Jol: We've gone backwards

[mawspurs]

SPURS NEWS

Martin Jol admits Tottenham have made backward steps since last season's exploits, which saw them just miss out on a UEFA Champions League spot.

source - skysports

The final game of last term saw Tottenham lose to West Ham and as a consequence, North London rivals Arsenal pipped them to fourth spot.

Tottenham were expected to kick-on this season after another busy summer in the transfer market but what has transpired has been bitterly disappointing for both Jol and his players.

At the weekend their attempts to escape from Emirates Stadium with a positive result were nothing short of insipid, leaving Jol boiling about what was a miserable display in the capital.

"I feel we have taken a step back and are not as strong as last season, even though we have more talent," said Jol.

"We have to grow up and be stronger and more physical and fight harder for the ball.

"We have to get tougher tougher up front. We have players who are talented and they get all the praise sometimes.

"Dimitar Berbatov did well in Europe but you have to do it in these sort of games."

[littlemandefoe]

"We have to grow up and be stronger and more physical and fight harder for the ball."

At least he knows what we need...

I think we dont fight enough for the ball, we seem to be a week side.

[Chilli]

:clap: Well done Martin.

I'm glad to see hes not hiding from it, he is always big enough to speak the truth instead of saying what he thinks we want to hear.

We have taken a few steps back but I'm very confident that by Feb the table will tell a different story.

[Inter_mi_lane]

I disagree, I don't think we've taken a step back at all, we could still push for top 6 and do well in all the cups. sorry to bring up Carrick but the midfield is still adjusting, Hudd looks like he could fill that slot and Zokora is a decent player, he just needs to be more consistent. Malbranque and Ghaly too, so many new faces, Jols tried to please everyone but not one combo has yet wielded consistent performances. I believe things will get better sooner rather than later

[martins_jolly_babies]

For me the answer is staring us in the face - Tom Huddlestone! Carrick could keep the ball and start plays, exactly like our Tom, Zokora and Tainio just couldnt keep the ball and were wasteful in possession. I was screaming out for Jol to take off Zokora or Tainio and bring on Tom, He hasn't let us down yet but cant keep his place (bit like Defoe....) I trust Jol, but for the first time I have started to think that his rotation policy might not take us to the next level. PLEEEEEEAASSSSEEEE play this team against the smoggies.

Defoe Berbatov

Malbranque Jenas Huddlestone Lennon

YP Lee Dawson King Chimbs

Englands No1

Power, Pace, Finishing, Running, Tackiling and creativity galore!!!!!! Come on Jol, you know it makes sense!

[Thesoccershrink]

For me the answer is staring us in the face - Tom Huddlestone! Carrick could keep the ball and start plays, exactly like our Tom, Zokora and Tainio just couldnt keep the ball and were wasteful in possession. I was screaming out for Jol to take off Zokora or Tainio and bring on Tom, He hasn't let us down yet but cant keep his place (bit like Defoe....) I trust Jol, but for the first time I have started to think that his rotation policy might not take us to the next level. PLEEEEEEAASSSSEEEE play this team against the smoggies.

Defoe Berbatov

Malbranque Jenas Huddlestone Lennon

YP Lee Dawson King Chimbs

Englands No1

Power, Pace, Finishing, Running, Tackiling and creativity galore!!!!!! Come on Jol, you know it makes sense!

:clap:

[Northernspurs]

Well done Martin for telling it like it is... honestly if I was manager i would give them such a dressing down and force them to do something for the fans as a way of a sorry.

[SouthLondonSpur]

What I like as well is that he's giving Berby a wake up call. He played okay on Sat and I know he didnt get the service he wanted, or perhaps the connected one two's, but I was dissapointed with him.

On another note, we get a lot of respect from other fans about BMJ and these kind of honest answers are the reason.

Now all we have to do is convert the knowl;edge into results - There is still a very good premiership finish within us yet.

