The Jenas Effect.....

[Frozen_Waffles]

What have we been missing over recent weeks, is it the Hudd having a stutter in his form or is it Malbranque settling in, the Lennon factor?

Well in my opinion the big player we have missed is JJ, he was in for a lot of stick from most of the Spurs fans due to the fact that when he came here he could not pass the ball five yards, well not to anyone in a Tottenham shirt. He has now settled in to become, begrudgingly in some fans opinions, a first team regular.
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The one thing I have noticed over the Christmas period and more recently against <st1:city><st1:place>Cardiff</st1:place></st1:city> and <st1:city><st1:place>Portsmouth</st1:place></st1:city> is the lack of pace in midfield, Murphy and Huddlestone especially slow and cumbersome. With only Malbranque willing to get in the box and drive forward this made the build up incredibly slow.

Without Lennon we lack penetration, however without Jenas we lack pace and late runs into the box as well as a dogged fighting spirit, which I don’t see in Huddlestone or Zokora, and even Tainio has been very disappointing of late.
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You will notice that when Jenas does come back Huddlestone will find himself with more time and a helping hand in the defensive duties and hopefully they can form a partnership which is not a diamond but an actual partnership where either one can make the runs.
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Jenas is a better player than a lot give him credit for, if anyone watched the last game Jenas played in, which was second half against Arsenal, he made an impression and was the best out of a poor bunch and when Jenas comes back it will not be a surprise to see Spurs form return.
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Murphy, another of one of our central midfielders ‘who can play on the left’ was more frustrating than anyone else in the team in recent games due to his severe lack of intelligence. His defensive covering of Lee was nothing short of average and his forward play was just plain idiotic.

When Lee, who by the way has come back quite impressively, makes his driving runs down the line it is the left midfielder’s job to either drop back and support Lee as an option backwards or make a driving run down the line, or at least make him available to a pass. He however decided to hug the closest opposition team member to make him unavailable for a pass, so there is absolutely no point in playing Murphy on the left wing.
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Lennon’s return will clearly be a massive blessing, but in my opinion Jenas will be just as effective in Tottenham’s fight for Uefa/Champions League spots. Lets hope Spurs can keep the likes of Huddlestone, Jenas, Lennon and Malbranque fit and hopefully add a left winger to our squad and then I would say why not Champions league football.

[jolegend]

agreed.

[Spoilt4_the_spurs]

you are 100% correct

[Garth Falco]

when's he back?

[masterblaster80]

need i say more?

[Ravabelly]

Also agreed - generally! Most Prem sides would struggle if they were without players of the calibre of Keane, Lennon and JJ for the period of time we have been. I'm not 100% in agreement regarding LYP but at least he doesn't look like quite as much of a timebomb as he did at times last year.

For me, assuming we don't sign a world-class or even international class LM in the next three weeks, a midfield of (l-r) Mallers, The Hudd, JJ and Lennon should cause anyone problems.

[avonspurs]

Does no-one see a future for Zokora then? I personally think that Zokora can make the lung-bursting runs that Jenas makes and, from what I have seen, Z also seems very pacey, like Jenas.....it appears that many have written him off after, what, about 10 - 15 games at most, some of which he played probably still suffering the after-effects of malaria. Maybe this season wont be his, although there's still a lot of games to play - next year may well be.....

[UbeAstard]

I really hope you are right. I personally think JJ is overated, and the S Gerrard we would like him to be at JJs age would leave him in his wake at absolutely everything he does. I think JJs decision making is poor (but the majority of Spurs players apart from ledley, Berbatov and possibly Chimbonda and sometimes Hudd leave a lot to be desired and thats why we cant keep posession and are easily pressured).
I hope results and JJ prove me wrong.

[Sauniere]

I don't agree. Whilst I believe that Jenas is a good player and certainly brings alot to the table our form has been unaltered since his absence. Poor away, good at home, that is how it has been after the first few games (where we were poor at home and poor away) We lost at home to Liverpool yet should have taken all three points. This was not due to the team playing poorly but not converting chances into goals.

I really don't know how you can say Danny Murphy has a severe lack of intelligence, it is just nonsense. Every time he has played he has created chances apart from the Cardiff game where chances were few. If anything is lacking in his game it is pace and being played out of position doesn't help. Obviously his cross for Malbranque to equalise against Portsmouth was "idiotic". Have you even watched any of these games you are talking about?

