the BBC website.

Nathan Byrne (Crawley Town) has lately found himself out of the Crawley Town starting eleven and, with his loan move due to expire in January, some thought will be required as to whether or not to extend it.

Jermaine Jenas (Nottingham Forest) has only made one start and five substitute appearances in an injury-hit spell, but is back in training now.

Adam Smith (Millwall) has played eleven Championship games for Millwall having joined in November on a three-month loan deal. Unfortunately a very harsh sending off on the 22nd means that he will sit out most of the Christmas period, and will need to force his way back into the side thereafter.

Jordan Archer (Wycombe Wanderers) has won many admirers with his performances in League Two, keeping four clean sheets in twelve games. He has extended his loan until the end of the season.

Jonathan Miles (Brentwood) joined Brentwood Town of the Isthmian League Division One North (AKA Ryman League) on a one-month loan deal, and initially started a number of games. They have recently signed another goalkeeper though, so I can't see his loan being extended.

WindyCOYS.com revamp

2012-12-24T10:14:00.001Z

WindyCOYS.com has been revamped, and anyone who has followed the site using an RSS feed will need to update their link (http://windycoys.com/feed).

I hope you like the new site - if you notice any bugs, please report them to me at Windy@WindyCOYS.com, or via the comments section. Thanks!

If you have accessed this via NewsNow, you are likely still viewing the old site - I will continue to update this until NewsNow have switched the links over.

My Fighting Cock debut...

2012-12-13T22:37:00.000Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.
You may or may not know that I provide a youth/loanee update for The Fighting Cock podcast on a weekly basis. Well, this week I was invited on as a guest to talk about the Panathinaikos, Everton and Swansea games (amongst other things!).

So if you fancy listening, you can find it here.

Analysis of the goals conceded against Everton (9/12)

2012-12-10T20:14:00.000Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Pienaar's goal - a long ball forward is flicked on, and Lloris shouts and comes to claim it. Caulker clears straight to an Everton player (Naismith) and, after another attempted clearance, Everton force the ball wide to Coleman. His cross falls nicely for Pienaar to plant his header into the far corner.

As a long ball is flicked on, Lloris screams at his defence and comes to claim the ball.

Caulker panics and clears the ball. Could this be related to what we were saying last week about the chopping and changing of Lloris and Friedel, two goalkeepers who would behave very differently in this situation?

Naismith attempts to get the ball back into the box; it is cleared by Vertonghen, but straight to Naismith again, who forces it wide to Coleman.

Dempsey has tucked in, meaning that Coleman is unmarked. Vertonghen comes out to meet him, but he is able to stand a cross up.

Pienaar meets it on the charge, untracked by Walker and Sigurdsson (?).

His header is low and powerful and bounces up awkwardly to beat Lloris and go into the bottom corner.

Jelavic's goal - another long ball is flicked on in acrobatic fashion by Vellios, and Jelavic sneaks in behind Gallas to strike low and first time beneath Lloris' grasp.

Everton take a quick throw-in and Gibson has space to receive the ball.

Gibson launches a long ball into the box towards the substitute, Vellios.

Vellios competes and helps the ball on...

...and whilst Gallas raises his arm to appeal for offside, Jelavic beats the trap and finishes first time beyond Lloris.

He is afforded far too much room by Gallas and Walker and his first time effort goes in, despite Lloris getting desperately close to saving it.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Panathinaikos (6/12)

2012-12-07T08:43:00.001Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Zeca's goal - Panathinaikos move the ball wide and Giourkas Spyropoulos whips in a cross. Zeca loses his marker, Naughton, and powers a diving header across Friedel and into the far post.

Panathinaikos came out with a lot more intent in the second half, and Spurs tended to sit off them. Look how easy we make it for them to pick up the ball centrally in our half...

...push it wide to Spyropoulos...

...and put in a cross. Lennon doesn't get close enough to stop the cross coming in, but notice Naughton at the back post, his man (Zeca) making a run off him.

Naughton ball-watches and leaves Zeca with an unchallenged header.

It is a fantastic header back across Friedel and into the far post...

...although I do wonder whether Friedel could have come to try to punch or even claim the ball. As the cross is played in, Friedel is closer to where the ball ends up than Zeca, which tells me something.

Analysis of the goal conceded against West Ham (25/11)

2012-11-26T19:03:00.000Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Andy Carroll's goal - Caulker clears Taylor's cross unnecessarily, with Lloris ready to pounce. The ball falls to O'Brien, who takes a touch and stands the ball up for Carroll, who loops a header in at the far post.

Matt Taylor progresses down the West Ham right.

He fires in a cross with his weaker foot. With Lloris ready to pounce, Caulker clears - it is unclear whether Lloris calls for this cross (edit: some Park Lane eyewitnesses has confirmed that he did call for it!), but it is fair to say that Caulker is used to playing with a goalkeeper who stays on his line, so it is difficult to blame him in this instance.

The ball drops kindly for Joey O'Brien - arguably lucky to still be on the pitch after a very poor challenge on Bale in the first half.

O'Brien's cross is perfectly stood up for Carroll, who has drifted between Walker and Dawson at the back post.

Carroll loops his header intelligently to the far post, and Lloris is well beaten.

The game had its flat moments, but Spurs scored at crucial times and could have had more - hitting the woodwork twice. Defoe scored a fantastic opener at a time when we looked like we might not manage to break the deadlock, and Dempsey was pleasingly involved in much of our good play - two major positives given that we are missing Adebayor for crucial matches.

Michael Dawson put in a sterling shift at the back, and Hugo Lloris again showed why so many questioned AVB's decision to hold him back. I for one hope that our Head Coach sticks with both for Wednesday's game.

If you have a spare five minutes, why not read my article from yesterday? 'AVB needs (at least) a year'.

AVB needs (at least) a year

2012-11-25T15:07:00.000Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Pressure is mounting on our manager - not just from the tabloid press, but also from within our fan base. Whether you didn't want Redknapp to go (been there, done that), didn't rate André Villas-Boas' reign at Chelsea, aren't impressed with his tactics thus far, aren't impressed with his perceived "negative substitutions", etc. etc. etc., in my opinion, is all irrelevant at this point.

We have appointed a manager who is a deep thinker in football terms (I'd insert quips about his notebook here if I was one of the old crones on Soccer Saturday); he is a man who has quite literally made a career of studying opposition teams and coming up with a plan to beat them. He has clear ideas of what he wants to achieve on a match-to-match basis, and makes what he sees as the appropriate adjustments.

Alongside this backdrop of new analysis and tactical tinkering, we have a squad of players who have, effectively, been given the following guidance over the past 3-4 years: "go out and express yourselves". Now they are being given very specific instructions - sometimes on an opponent-by-opponent basis. These changes in ideology are, logically, going to take significant time to implement. Our players are no longer individuals, expressing themselves however they please (or not, as our January to May run illustrated!) - they are cogs in a machine, and so one player not fulfilling his role can make all the difference.

Not only do our players have this drastic change to cope with in daily training and in match situations, the team has had its heart ripped away. Three of our four best players (King, Modric and van der Vaart) left in the summer, and three of last season's stars - Kaboul, Assou-Ekotto and Parker - have had medium-to-long-term injuries.

When you combine these issues, the need to turn around six months of awful form under Redknapp (which many seem to conveniently forget) and a lack of fluency as yet on the pitch, it is surprising that, as has been widely documented on many Spurs blogs and forums, we are still (at the time of writing) level on points with last season's tally thus far (when substituting the promoted teams like for like for comparison, i.e. Championship winners, second place, etc). This despite AVB having a weaker squad and Redknapp having had three years to implement his ideas.