[justfookinhitit]

BMJ has 2 decisions to make - what is his first-string midfield and what is his strike force? I agree the Huddmeister should be there - he is a good player with huge potential but you need to give the lad a run in the team to help him achieve it.

By the way I tried to count the number of midfielders we have and lost count after 10 (had my socks on so couldn't count up to 20 by using my toes). There's few in the list I can think of that can do what we need of a midfielder ie pass, head and tackle. The only thing I can't see him doing is 50-yard lung-bursting runs at the heart of an opposition defence but we have others to do that.

BMJ - give the Hudd a run of games for Christmas. In fact, give him a run of games as an early Christmas present.

[danielneeds]

Jol has hit the nail on the head, we have a more talented squad than last year, but the blend of the midfield has not been right.

Last year it picked itself: Davids, Carrick, Jenas, Lennon, this year there are just too many variables.

Last year against the arse Carrick dictated the tempo of the game, this time we were chasing shadows for most of it. Tanio and Zokora were outclassed, Malbranque did hardly any tacking back and left Ekotto exposed in two-versus-one situations (he didnt look too good in one-on-ones either!)

I too belive that the Hudd could eventually solve our problems here. We have already looked a better team when he has played the pivot position, he looks to use the ball progressively, whereas Zokora just crabs it wilkins style 10 yards either side of him. I can see why Arsenal and Man Utd passed on Zokora, he isnt a bad player and will get better once he understands the premiership, but i don't think he is up there with Viera's and Essien's of this world. Huddlestone gives the team a focal point to play around, and with Jenas' legs alongside him, we could see a new Spurs hero emerge.

[AJ]

Even though the scoreline on Saturday looked terrible, I don't think we have to be too worried about the way we're playing. All three of their goals were refereeing errors, although the first one was a close call. Without the two unjust penalties it would've been 1-0. Not too bad considering the fact that they were fired up after losing two in a row. We are not as bad as you might think at the moment.

It was expected that we would struggle a bit without Carrick, because we've had to rethink the whole of our midfield play. Remove Mr Ukulele from Chelsea's midfield and you'll see how important the key defensive midfielders are to the whole balance of the team. Last year the whole of our midfield and attack plan was built around Carrick. Now we don't have such a player. Now most of you will say that Huddlestone is such a player, but I disagree. He will be, perhaps even better, but he isn't yet. Positioning is the main difference between the two, Carrick is much better in that area. But that's a skill that comes with experience. Huddlestone will get better.

Jol needs to decide whether he want's to build the midfield around Huddlestone similar to the way it was last year with Carrick. If he does, it means that there are room for only one of Tainio, Jenas or Zokora besides Huddlestone. You really can't rotate Huddlestone with any of those three, because all of them are more box-to-box players and wouldn't feel at home in the anchor-man role. Also, all of them more or less lack the eye for longer passes.

If on the other hand, Jol prefers Zokora in that defensive central midfield role, our game plan has to be a bit different. Zokora is not the right player for the Carrick role. He hasn't got the natural ability to continuously position himself at the right place and create space for himself that way, nor has he the Carrick-like eye for longer passes. Zokora likes to ball more than Carrick and tends to make lot more runs up the field than Carrick did. If Jol considers Zokora our first choice defensive midfielder, he should be paired up with someone a bit more creative. For that role I'd say that our best player at the moment is Malbranque. Jenas doesn't have the killer pass in him and neither does Tainio, although the latter is better in this area.

I think that Tainio and Jenas is the most natural rotating pair of our midfielders: both do a lot of running, harass the opponent and try to create also. Both are also quite versatile and can play on the flank(s) as well. In fact, Zokora has a lot more in common with these two than he does with Huddlestone in terms of playing style.

There has been a lot of talk about attacking partnerships, but I'd say that the main reason for our inconsistency this season has been the constant reshuffling of our midfield. We need stability in that area and Jol needs to make up his mind about how he wants our midfield to play.

