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30th
August 2009 - Ledley is King but Spurs Suffer in his Absence Aaron Lennon’s late, late goal got Spurs off the hook and
enabled them to maintain their perfect start to the season. It was a well deserved win that should have
been more comprehensive against a A game in which Spurs had been dominant, if somewhat laboured in their play throughout the first forty five minutes was suddenly transformed into the inevitable game of ‘two halves’ and showed the importance of Ledley King to the Spurs’ defence and any hopes there may be for Spurs to have a successful season. In the first half Spurs defended comfortably with King taking control and responsibility, clearing the ball to colleagues, covering his co-defenders and talking them through the game giving them confidence to give of their best. Midway through the half King appeared to be in some discomfort but he played on without any treatment and remained the best defender on display. Although feeling the slight injury he lost none of his pace in covering or moving around the pitch. However, after half-time in his absence, the defence was
suddenly at ‘sixes and sevens’. The
same defenders were unsure and no-one was willing to take responsibility,
their defending was timid and they constantly put themselves under pressure
by not clearing the ball effectively.
The uncertainty spread throughout the defence and all of them were
culpable for mistakes that could have led to Spurs losing a game that they
had totally controlled for long periods.
It was the uncertainty in the Spurs’ defence which became evident in
the early minutes of the second half that encouraged In the second half, after the re-organisation caused by the injuries to King and Modric, Spurs built up an impressive period of pressure which eventually brought about the elusive goal scored by Crouch. That should have been it, game over and three points for Spurs with less than twenty minutes remaining. However, within three minutes Spurs’ defensive frailties presented the visitors with the equaliser. Earlier warnings from sloppy defending were ignored as Alan Hutton and Carlo Cudicini contrived to get in a total mess, with neither taking responsibility to claim or clear a ‘nothing’ ball played into the penalty area. How many times do Spurs concede poor goals like that? Spurs’ revival and improved form during the final months
of last season was based on a solid defence which grew in confidence with
every game and central to that was the partnership of King and Jonathan
Woodgate. It was that stability which
helped Spurs move away from relegation and to the threshold of Everyone knows that Spurs’ best central defensive partnership is King and any other defender – whoever plays beside Ledley always plays so much better. Individually, all of them, Woodgate, Michael Dawson, Sebastien Bassong are good defenders but with King as their partner, they play so much better, emphasising the influence King has on the Spurs defence and hopes for success. Spurs have always displayed defensive weaknesses but with Ledley in the team, they invariably play so much better as a defensive unit, he is the rock on which the defence is built and no-one has ever been able to fill his boots. In an article in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph, they highlight
the ever changing nature of Spurs team for the opening game of the season
over the past five years. Thirty four
players have appeared for Spurs in those five games but the most telling
point from those five teams is that Ledley King was only able to play in one
of these games – this year’s match against Ledley King is vital to any chance that Spurs have of
building on their excellent start to the season. Last week, the prospect of King missing Spurs
next two games against Manchester United and |
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21st
August 2009 - The New Defoe Inspires Tottenham Never has a player been so committed to scoring a
hat-trick as Jermain Defoe was against However, even in added time he continued in search of a third goal with a strong run towards the Hull penalty area but once again the moment seemed to have passed but then he received the ball just outside the box and made another forward run before making a short pass to Aaron Lennon who had taken up a central position on the edge of the penalty area. Lennon controlled the ball and held off the defender as he teed the ball up like a rugby player holding the ball for his place kicker, as Defoe thundered the ball into the net past the despairing lunge of two defenders and a helpless goalkeeper. A hat-trick of immense quality was Defoe’s reward for an evening of hard word and endeavour. Jermain Defoe has returned to Tottenham as a much better
player than the one who was sold to However, it appeared that defenders had worked out how to play Defoe and he had no answer to the problem and with limited opportunities, on occasions he appeared to try too hard while on others he looked isolated as Spurs struggled to contain teams, especially away from home. Defoe’s confidence obviously dipped and he seemed to loose the goal scoring knack that was so vital to his game. Juande Ramos decided Defoe was surplus to requirements although the striker appeared reluctant to leave. Twelve months away from There had always been concern that Keane and Defoe
couldn’t play together and following the successful partnership at Sometimes the fans can inspire the team to greater endeavour but this start to the season and the sparkling goal scoring form of Defoe has lifted the despondency that had seemed to have settled on this long-term supporter who has had the feeling of ‘I’ve seen it all before’ for the past number of months. Obviously, there’s a long way to go but it does feel good to look at the early season league table and see Spurs sitting at the top of the league, even if it is after only two games. |
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Disclaimer:
Please note the words on this page are the opinion of the topspurs columnist
and are just that, opinions, not facts and are nothing to do with Tottenham
Hotspur Football club PLC. Just a supporter having his say nothing more
nothing less. Any commentary on betting is meant for discussion purposes only
and does not constitute any form of advice or recommendation. |