AVB has the full weight of the foamy-mouthed tabloid press on his back (they seem to be totally against him for no apparent reason) and he may be anxious that removing the senior players from the squad too soon could be seen as him making the same mistakes again.

I do not agree with many of his team selections - in fact, I don't think I've fully agreed with one yet - but I can generally see the reasons behind them. I think my biggest criticism of AVB thus far would be his continual selection of William Gallas, who I see as one of the weakest links in our side, whilst Michael Dawson watches from the sidelines. I have also been disheartened by his selection of Friedel over Lloris, who I think encourages pressure with his reactive goalkeeping. But, as mentioned above, given that he was widely-criticised at Chelsea for moving experienced (ageing) players out of the team too quickly, it would be a logical reaction from Villas-Boas - someone who does want to continually learn - to change his approach based on past failings.

There are, absolutely, positives in AVB's reign so far, and signs of progressive change. For one, we have looked threatening and indeed have scored from set pieces, which is a joy to see in a team who has long struggled in this area. We have also seen the intelligent integration of players from our development squad; rather than just throwing them into a team together, we have seen the likes of Caulker and Carroll brought into otherwise strong selections, and they have flourished as a result. We have also, of course, won away at Old Trafford - I was beginning to lose hope of that happening in my lifetime!

Our manager needs time, and the patience, understanding, and support of our fans. COYS!

Analysis of the goals conceded against Manchester City (11/11)

2012-11-12T14:57:00.000Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Aguero's goal - Walker's deflection falls kindly for Aguero, who skips inside Caulker and finishes with his left foot.

Tom Huddlestone has possession wide on the left, and with Bale looking to make a run over the shoulder of his marker, he tries an extravagant pass.

Huddlestone's pass is under hit, and Adebayor cannot retain possession. Suddenly Vertonghen's advanced position becomes a problem.

City break forward through the centre, with David Silva driving forward.

Toure breaks forward alongside David Silva, and takes possession.

Toure's attempted pass is intercepted by Walker...

...but his touch takes the ball into the path of Aguero, who has got in behind Huddlestone, who was covering at left back.

Aguero checks inside Caulker, who sells himself too easily.

Friedel had been expecting Caulker to show Aguero down the outside, and had taken up a position accordingly. With Aguero now cutting inside, Friedel is showing him far too much of the goal.

Aguero strokes the ball into the goal - with Friedel not covering nearly enough.

Dzeko's goal - Dzeko receives the ball in the channel, cuts inside, exchanges passes with David Silva, before smashing home on the turn from close range.

City again counter after a failed Spurs long ball, and Dzeko is played in down the channel.

Dzeko cuts in and...

... despite Spurs having plenty of players back, none of them have picked up David Silva.

David Silva receives the pass, and Dzeko continues his run.
.

There's so little pressure on David Silva, that he's able to look up and clip a ball over the top for Dzeko, who has run between Dawson and Caulker.

Dawson attempts to throw himself between Dzeko and the goal, but Dzeko hammers his volley in on the turn, and it goes like a rocket between Friedel's hands.

The case for dropping Defoe

2012-11-10T11:28:00.002Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

It would be crazy to drop a player who has just scored a hat trick in his last game; only a lunatic would do that, surely? That is absolutely what I would do for Sunday's game against Manchester City.

Much has been made of Andre Villas-Boas' controversial substitution in last Saturday's defeat to Wigan - when Emmanuel Adebayor replaced Jermaine Defoe on 57 minutes, as Spurs went in search of a goal. National newspapers, blogs, and Twitter exploded, owing to a significant section of the home crowd booing the change; presumably not booing the fact that Adebayor was coming on, but the fact that we were not taking off a midfield player and reverting to 4-4-2.

Personally I put this down to football fans over-simplifying the situation. Surely if you have two strikers rather than one you have double the chance of scoring, right? Clearly, if you look deeper at the issue, that is not the case.

First, taking the team shapes as as a way to explain the change; Wigan lined up in a 3-4-3 formation, which frequently became a 3-6-1 when they were defending. To have taken off a midfield player would have meant leaving ourselves totally outnumbered in a midfield battle that we were already losing (Huddlestone, Sigurdsson and Dempsey as a trio lacked the intensity and mobility that AVB wants in a pressing midfield combo), meaning we would have been open to counter; or worse, would have effectively handed Wigan control of the match and been forced to play on the counter ourselves.

Secondly, taking the personnel; prior to the Wigan game, Defoe had one goal in his last six starts, so it could be argued that he was already lucky to be starting with Adebayor fit again, especially as he offers so little when he doesn't score. He had touched the ball eleven times in the match. His disinterest in linking play has always been apparent, but rarely more so than on Saturday. Dempsey was also having a poor game, but he at least attempted to receive the ball or make himself an option occasionally.

Essentially, it came down to two questions:

1. Do you believe we were creating chances but not finishing them? Answer: leave Defoe on.
2. Do you believe we weren't creating chances (or finishing them)? Answer: take Defoe off.

I lean very much towards option two, and felt that Defoe impeded our chance creation with his lack of engagement in approach play. Leaving Defoe on would have meant one less player to pass to when trying to build play from the back, when we were already struggling for options. Presumably Andre Villas-Boas felt the same way.

As an aside, after he was withdrawn (rightly or wrongly), Defoe trudged off the pitch as slowly as he could, presumably to make a point (against a man who had previously shown nothing but faith in him), when we were in a major hurry to try to equalise. To make matters worse, he then went straight down the tunnel, not worried about supporting his teammates for the rest of the match. I would suggest that he was lucky to start on Thursday after this display of petulance.

Thursday was different for Defoe - albeit against significantly weaker opposition. We played a hybrid of 4-4-2 and 4-4-1-1, with Adebayor and Defoe taking turns in being the most advanced player. He still wasn't generally involved in the match (he had 20 fewer touches than any other outfield player for us) but he got chances, and generally took them exceptionally well, scoring from three of his five efforts on goal with a nice range of finishes. Against lesser teams, we can afford to have one fewer man in midfield, and to play a player up front who is simply there to finish things off. Against Manchester City, in my opinion we simply can't.

I personally think that anyone calling for a traditional 4-4-2 at the Etihad on Sunday, whether City are "there for the taking" or not, simply hasn't watched enough of City in recent seasons. That formation would be playing into their hands - there is nothing they would like more than playing against a team who are a man light in midfield; they would, in my opinion, take the opportunity to dominate possession, play a pragmatic possession game, and grind out a result, despite not being at their best right now.

Instead, we should take a steadier approach. A three man midfield to combat theirs is essential, but with limited options we have difficult decisions to make. Huddlestone will definitely start. Sandro will also certainly start if fit and, if not, Livermore will likely come in (again, if fit) to add energy. The third midfield player will be one of Sigurdsson, Dempsey or Thursday's little gem, Tom Carroll. I wrote for London24 last week about Dempsey and Sigurdsson - both are struggling for form and confidence - but crucially, neither will help us retain the ball. I would therefore start Carroll.

Lennon and Bale pick themselves, but crucially in a 4-3-3 they need to be high up the pitch. This leaves one forward, meaning we need to choose between Adebayor and Defoe; it's a no-brainer for me. Adebayor as a lone front man has so much more going for him; he doesn't just get goals (he, in fact, has a better scoring record in English football than Defoe), but also assists; he has the intelligence, awareness, and ability to bring others into play (in all areas of the pitch); he links brilliantly with Bale; he occupies defenders with clever movement out to the flanks, and creates space for others to profit from; and for those who like psychological side of football, he has a point to prove against his former employers.