[Toluthespur]

I agree with BMJ,

But I also believe the solution is a simple one, play the HUDD.
Every time he has played this season he has not let us down. In fact I would say every time he has played we have looked like the Spurs of last season. with Zokora or Jenas beside him that would be a great combination. I say Jenas or Zokora because they are the same type of player Strong bob to box midfielder neither one is a holding midfield player. I thought Malbranque was good until he was taken off, but Ekotto. The thing that really pisses me off about him is that passive dolphin look he has on his face all the time, show some emotion lad!!

All in all a very depressing weekend...... but not the end of the world

[martins_jolly_babies]

Last year the whole of our midfield and attack plan was built around Carrick. Now we don't have such a player. Now most of you will say that Huddlestone is such a player, but I disagree. He will be, perhaps even better, but he isn't yet. Positioning is the main difference between the two, Carrick is much better in that area. But that's a skill that comes with experience.

But Carrick wasnt the player he is now when he started in our team only 2 years ago, Huddlestone is an outstanding talent and the only player in our midfield who can play a decent through ball.

[xzander]

"Even though the scoreline on Saturday looked terrible, I don't think we have to be too worried about the way we're playing."
Yes, we do. When was the last tmie played someone off the park? Really caned them in every way? Can't recall. And neither can you. We played like dicks on Saturday. Even with the refereeing errors we still deserved a hiding. If I was Martin Jol I'd have the youth team booting balls at the first teams naked arses all round the training pitch today while firing a shotgun at their feet and screaming at them to dance.

[justfookinhitit]

Message to AJ :-

I herar what you're saying in your piece above, but the reason the Hudd isn't showing what he can do is because he's sat on his arse in the dugout so much of the time. Another benefit of having him is that he can cover for the defenders in a game if need be when they are out of position, which is something few of our other midfield legion can.

Murphy was given a run of games to show what he could do - it didn't amount to much. Why not give the Hudd the same chance? And I'd certainly expect the Hudd to make far more of an impact than Murphy ever did for us.

"I love Martin Jol
Martin Jol will love me even more when he plays the Hudd."

[AJ]

Message to AJ :-

I herar what you're saying in your piece above, but the reason the Hudd isn't showing what he can do is because he's sat on his arse in the dugout so much of the time.

Did I say otherwise in my post? I agree. I said that Martin needs to make up his mind about how he wants our midfield to play. I think that most of us would agree that the best long-term solution for our midfield would be to build it around Huddlestone. The problem with that approach is that the boy is still young and young players can be a bit inconsistent. Also, playing such young players week after week isn't necessarily the best thing to do considering their development as footballers. The mental pressure of being the main playmaker for a side that wants to be in the top six year after year could also be a lot to handle for a player of Huddlestone's age. All these things could mean that if Huddlestone would always be the first name on the team sheet for the rest of the season, our form would continue to be inconsistent and we could struggle to make it into Europe. But then again, doing just that could stabilise the midfield and our form could improve. Who knows?

In any case, I'm fairly confident that by this time next week we will be in the top 8 and have 25 points.

[gloryglory]

I agree with everyone above that we need to develop Huddlestone as a long term prospect - he certainly has quality on the ball and is solid to boot. But those who think he would have made a difference on Saturday are being wildly over-positive about his ability.

Firstly, we were outclassed and it's difficult to see any one player making that much of a difference.

Second, the improved second half performance showed that what was missing was the pace and energy of Jenas. Malbranque was not the right choice for a physical game, and Tainio would have been happier on the left. Huddlestone is probably too slow and would have been bypassed.

I actually think Jol got 10 out of 11 players right, and that if we'd made it to half time at 1-0 (as we should have done), the introduction of Jenas might have been enough for us to get something out of the game.

[ultimateloner]

Huddlestone is not the answer. He is nowhere near as good as Carrick.

