There often seems to be feeling of déjà vu when writing about Tottenham Hotspur and their patterns of results over recent years.
So many of the same narratives keep getting rehashed over the last few seasons, like:
- it doesn’t matter who the manager is, the culture at the club needs to change.
- too many injuries.
- there’s a lack of attacking talent since Harry Kane and Heung-min Son left.
- etc.
These broken record talking points are starting to become a bit tiresome, but are still sadly relevant to the North London club.
Another false start?
After a difficult start to the season, Roberto De Zerbi’s side seemed to have clicked. After clinching a last gasp point at Old Trafford, the Italian guided Spurs to three consecutive victories.
This was a stark difference to the beginning of the last international break where they were rock bottom after a 3-2 home defeat to Aston Villa. After the draw with Manchester United, wins against Coventry, Chelsea and Crystal Palace followed. The 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge was particularly impressive, seeing as Tottenham had only won there once before in the Premier League era.
But there never seemed to be an overwhelming feeling of confidence going into last Saturday’s game at Elland Road. Frankly, confidence was in short supply going into any of the three wins before that, purely because Tottenham really lack offensive firepower and quite simply do not have strikers who score goals.
No attacking threat
Tottenham’s forward line have two goals between them: one for Omar Marmoush and one for Dominic Solanke. The fact that Jan Paul van Hecke is the current top goalscorer with a whopping two goals speaks volumes.
This was an all familiar sight during this period last season as well. The goals were coming from defenders like Christian Romero and Mickey van de Ven. Many Tottenham fans wouldn’t care where the goals came from as long as they’re winning games. Seeing another rip roaring run forward and thumping strike from van de Ven would be joyous for the Tottenham faithful. Unfortunately, it would only paper over the cracks of the forward line problem in N17.
Even the wingers don’t seem to be producing for De Zerbi at the moment. Mohammed Kudus is technically very gifted on the ball, but isn’t creating, assisting or scoring. Savio showed a bit of a spark then got injured and James Maddison simply isn’t the same after an ACL injury.
Same old story for De Zerbi
When Maddison doesn’t play, or is on the bench, Tottenham certainly lack creativity. This was evident against Leeds, especially in the second half. The Yorkshire side should’ve been done to 10 men after Mathys Tel was forced off after a horrible tackle on his left ankle and achilles from Jayden Bogle. VAR looked at the incident for five minutes before clearing it for serious foul play. Bizarrely the Leeds defender didn’t even receive a yellow card for his clumsy challenge.
Regardless of Leeds getting away with murder, the visitors were poor in the second half and created very little. The return of Xavi Simons could help with the creation of chances, but there’s still no date pencilled in for his return.
The international break curse continues
As already mentioned, the 3-2 loss to Villa was before an international break. This latest defeat at Leeds makes it a clean sweep of losses before players go away to represent their countries. That means out of the last 12 fixtures before an international fixture Tottenham have lost 10, drawn one and won just one.
Abysmal record aside, at least it gives De Zerbi two weeks to ponder his squad. It’s a frustrating situation for the Italian, because if he had a striker scoring goals this team could really be quite dangerous.
Known for his clever tactics and progressive possession play, De Zerbi will have to find another way to find the back of the net. Even if it it means relying on his defenders to score goals…. Again.
James Passey is a distinguished football journalist renowned for his incisive feature writing and an unparalleled ability to distill complex statistics and data into compelling narratives. Now a qualified football scout, Passey brings a unique, insider perspective to his work, evidenced by his acclaimed series, “Diary Of A Scout,” the first volume of which he has successfully self-published on Amazon. He remains dedicated to delivering high-quality, authoritative content that enriches the understanding of football for fans and professionals alike.