Defoe might get us a goal if he plays 90 minutes and a chance falls his way. But for the remaining 89 minutes he will likely do very little, as he typically has done away to top four sides during his time at Spurs (this season's Manchester United game aside, where I thought he was exceptionally good). We simply can't afford a passenger in this game, and our best chance of getting a result comes from picking a team that will be compact, intelligent, and devastating on the counter. Defoe has pace, but he doesn't have the ability to bring the ball down quickly and find Bale and Lennon with quick, intelligent passing, which is why Adebayor suits a counter-attacking side so well (the part he played in Defoe's third goal on Thursday was incredible - so few players could have done what he did).

It remains to be seen how AVB will fashion the team on Sunday. If he goes with Defoe, as I'm sure the majority of fans expect, let's hope he can put in a similar showing to that of the United game - i.e. dropping into the hole when necessary and working hard to close down opponents, as well as ensuring that he keeps the ball where possible.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Maribor (8/11)

2012-11-09T08:40:00.002Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Beric's goal - An absolute disaster for two players playing for a place in Sunday's side - Naughton plays a terrible pass back to Lloris, who tries to round Beric, only for the scorer from the first game to read his movement and finish.

Vertonghen plays the ball back to Lloris, who has a bit of time to pick a pass.

Beric presses Lloris, but he retains possession by chipping out wide to Naughton.

Naughton brings the ball under control, but doesn't turn (despite his man being some way off him).

Naughton backs himself into a bit of a corner, although could potentially look to Vertonghen.

Instead, he tries to find Lloris, not realising that Beric is still near to him.

The pass makes Lloris rush, but from this view it's clear that he could just clear out to the right.

Instead he tries to take the ball round Beric on to his left foot...

...and he gets caught in possession, with Beric prodding home.

Youth/loan update

2012-11-04T16:18:00.001Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Back in September I wrote a youth/loan update, and so much has happened for our young players since then that it seems a good time for another.

U18s

FA Premier Academy League
Sat 22 Sep (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 2-2 Southampton
Scorers: McEvoy, D McQueen

McGee

McQueen Ball Ogilvie Smith

Dombaxe Bentaleb

McEvoy Onomah Coulthirst
McQueen

Subs:

Michael-Percil for McQueen, 87.

Winks for Onomah, 90.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey Site report

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 22 Sep (at BodyMoor Heath) Aston Villa U18s 2-4 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorers: Ball, McEvoy

McGee

Gardiner Ball Ogilvie Smith

McQueen Onomah

McEvoy Miller Coulthirst
McQueen

Subs:

Sonupe for Smith, 46.
Lameiras for Miller, 57.
Akindayini for McQueen, 88.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey Site report

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 13 Oct (at Carrington) Man Utd U18s 1-3 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorer: Coulthirst

McGee

Brown McQueen Ogilvie Vincent-Young

Dombaxe Onomah

Ward Winks McQueen

Coulthirst

Subs:

Michael-Percil for Ogilvie, 55.
Bush for Ward, 73.
Smith for Winks, 84.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey Site report

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 20 Oct (at Sunderland) Sunderland U18s 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorer: Akindayini, Coulthirst

Vigoroux

Ward Ball A McQueen Vincent-Young

Lesniak Bentaleb

McEvoy Winks Coulthirst

Akindayini

Subs:

Sonupe for McEvoy, 62.
Miller for Bentaleb, 81.
D McQueen for Akindayini, 85.

Official site report

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 3 Nov (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 4-1 Newcastle U18s
Scorers: McEvoy, Michael-Percil, Miller, Dombaxe

McGee

Ward Gardiner Ogilvie Smith

Lesniak Dombaxe

McEvoy Lameiras Michael-Percil

Miller

Subs:

Zapata-Caceido for Lameiras, 62.

Official site report

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NextGen Series

NextGen Series
Wed 24 Oct (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U19s 2-2 Wolfsburg U19s
Scorers: Pritchard 2

McGee

A McQueen Stewart Ball Barthram

Veljkovic

Bentaleb Dombaxe

McEvoy Coulthirst Pritchard

Subs:

Akindayini for McEvoy, 63.
Winks for Bentaleb, 74.
Lesniak for Dombaxe, 93.

Highlights
Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

------------------------------------------------

NextGen Series
Wed 31 Oct (at Anderlecht) Anderlecht U19s 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur U19s
Scorer: Bentaleb

Vigoroux

A McQueen Ball Stewart Barthram

Veljkovic Gallifuoco

Winks Bentaleb Coulthirst

Coulibaly

Subs:

D McQueen for Coulibaly, 41.
Lesniak for Winks, 68.
Dombaxe for Gallifuoco, 68.
McEvoy for Bentaleb, 87.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

------------------------------------------------

U21s

U21 League
Mon 01 Oct (at White Hart Lane) Tottenham Hotspur 3-3 Aston Villa
Scorers: Obika 2, Stewart

Miles

Smith Hall Stewart Barthram

Veljkovic

Bentaleb Carroll Parrett Pritchard

Obika

Subs:

Munns for Carroll, 68.
Gallifuoco for Bentaleb, 80.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

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U21 League
Mon 15 Oct (at Staplewood) Southampton 2-4 Tottenham Hotspur
Scorers: OG, Obika, Ceballos 2

Vigoroux

Barthram Gardiner Hall Stewart

Carroll Parrett Pritchard

Falque Obika Ceballos

Subs:

Bentaleb for Pritchard, 71.
Zapata-Caceido for Obika, 75.
Munns for Ceballos, 75.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

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U21 League
Sat 27 Oct (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 Man Utd
Scorers: Veljkovic, Ceballos, Bentaleb, Obika

Miles

Fredericks Ball Stewart Barthram

Luongo Veljkovic Parrett

Ceballos Obika Pritchard

Subs:

Bentaleb for Barthram, 82.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

------------------------------------------------

U21 League

Sat 03 Nov (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur 6-0 Newcastle

Scorers: Mason, Ceballos, Parrett, Pritchard, Obika 2

Miles

Fredericks Luongo Stewart Barthram

Mason Parrett

Pritchard Ceballos Townsend

Obika

Subs:

Gallifuoco for Barthram, 71.

Official site report

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Loanees

Currently we have the following players out on loan:

Simon Dawkins - San Jose Earthquakes
Bongani Khumalo - PAOK
Massimo Luongo - Ipswich Town
John Bostock - Swindon Town
Danny Rose - Sunderland
Harry Kane - Norwich City
David Bentley - FC Rostov
Nathan Byrne - Crawley Town
Jermaine Jenas - Nottingham Forest
Jack Munns - Aldershot
Adam Smith - Millwall
Jordan Archer - Wycombe Wanderers

Simon Dawkins could play for San Jose Earthquakes against LA Galaxy today in the first leg of the Western Conference Semi-final. He has had a really impressive season and, as I reported in my previous update, he seems keen to stay at the Earthquakes on a permanent basis.

Bongani Khumalo continues to start every game for PAOK, where he seems to have settled. They are currently third in the league, which reflects well on the 25 year old South African.

Massimo Luongo has had a tough few weeks at Ipswich, where he has found himself out of the team due to the Championship side having too many loan players. Due to weaknesses in other areas, they have prioritised other loanees, although many of their fans disagree with this decision. On the plus side, due to the terms of his loan, he is able to play for our U21s when he is not in the Ipswich match day squad, so he has been able to keep his fitness levels up.