He showed in the few appearences that he can knock the ball around well with both feet. He's strong. But you need so much more than that.

You can argue that he should be given a chance to start, but stop presenting him as the solution to our problems.

[Spurrier]

I thought that on Saturday our main problem was that we were too small, especially in the middle. Games are fought in the middle and with Lennon, Tanio, Malb, and Zakora we were simply out-muscled and such a mismatch put unnecessary pressure on the back four and inturn made them look outclassed.

Without signaling for anyone to be sent his marching from WHL, I believe that Jol must combine the right blend of height and strength along with individual skill or talent. We simply had the wrong weapons for the battle and we were slaughtered.

[gloryglory]

Huddlestone is not the answer because there isn't a question to answer.

We're good. We're playing well, with the odd blip. Contrary to popular belief, Jol knows his best 11 and will play it when he can (Robinson, King, Dawson, Assou-Ekotto, Chimbonda, Lennon, Jenas, Zokora, Malbranque, Keane, Berbatov).

[devonte01]

Contrary to everyone's opinion on Jol, I do not agree that he should have named Berby in his statement. This should (I believe he would have done so) have been discussed with the player or players behind closed doors.

Can you imagine Fergie referring to the weekness of any of his players (or the ugly bastard down N5)?

As for Huddlestone, he may not be the finished article yet or the saviour if he had come on or played on Saturday but you dont become a good player or world class player sitting on bloody bench. He's class and should play every game. Simple as...

[tippspur59]

Weren't all these things said after the reading game and now it happens again, some of the players must pull the finger out and zokora is one of them.

[dubspur]

Weren't all these things said after the reading game and now it happens again, some of the players must pull the finger out and zokora is one of them.
:clap:

[Parmenio]

We played poorly on Sunday, especially the midfield. None of our midfielders had a good game, Tanio was perhaps the least bad, but that isn't saying a lot.

However much as it rankles to loose to arsenal, and to be so clearly outclassed (I also refuse to pin this on the Referee, they were clearly the better team) it is just one game. The only worrying thing about it was that it is part of a dismal trend of away performances.

For all those that think there is a single simple answer, well there isn't. Look at how we played against Chelsea. The tactics and the selection were good in that game, but that wasn't the main thing, the main thing was the performance levels. Now compare that to sunday: you will see many of the same players on the pitch, but the perfomance level was terrible from these SAME players.

The midfield has been disrupted a lot this year, Carrick leaving, Zakora and Malbranque arriving, and loads of injuries; Lennon, Jenas, Zakora, Tanio, and Malbranque have all been out of the team injured for significant periods of time. Many of the players we had out on Sunday have had limited time together, and many of them are just recently returned from injury. The performance levels just weren't there.

I also think our defense made a number of crucial mistakes, and pushed up far too much, which is usually suicide against arsenal, as they always have the quality to pick out a ball in behind.

I think it is also only fair to mention, that once Arsenal went a goal up, they played very well ... just passed us to death really. Once the pressure was off them they just relaxed and popped the ball around, and we couldn't get close to them. Jenas was the only midfielder that put in a strong performance, but once they got the third goal, we stopped even trying.

[McFlash]

I too thought that we needed the Hudd in there on Saturday. I know that he's still young and is not the finished article yet (and not the answer to all of our prayers) but he wouldn't have been brushed off the ball quite as easily as everyone else seemed to be. IMO we needed that sort of player in amongst it - big strong lad who can get hold of the ball, keep it (usually just by turning his back on the oposition!) and use it well.
Although I think that Berbs did get brushed off the ball too easily at times (let's face it, he's not exactly a target man as such - he's too elegant!!), he spent most of the game miles away from anyone else. At times it reminded me of England during the World Cup - can't remember which game, probably most of them, but we had one striker just outside the opponents box (Crouch?!) and then everybody else loitering around the halfway line. No link up at all.
Anyway, rant over 'cos I've just bored myself...sorry!!!