John Bostock had finally forced himself into Paolo Di Canio's plans before unfortunately picking up an injury. He started his second game of the season as Swindon beat Stevenage 4-0, and was one of their most impressive performers, claiming an assist. However, the 21 year old limped off the field at the end, and hasn't participated in their two games since.

Danny Rose lost his place in the Sunderland side this week, having previously made seven starts in succession in the league and cup. He has been playing at left back - the position that Redknapp famously "converted" him to, and has done relatively well, although he has made a couple of errors that have led to goals

Unfortunately it looks as though Harry Kane will be sidelined until Christmas with his broken foot.

David Bentley continues to start for FC Rostov although has been substituted in their last four matches. However, seven starts in the Russian Premier League is better than playing no football at all - it will be interesting to see what happens with him in January.

Nathan Byrne has been in sparkling form for Crawley Town, starting ten games in all competitions at right back. He went off injured in their win against the Met Police this weekend, leading to one Crawley fan commenting: "Nathan Byrne's injury unsettled us - he is streets ahead of any other right back we have."

Jermaine Jenas has struggled with injury since joining Nottingham Forest (surprise surprise!) and has only managed four substitute appearances. He did open his account for them at the end of October though - lifting the ball over Barnsley's former Spurs goalkeeper Ben Alnwick.

Jack Munns joined Aldershot Town recently, but has yet to make it off their bench.

Adam Smith joined Millwall this week, and made his debut in their 4-1 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday. There were some interesting quotes from Tim Sherwood on Smith this week (with thanks to News At Den):

"We've got high hopes for him. Adam is not someone we're looking to get rid of.

At this stage he just needs to go out and get some games. He could play in the Premier League. It just takes longer for these boys to get their opportunity but he's got a great chance of making his way at Spurs.

Kyle Walker and Kyle Naughton are both England internationals and Adam is already playing for the U21s. He wouldn't be playing at that level on a regular basis if he wasn't Premier League standard.

At this moment in time, we think he could be the future for Tottenham and we want him to continue to learn. He's a great lad, has a good attitude and he'll knuckle down."

Jordan Archer has re-joined Wycombe Wanderers - this time for two months. He played in their 4-1 defeat to Crewe, although has been credited with having a great game, and himself described it on Twitter as the best of his career to date.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Wigan (3/11)

2012-11-03T18:11:00.001Z

Follow me on Twitter - @WindyCOYS.

You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Ben Watson's goal - A Wigan corner is drifted into the six yard box. Friedel attempts to punch it away, but can only push it into the path of Watson, who sends it back first time.

As Maloney's corner is played in, Spurs are totally disorganised. Gallas is unaware of what is going on around him - instead, trying to communicate with a team mate. He hasn't noticed his man, Watson, making a break in behind him.

Gallas suddenly realises that Watson is on the move, and tries to get back at him. Walker is marking Kone in front of Friedel, but is presumably aware that he is getting in Friedel's way, given the lack of attention he pays to the Wigan man.

The ball drops right into Friedel's path, but instead of either claiming it, or safely pushing it over the bar...

...he limply flaps at the ball, and pushes it back out into the six-yard box.

It drops perfectly for the man that Gallas should be marking, Watson, and he sends it back into an unguarded net.

Friedel is well over the line when he attempts to save the ball.

A terrible performance from Spurs today, who were lacking in virtually every area. I didn't agree with Villas-Boas' team selection, and it was clear that Wigan had the upper hand from quite early on - Kone and Maloney having excellent early chances. Sandro had been our best player until his early departure, and the decision by Villas-Boas to send on Sigurdsson in his place was a poor one. Sigurdsson was sloppy with his passing, laboured in his pressing and attempts to push forward, and looks short in confidence.

Jermain Defoe had another poor game, once again failing to even try to drop deep to link play. It has often been said (and often by me!) that when he doesn't score, he achieves very little, and this was typical of a JD non-scoring performance - he only had element touches of the ball, and passed the ball just eight times. We have an issue with our number ten/support striker role too - both Dempsey and Sigurdsson are goal-scorers who tend to play on the periphery of games, meaning that our two forwards are both largely disinterested in getting involved in build-up play. In my opinion, Adebayor simply has to come into the team.

Finally, once again Friedel and Gallas were responsible for a goal conceded - both have been weak links throughout the season in my opinion, and I would hope that Lloris will become first choice before too long. With Naughton fit again, I would bring Vertonghen back into the centre of our defence at the expense of Gallas, and play Naughton on the left until Assou-Ekotto is back.

Analysis of the goals conceded against Norwich (31/10)

2012-11-01T08:44:00.003Z

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Vertonghen's own goal - A corner comes back out to the edge of the box, and a Tettey volley hits Vertgonhen and finds the corner of Lloris' goal.

A corner is drifted in, with Vertonghen marking Morison at the back post.

Morison seems to have his arms on Vertonghen, but gets above him and wins the header... it's difficult to tell, but it seems to come off Vertonghen and back out towards the edge of the box.

Tettey is waiting at the edge of the box, with Sigurdsson and Falque closing him from either side. He gets a shot away, but it is travelling wide.

Vertonghen tries to adjust his body, but can only divert it past Lloris.

Jackson's goal - Another set piece - this time Snodgrass' free kick is headed down powerfully by Holt. Lloris saves, but the ball pops up for Jackson to slam home.

Snodgrass angles his free kick to the far post.

Holt easily beats Vertonghen in the air, and powers his header downwards.

Lloris makes the reflex save, but the ball pops up. Huddlestone had been marking Jackson, but doesn't follow him into the six yard box.

Lloris makes a desperate lunge for the ball, but Jackson beats him to it, and powers home.

A very disappointing result, especially having dominated the game for long periods, been 1-0 up with ten minutes to play, and of course missing the late penalty. However, there were some positives to be drawn from the game - Lloris was commanding, decisive, quick off his line and generally a strong presence. Tom Carroll showed plenty of ability in midfield, keeping the ball ticking over and also showing a willingness to tackle. And finally, Yago Falque had a really good game - he was creative and intelligent, providing good crosses and almost scored with an excellent curling effort.

On the down side, Dempsey and Sigurdsson struggled to have any impact on the game again, and I personally don't think either deserves to start against Wigan. My preference would be for Lennon, Bale and Falque to play in a fluid "three" behind either Defoe or Adebayor.

Another slight negative was the performance of Vertonghen. He came on for the tiring Carroll (we had limited other options, but one would have been dropping Sigurdsson deeper), but seemed to lack intensity. He was arguably at fault for both goals, and I think AVB will have perhaps learnt that he is not an ideal candidate to come off the bench, and that he should either start or play no part at all.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Southampton (28/10)

2012-10-29T09:09:00.000Z

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Jay Rodriguez goal - A Southampton corner is played towards Fonte at the near post, who flicks on intelligently. Friedel claws the ball out, but Rodriguez is on hand to put the rebound in.

Southampton have a corner from the left (conceded after another near miss, when Friedel attempted to claim a free kick, and totally missed the ball).

Fonte makes a run off Gallas at the near post, and Gallas is not alive to it. Note Caulker marking Rodriguez, the eventual scorer, around the penalty spot.

The ball reaches Fonte and he flicks intelligently towards goal. Caulker has tracked Rodriguez's run until this point.

Friedel gets down to the near post to claw the ball out...

...but as Friedel makes the save, Rodriguez has continued his run, untracked by Caulker (guilty of a little ball-watching), and is on hand to fire home the loose ball.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Maribor (25/10)

2012-10-26T08:20:00.002+01:00

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Beric's goal - Andros Townsend gives the ball away in midfield, and Maribor counter. Dejan Mezga runs off Sigurdsson, drives into the box, beats Huddlestone with ease, dinks the ball over Lloris, and leaves Robert Beric with a tap-in.

Unfortunately this clip starts just too late to see both Andros Townsend giving the ball away in midfield, and Mezga moving away from Sigurdsson without Gylfi tracking him. Steven Caulker comes out of the back to put pressure on the ball, with Huddlestone dropping into the back line, which is too deep; we are not compact enough.

Mezga drives forward into the space, with Huddlestone thinking about moving towards him - he certainly should be moving to the player here, with there being less risk of making a challenge outside of the box.

Instead he drops deep and, as Mezga drops his shoulder, Huddlestone hangs a leg out almost as a token gesture.

Mezga gets beyond him with ease and, as Lloris rushes out to narrow the angle, he intelligently dinks the ball over him, looking for the supporting run of Beric.

Vertonghen and Naughton attempt to meet the pass first, but Beric shows good determination to tap home into an unguarded net.

Analysis of the goals conceded against Chelsea (20/10)

2012-10-21T14:54:00.002+01:00

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Cahill's goal - a poor headed clearance from Gallas drops to Cahill on the edge of the box. His sweetly struck volley brushes Steven Caulker on the way past, and beats Friedel.

A Chelsea corner is played deep to the far post, where Gallas and Walker are underneath it.

Gallas inexplicably heads the ball back towards the centre of the penalty area, rather than either putting it out for another corner, or trying to flick it on for a throw in. Cahill has drifted away from his marker, Caulker.

Cahill hits a wonderful first-time volley, which Caulker attempts to block.

The deflection is what beats Friedel - the ball effectively goes straight between his hands, but it is difficult to blame him as it was certainly diverted off-course by the nick on the way through.

Juan Mata's first goal - another poor Gallas clearance is punished, as Juan Mata finds the bottom corner with a precise finish.

Chelsea build a move down their right-hand side, and get bodies forward in support.

As the ball is moved wide, Spurs seem to have enough bodies back to deal with the move.

Oscar's cross is low, but played more "into an area" than to anyone in particular.

Gallas awkwardly tries to clear up-field with his right foot, when hooking it away with his left would make more sense - as a result, he makes a real mess of his clearance.

The ball lands at the feet of Mata, who steadies himself...

...and finds the bottom corner - Friedel doesn't even move.

Juan Mata's second goal - after clever link-up play with Oscar and Mikel, and a wonderful pass from Hazard, Mata runs in behind Gallas and finishes well.

Oscar has possession on Chelsea's left - he finds Mata, who is pursued by substitute Jake Livermore.

Mata lays off to Mikel, and immediately makes a dart in behind.

Mikel helps the ball on to Hazard, with Mata now in a lot of space - Livermore not having tracked his run.

Hazard plays the perfect pass - first time and in behind Gallas, who is not alive to Mata's run - does Walker give him a shout?

The ball is perfectly weighted into Mata's stride.

Once he is one on one, Mata finishes clinically, giving Friedel little chance.

Daniel Sturridge - Kyle Walker fails to clear the ball, dallies, and is eventually robbed by Mata, who tees up Sturridge for a back-post tap-in.

Kyle Walker has possession for Spurs, and doesn't want to hit the ball long - instead, he should turn and play the ball back to Friedel, in order to keep possession.

Instead, he attempts to take on and beat Mata.

He retains possession, but still doesn't take the opportunity to clear the ball.

Mata backs him into a corner, and robs him of possession.

He scampers into the box, and has bodies in support.

Caulker has the near-impossible job of trying to choose an angle to cut out - Mata picks the perfect pass...

...and Sturridge has the simple task of tapping home.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Panathinaikos (4/10)

2012-10-05T08:09:00.000+01:00

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Toche's goal - Seitaridis latches on to a pass down the right - his touch is loose, but he gets away with it as no Spurs players are close to him. He gets his head up and plays the pass of the match - perfectly in behind Caulker, into the path of Toche, who has run off Dawson, and toe pokes beyond Lloris.

Giourkas Seitaridis controls the ball on the right - it's not the easiest control but with no Spurs player close to him, he gets away with a less than perfect touch.

He instantly gets his head up, and notices Toche making an intelligent run - Dawson is not alive or not sharp enough to react to this movement, and it is already clear at this point that he will struggle to get goal-side.

The ball is perfectly weighted to drop behind Caulker - he thinks about stretching, but knows he won't make it. It's also not heavy enough to run to Lloris, who instead tries to narrow the angle for Toche.

Dawson tries to apply pressure at the last minute, and is actually in danger of giving away a penalty - perhaps that may have been the best option at this point?

It's a neat finish from Toche - right into the corner - but could Lloris have come out a yard or two further? I think so.

Analysis of the goals conceded against Man Utd (29/9)

2012-10-02T19:39:00.000+01:00

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Can't analyse. Still too happy.

COME ON YOU SPURS!

Analysis of the goal conceded against QPR (23/9)

2012-09-24T09:55:00.001+01:00

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Bobby Zamora's goal - Sean Wright-Phillips picks up a loose ball following a corner; he drives down the line beyond Defoe, and forces in a cross. It is deflected into the path of Alejandro Faurlín, who sells Dembele a dummy and slips a clever pass through to Zamora, who lifts the ball over Friedel, who is slow to close the striker down.

The ball is cleared from a corner, and Sean Wright-Phillips drives down the right-hand side. Defoe slides in to try to win the ball back, but Wright-Phillips evades him.

Walker comes over to cover, but Wright-Phillips manages to force a cross in, which deflects off Walker.

Dembele charges in to meet the ball, with Faurlin looking to take possession.

Dembele commits himself, and Faurlin intelligently lets the ball run across his body. Notice the defensive line - they are all looking to push out, with Walker a yard or two deeper in the left-back area.

Faurlin shapes to shoot, but instead slides a clever through-ball into a gap that doesn't even seem to be there.

As the ball is played in, Walker is playing Zamora onside (with Zamora also level with Bale, who hasn't stepped up either).

Friedel doesn't read the pass, and is very slow off his line - note his starting position in the above two pictures, compared with Zamora - Zamora has turned and travelled a yard further than Friedel, who was already facing play.

Zamora is left with the relatively simple task of lifting the ball over Friedel.

Friedel has been heralded for two big saves in the match. Personally, I felt that both were saves that any keeper would expect to make - Hill's header in particular was straight at him. I was once again concerned by his want to stay on the line at every opportunity - three corners came into the six-yard box, and he didn't look to claim or punch any of them.

Friedel's movement off his line for the goal looks even more ponderous when viewing the video rather than screen grabs above. It was notable how quick Julio Cesar was to come off his line in similar situations at the other end. I've found Friedel partially responsible for a lot of the goals conceded this year, and am looking forward to seeing the much more pro-active Lloris become our first-choice goalkeeper.

Youth/loan update - the story so far...

2012-09-22T11:27:00.001+01:00

Spurs News 24/7

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

There's quite a lot to take in - the Premier Academy League, the NextGen Series, the new U21 league which has taken over from the Reserves, plus various players out on loan. This is the story so far for our young players.

U18s

Fixtures

FA Premier Academy League
Sat 18 Aug (at Newcastle) Newcastle U18s 0-4 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorers: Dombaxe, Coulthirst, McEvoy, D McQueen

McGee

A McQueen, Ball, Gardiner, Smith

Dombaxe, Lameiras

D McQueen, Winks, McEvoy

Coulthirst

Subs:

Connor Ogilvie for Thomas Gardiner, 74.

Official site report
Excellent blog report from Metcalficus

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 25 Aug (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur U18s 3-4 Manchester United U18s
Scorers: Coulthirst, D McQueen, OG.

McGee

Bush, Ball, Gardiner, Smith

Bentaleb, Onomah

D McQueen, Lameiras, Michael-Percil

Coulthirst

Subs:

Zapta-Caceido for Michael-Percil, 46.
Dombaxe for Lameiras, 53.
Ogilvie for McQueen, 74.

Spurs Odyssey report
My report

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FA Premier Academy League
Sat 15 Sep (at Stoke City) Stoke City U18s 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur U18s
Scorer: Lameiras

McGee

Bush, Cambell-Young, Ogilvie, Smith

Lameiras, Onomah

D McQueen, Winks, Akindayini

Coulthirst

Subs:

Miller for Bush, 69.
Vincent-Young for Onomah, 77.
Gardiner for Smith, 86.

Official site report
Spurs Odyssey report

NextGen Series

Fixtures

NextGen Series
Wed 22 Aug (at Wolfsburg) Wolfsburg 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur
Scorer: Lameiras

Vigouroux

A McQueen, Ball, Veljkovic, Stewart

Gallifuoco, Dombaxe

McEvoy, Bentaleb, Pritchard

Coulibaly

Subs:

Coulthirst for Gallifuoco, 60.
Ogilvie for Ball, 67.
Lameiras for McEvoy, 75.

Unused subs: McGee, D McQueen.

Official site report

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NextGen Series
Thu 13 Sep (at White Hart Lane) Tottenham Hotspur 0-2 Barcelona

Vigouroux

A McQueen, Ball, Veljkovic, Stewart

Gallifuoco, Dombaxe

McEvoy, Bentaleb, Pritchard

Coulibaly

Subs:

Coulthirst for Gallifuoco, 52.
Onomah for Coulibaly, 66.
Lameiras for Ball, 75.
Ogilvie for Bentaleb, 75.

Unused subs: McGee, D McQueen, Winks.

Official site report

U21s

Fixtures

U21 League
Sat 18 Aug (at Newcastle) Newcastle United 6-4 Tottenham Hotspur
Scorers: Mason, Ceballos, Falque 2

Miles

Smith, Ekong, Hall, Byrne

Carroll, Mason

Falque, Munns, Ceballos

Coulibaly

Subs:

Bush for Smith, 26.
Onomah for Bush, 70.

Unused subs:

Official site report

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U21 League
Mon 29 Aug (at Altrincham) Manchester United 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur
Scorer: Mason

Archer

Smith, Caulker, Hall, Byrne

Carroll, Mason

Falque, Kane, Townsend

Obika

Subs:

Veljkovic for Hall, 49.
Stewart for Caulker, 69.
Ceballos for Townsend, 69.

Unused sub: Vigouroux.

Official site report

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U21 League
Sat 1 Sep (at Spurs Lodge) Tottenham Hotspur 2-2 Sunderland
Scorers: Pritchard, Falque

Archer

Smith, Stewart, Veljkovic, Byrne

Mason, Parrett

Falque, Pritchard, Ceballos

Obika

Unused subs: Ekong, Munns, Miles, Dombaxe.

Official site report

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Friendly
Tue 4 Sep (at Spurs Lodge) Tottenham Hotspur 6-0 Wycombe Wanderers
Scorers: Mason 2, Obika 2, Gallifuoco, Munns

Miles

Naughton, Ekong, Dawson, Byrne

Dombaxe, Huddlestone

Munns, Mason, Townsend

Obika

Official site report

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U21 League
Mon 17 Sep (at Hotspur Way) Tottenham Hotspur 7-2 Stoke
Scorers: Mason 3, Ceballos, Obika, Byrne, Parrett

Archer

Smith, Hall, Veljkovic, Byrne

Carroll, Parrett

Ceballos, Mason, Falque

Obika

Subs:

Dombaxe for Carroll, 68.
Stewart for Veljkovic, 68.
Munns for Obika, 68.

Unused subs: Vigouroux, Ekong.

Official site report

Loanees

Currently we have the following players out on loan:

Simon Dawkins - San Jose Earthquakes
Bongani Khumalo - PAOK
Massimo Luongo - Ipswich Town
Ryan Fredericks - Brentford
John Bostock - Swindon Town
Danny Rose - Sunderland
Harry Kane - Norwich City
David Bentley - FC Rostov

Simon Dawkins continues to impress at San Jose Earthquakes, and would like to join them permanently. He is quoted in this article as saying "I don't want to go on loan anymore - I want to be signed somewhere and play. I love it here. It is not in my hands."

It seems that the move may come down to finances, with Spurs wanting a fee, and San Jose Earthquakes needing to continue finding the $50,000 salary.

Dawkins' team mate Alan Gordon said of him: "I consider him the best player on our team. Simon is a different class. He does so much for us to keep the ball."

Bongani Khumalo is playing regularly at PAOK, where he's made two starts in the league, and two in the Europa League. It's good for the 25 year old to be playing regularly, and I'm sure he'll be looking at earning a permanent transfer.

Massimo Luongo has been somewhat of a revelation at Ipswich - performing consistently well in an otherwise struggling side. He started their first six games in a row, before getting a well-earned rest for their recent match against Middlesbrough. Their fans have instantly taken to him - one fan on a forum described him as “an intelligent little playmaker with a bite”, which I think is spot on!

Ryan Fredericks has struggled to get match time at Brentford, but manager Uwe Rosler said this week:

“He has pushed Shaleum Logan to a level, and apart from the first-half at Bournemouth, he's had a very good season so far. That's credit to Ryan. He came to us with 19 training sessions under his belt, we had 35. We had eight games and he had two, so he was not in the right shape to fully challenge. He is pushing Shaleum, and at the moment he hasn't given him any chance to come in. But we have seven games coming up in a hectic schedule in October so Ryan will get games.”

John Bostock has struggled to get into the Swindon team, making two substitute appearances this season so far, coming on at half time against Preston in the league, and on 65 minutes against Oxford in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy.

Danny Rose started for Sunderland against Liverpool, playing playing 72 minutes in a 1-1 draw with Liverpool. Martin O'Neill seemed relatively impressed, saying:

“Danny Rose was getting tired as the game went on and he came off with a little bit of a groin strain. He’s played for the [England] under-21s but those games don’t have the same tempo as Barclays Premier League games, week in, week out. The run-out will have done him the world of good. I thought he did fine up against some very good players in the Liverpool side. Over the course of the season I think he’ll do well for us.”

Harry Kane came off the bench on 71 minutes to make his Norwich City debut against West Ham United. He had a great chance to win the game for Norwich, but his shot was telegraphed. He did however create another chance with a clever run and pass late on, and impressed with the Norwich fans with his performance.

David Bentley made his FC Rostov debut last weekend, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 win against Dynamo Moscow.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Reading (16/9)

2012-09-17T13:51:00.002+01:00

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Hal Robson-Kanu's goal - Adam Le Fondre picks up the ball between Vertonghen and Gallas, and flights the perfect cross, dissecting Walker and Friedel and allowing Robson-Kanu to tap home at the back post.

Kyle Naughton is caught out when a long-ball down the line finds him up-field. Jan Vertonghen, very solid throughout the game, gets a little unlucky - he comes out to the left back area to cover for Naughton, but the pass (I think from Noel Hunt), goes between his legs.

Gallas doesn't get tight enough to Le Fondre, who flights a very clever pass between Walker and Friedel. Note Walker - caught on his heels as Robson-Kanu busts a gut to get on the end of the cross.

Friedel has come out to protect his near post so is taken out of the game by Le Fondre's clever pass, and Walker's slight delay means that he is caught underneath the cross.

Robson-Kanu slides in to meet the cross on the volley and put it into an empty net.

And Now for Something Completely Different

2012-09-12T09:35:00.001+01:00

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo at half time,
Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo at full time,
Two points from three games,
It’s that Chairman, Daniel Levy; he’s the one to blame.

He didn’t get his chequebook out,
He didn’t sign enough players,
And he didn’t sell Jermaine Jenas,
That’ll please the naysayers.

He should have held on to Harry,
We’d never had it so good,
Replaced him with some prodigy,
Just because he could.

The high line, inverted wingers, high tempo pressing,
Opponent scouting, dossiers, second guessing,
Sports science, performance analysts, youth integration,
New technologies, new methodologies, PowerPoint presentations.

All this modern stuff that other clubs do,
We don’t need all that – what are we trying to prove?
It’s a simple game, eleven against eleven, fahkin’ run about a bit,
Beat your man on the outside, whip in a cross, get a clean hit.

So you can stick your revolution,
I’m giving up Spurs - no more,
If it ain’t Champions League, I ain’t interested,
Everything else is a bore.

You know what, mate? I’m glad.
The Lane’s a far better place,
Without your sense of entitlement,
And without your ugly face.

Let’s have some positivity,
Let’s sing our hearts out in the pub,
Let’s make White Hart Lane a fortress again,
Let’s get behind our club.

Analysis of the goal conceded against Norwich City (1/9)

2012-09-03T08:32:00.000+01:00

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You can also hear me on The Fighting Cock podcast.

Snodgrass' goal - after Livermore gives away a needless free kick, Norwich keep the ball alive, and a deep cross is headed on twice for Snodgrass to sweep home from the penalty spot.

Livermore commits a needless foul, which gives Norwich City a chance to pile on some pressure - the ball is kept alive and is eventually crossed from their right - I think by Howson.

Johnson peels away from Adebayor a the back post, and heads back into the danger area...

Huddlestone doesn't put enough pressure on Holt, who is able to head on. Note the bodies in the box who are simply not marked tightly enough.

As Walker tries to rush out to Snodgrass, it is too late. He has the time and space to take his shot first time...

...and he finds the bottom corner, with Friedel unable to reach it.

Credit to Norwich City, who were excellent throughout, but unfortunately this was a very similar goal to the one conceded last week - we were inviting pressure, looking nervous, and sitting deeper. Livermore had a very poor game overall, and it was his needless foul which led to Norwich being able to keep the ball around our penalty box.

Villas-Boas' team selection was odd - the Livermore/Sandro combo didn't work in midfield last week, yet he selected them again. Likewise, Defoe struggled up front alone against West Brom, and surely even a not-match-fit Adebayor would have been a better selection on Saturday - Defoe simply doesn't have the intelligence or awareness to lead the line alone.

I would also add that Gallas looks increasingly slow and error prone and, whilst he has a wealth of experience, I would argue that we have lacked a leader in the last fifteen minutes of the last two matches and, as captain, he has to take a proportion of the blame for that. Personally I would be looking to start Caulker and Vertonghen in the absence of Kaboul, but even Dawson would be preferable to Gallas right now.

Onwards and upwards for Spurs - hopefully the two week break will allow Villas-Boas to work with the players and get his ideas across, as well as being able to integrate the new boys.

Analysis of the goal conceded against West Brom (25/8)

2012-08-26T10:36:00.004+01:00

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James Morrison's goal - After a goal-mouth scramble, the ball is played back in, and it falls to Morrison who is unmarked on the penalty spot; he guides his shot low into the corner.

Brunt's corner is floated in, and headed away by Gallas, who is competing with McAuley.

The ball is retrieved by Rosenberg, who intelligently plays it back into the box early.

McAuley has pulled off at the far post, untracked, and heads back into the danger area.

Lukaku leaps impressively and heads goal-wards, but why is Friedel not doing everything to meet McAuley's looped header? Lukaku is a big man, but goalkeepers have the advantage of being able to go with both arms raised - he should be looking to claim this, or at least punch it away.

Fortunately for Friedel, Gallas has dropped back on to the line, and gets it out, with Bale hooking clear. Note Morrison at the bottom of the screen grab, having just run past Walker, approaching the edge of the box.

The ball doesn't travel too far, and Brunt heads intelligently back into the box, where Spurs have not picked up their men. Walker hasn't tracked Morrison at all, and a number of players are sucked towards the ball. West Brom have three players unmarked in dangerous areas.

Vertonghen gambles and doesn't meet the bouncing ball, and McAuley helps it on.

It falls to Morrison, near to the penalty spot, with Walker yards away, only now realising his error.

Morrison's shot is guided intelligently into the corner - he doesn't need to put too much power on it, and just focuses on hitting the target.

25/08/12 Tottenham Hotspur U18s 3-4 Manchester United U18s, Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre

2012-08-26T09:33:00.002+01:00

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This was my first visit to the club's new training ground in Enfield, and it is certainly impressive. It is, as yet, not totally finished - there are still dugouts to be built and certain areas are taped off - but the eleven pitches look immaculate. It is a pretty different environment to watching at Spurs Lodge in Chigwell, which always had a "village" feel; there's a burger van where tea and coffee are also available, the pitch has a fence around the perimeter, and you can overlook the U16 game with ease at the same time as taking in the U18s.

Spurs made a couple of changes, bringing in U16 Josh Onomah to play in the middle of midfield alongside Bentaleb, who has always impressed me. Mason Bush was a surprise selection at right back (I've normally seen him play off a front man or wide) and I can only assume that he was filling in, rather than this being some kind of experiment.

Luke McGee (16)

Mason Bush (17) Dominic Ball (17) Tom Gardiner (17) Sam Smith (17)

Nabil Bentaleb (17) Josh Onomah (15?)

Darren McQueen (17) Ruben Lameiras (17) Roman Michael-Percil (17)

Shaquille Coulthirst (17)

Substitutes:

Victor Zapata (17) for Roman Michael-Percil.
Laste Dombaxe (17) for Ruben Lameiras.
Connor Ogilvie (16) for Darren McQueen.

Not used:

Harry Winks (16)
Harry Voss (15?)

Manchester United: Gollini; Love, Grimshaw, McNair, Rowley; Weir, Pearson, Rothwell, Daehli; Byrne (Dalley), Wilson. Subs not used: Sutherland, McConnell.

It was immediately evident from kick off that these were two footballing sides - that we weren't going to see many long balls, and that both teams would take risks playing out from the back. United's Norwegian number 10, Mats Daehli, was immediately at the centre of their approach play.

An early Onomah through ball found Coulthirst in space, but his touch took him slightly wide, and he eventually had to play back to Bush. Bentaleb then showed some quality in the middle of the park - beating his man and lifting a pass just too far in advance of the advancing attackers.

United's James Weir had a great chance, but didn't make a proper contact after James Wilson beat Mason Bush down the outside and put in a low cross. It was a sign of things to come for Bush, though, who was finding that winger Wilson, and left back Rowley were making probing runs with regularity.

It was Rowley who opened the scoring on 6 minutes, getting on the end of a corner at the back post, and directing his header into the net. 0-1.

At the other end Bush was trying to justify his selection with bursts forward, but in losing the ball left us a little exposed. Fortunately, Dominic Ball showed the intelligence to push up and squeeze the play, and managed to block the ball out for a throw.

Weir had another opportunity, but Luke McGee read the situation and came out well to close the angle and block the shot.

Sam Byrne was then gifted a chance after a defensive mix-up, but didn't take the opportunity, before Ruben Lameiras picked a fantastic reverse pass to find Coulthirst - his cross from the right was over hit slightly, and the headed clearance dropped to Onomah, who volleyed over.

Bush was finally able to gain some confidence after he got tight to Rowley and made a good challenge near to the touchline, but minutes later couldn't quite find the right cross at the other end. McQueen robbed Grimshaw and played in Coulthirst, who in turn set Bush free wide on the right. He attempted to flash a ball across the face of goal, but the goalkeeper was alert and was able to gather it in.

Ball missed his header which lead to a cross coming in,only to be missed at the near post, as Gardiner converged with the attacker and managed to scramble it away. Spurs then lost the ball with a lot of bodies committed, but with a two against one situation developing, Ball kept his nerve and managed to get a nick on the attempted pass, allowing him to clear it. Onomah then made a sloppy pass which was nearly punished, but Gardiner made a decent recovery challenge.

Roman Michael-Percil was switched to the right temporarily, and seemed to immediately get some joy, and it was from this side that the equalising goal came. Coulthirst found space, turned well, and hit a cross shot which clipped Rowley and found the far corner. 1-1.

Masn Bush then read the game well, burst forward, and found Coulthirst, but this time his effort was straight at the goalkeeper.

Lameiras was left very angry after Rowley caught him with a high tackle - the referee gave Rowley a long talking to, but didn't show a card.

Sam Smith had to resort to a professional foul after an Onomah error allowed United to break forward - he was left one on one, and took the attacker's legs, conceding a free kick just outside the box, which Rothwell struck narrowly over.

Minutes later, Michael-Percil left the goal-posts shaking after smashing a fantastic drive against the post from the inside left channel.

The impressive Daehli made it 1-2 with a clever finish with the outside of his foot, and United instantly created another couple of chances - Wilson beat Ball, rounded the goalkeeper, but managed to hit the post; as the rebound came back out, it looked like Daehli would grab another, but he somehow managed to sky his effort.

After Coulthirst was played in, but dallied, things went from bad to worse for Spurs in a short space of time. Nabil Bentaleb was booked for something which looked innocuous (it could have been dissent), and then got a stern talking to after a firm challenge in the centre (albeit having got a lot of the ball). Just minutes later, he went to ground again and didn't take the ball, earning himself a second booking. He jumped the fence and trudged off.

In between Bentaleb's bookings, McQueen nearly equalised after our best move of the half (involving Lameiras and Michael-Percil), ended with him taking a first time shot from close-range, which Gollini saved magnificently, one-handed low to his left.

Somehow, 10-man Spurs pushed on at the end of the half. A fantastically weighted cut-back from Michael-Percil found McQueen, and he wasn't going to miss this time - he made a good contact and rifled the ball into the roof of the net from close range. 2-2.

Victor Zapata-Caceido replaced Roman Michael-Percil (later seen limping heavily) at half time, and played on the left. Lameiras played a lot deeper, and a lot was asked of Coulthirst as the lone front man.

Onomah, impressive throughout for one so young, broke through the centre, but his shot was saved. At the other end, Gardiner made another saving challenge. The ball ran to Ball, who needed to clear first time. Instead, he tried to play out, and was fortunate when McGee managed to pounce on the ball.

Rothwell, United's captain, then played a nice pass through our defence, but McGee read the situation well, and rushed out to make a fantastic save with his legs - the ball seemed to have gone through him, but clipped off his ankles and went wide.

McNair made it 3-2 to United when Spurs failed to play offside, and he was left with a simple finish one-on-one in plenty of space.

Dombaxe replaced Lameiras in midfield, as Spurs replaced subtlety with more muscle in an effort to regain some momentum. Within minutes, he drove a powerful effort just over.

United replaced Byrne with Dalley - this led to a re-shuffle ending with Wilson playing up top.

Josh Onomah received a pass in a tight area, turned well, but had few options and eventually ran into trouble. In trying to retrieve the ball, Coulthirst went to ground and picked up a booking for his troubles.

Shaq Coulthirst grabbed his second to make it 3-3 on 75 minutes. Laste Dombaxe charged through on the inside left channel, rounded the goalkeeper with a clever piece of skill, and as the defender blocked on the line, Coulthirst followed up to force the ball over the line.

Connor Ogilvie came on for Darren McQueen, who had been struggling with cramp, with Gardiner moving to right back, and Bush to a more familiar midfield position.

McGee made a good save when it looked like it would be easier for the attacking player to score. Rothwell then drilled a first time shot straight at McGee - anywhere else in the goal, and it would have been in.

United then put together the move of the match, and took the lead late on - Pearson finished well, and was mobbed by his teammates. 3-4, cruel for Spurs.

Spurs, having played with one less player for a long part of the game, pushed on again - Dombaxe fired a raking pass out to Coulthirst, who shuffled into the box, and hit a fierce left footed effort, which was parried by the goalkeeper. With seconds to go, Coulthirst then hit the woodwork - it just wasn't to be.

It was an error-prone performance from Spurs, presenting United with lots of chances, but considering that they were down to 10-men for nearly 60 minutes, the effort, commitment and never-say-die attitude was impressive.

Luke McGee 6 - mishit a couple of clearances but made some good saves and, despite conceding 4, will have been relatively pleased with his performance overall.

Mason Bush 4 - at one point in the second half, Onomah spread the ball intelligently to him, but his first touch got away from him and gifted the ball back to United - this pretty much summed up his day. I really felt for him playing in the unfamiliar right back role, as he's a good player. He'll have learnt a lot from the experience.
Dominic Ball 6 - kept talking, played out well from the back, and got his head up early. He did make a number of errors, but it will take time for him to form a reliable partnership with Gardiner.
Tom Gardiner 6 - showed signs of some impressive one-on-one defending but, like Ball, did have a few lapses.
Sam Smith 6 - a solid if unspectacular performance - I thought he did particularly well in the second half, when he was constantly under-pressure but made good decisions.

Nabil Bentaleb 5 - was having such a tidy game until a rush of blood led to him receiving his second yellow card, seconds after receiving a lengthy warning.
Josh Onomah 6 - a real mixed bag, with plenty of errors, but also plenty of plus points - shows good ability on the ball, goes past players for fun at times, and looks to unlock defences. One to watch.

Darren McQueen 6 - finished really well for the first goal and also showed good defensive responsibility. I like him, and it he can stay fit, he could be a very important player for the U18s this year.
Ruben Lameiras 5 - he's a very elegant and tidy player, and he played some nice reverse passes, but when United's midfield started to dominate, he was getting bypassed and was rightly replaced.
Roman Michael-Percil 6 - he didn't get on the ball as much as he would have liked, but when he did he looked dangerous. Surprised he didn't play at right-back, which is certainly more familiar to him than Bush.

Shaquille Coulthirst 7 - a bit of an up and down game, but he scored two goals and showed a terrific work ethic throughout. Did play one pass straight out of play under no pressure, and also frustrated when he was put through twice but didn't want to take a shot early, and was forced to turn out.

Victor Zapata 5 - didn't really manage to get into the game in the second half, but it was always difficult with 10 men.
Laste Dombaxe 7 - made a difference when he came on - driving forward and playing some useful passes.
Connor Ogilvie - had a steady few minutes.