Lee makes only a few forward runs per game, against Cardiff I believe he only made one run and clogged it into the stand. Not sure how you can point to Murphy being at fault here. Malbranque has played on the left wing for the majority of the time prior to Ghaly's injury.

I do agree that we are in desperate need of a left winger but that seems to apply regardless of who has been played on the left with the exception of Lennon and we all know he is more effective on the right anyway.

[Chimbo!]

Its not so much his attacking play that we miss but his defensive work as we just seem sluggish defensively without him. He does have good awareness and reading of the game and his athleticism gives us extra energy in the latter stages. I reckon he's crucial to our team. Sometimes you don't realise someone's significance until they are not playing. He's the perfect partner for Huddlestone as they are total opposites. Jenas's passing is still dodgy though. People forget that he scored something like 8 goals last season that earned us crucial points.

[grutts]

where the hell has ekotto gone - doesn't play and never gets mentioned when injuries are listed ?

[noelhall]

Good point and Hudds has looked a little sluggish of late he would be rested for certain games if he was at Manure etc

[Kurtzen]

Lacks the ingredient which, mistakenly or otherwise, i believe seperates us from 'the four'....composure. Maybe with age/ experience. But a lot of people have been saying it for a long while. The time is now.
(I did spend a long while defending his prospects last season....i do however believe Zokora is a step up. A step up to CL? Don't know)

[JuanRebelde]

I can't help thinking that the references to jenas are a case of looking at things through very rose tinted glasses. Jenas has his moments for Spurs some have been good others bad but in terms of his loss and future return being the link to our form and its ups and downs are tenuous to say the least.

He is neither a Roy keane nor a Steven Gerrard type of player who truly influences games with his presence and to imply that he does is wide of the mark. Again I say he still does offer another option in midfield which is pace and the occasional forward run but with nothing like the impact of the two I have mentioned as real examples of influence from midfield.

Lennon has been missed on the other hand as he is our natural outlet short of a straight punt up field to our forwards, something we are forced to do too often which results in lost possession.

Murphy has failed to nail down a starting spot anywhere in the midfield whilst in a similar time span Lennon and now the Hudd have managed it. This is because Murphy doesn't have what we need in midfield although probably still has enough to play in the premier league.

Tainio seems to have lost his way this year and I have been disappointed on the whole as he has not improved on his scoring ratio this season nor has he given us the bite that in a good number of games last season he did.

I don't believe Tainio has suddenly become a bad player but a succession of injuries and illness haven't helped him. In addition, if I were to play him I would generally only put him on the left of midfield as he is capable of more than Murphy or Davids in that spot and does tend to protect the full-back a little more than Murphy atleast.

Zokora has still flattered to deceive a little but has shown in patches what he is capable of. For him a couple of poor games and a high profile mistake like that of the Liverpool game have blinded many who not so long ago were saying what a class player he was after the besiktas game for example. He will come good I am sure but I actually think he is played in the wrong position with Hudd. I would play him infront of Hudd as he is capable of making forward runs as he has shown many times. This would also create a little more space for the Hudd as currently those two tend to both fall back onto the centre-halves and effectively crowd each other out too much when they are played as they currently are together.

Lee I feel gets a lot of unfair criticism on here and is infact fairly solid as a full-back. Sure he makes mistakes but few other than ledley seem capable of recovering as quickly from them. I give you stalteri as a contrast. He when beaten stays beaten.

Lee is improving his delivery of crosses and now gets height and pace. All he needs to learn now is to wrap his foot around the ball and he will be providing good service.

The other interesting thing about him is that he has steadly learned to go at the other full back and does get past him with his little step over trick. If he fails he then looks for a simple ball to maintain pressure but the key is he has held possession well into the half of the opposition which gives the defence and mifield time to get their shape further up the park. So this is positive for tottenham. He's is older than Ekotto so eventually the frenchman will I suspect gain the spot but right now they both are closely matched and far better than many left-backs in the EPL.

[alchemission]

I agree that Jenas will make a difference, but he is not the long-term solution. I'm reposting this from the other day, as it's relevance is clear in response to your article.


We only really need one player. But a very specific player who will bring this team together, get the most out of teammates, switch our away form around and, most importantly, Captain the Club.

Ledley is captain by default. As Mr. Spurs, he was the natural choice. But he is not, by my eye, an inspirational, driving captain and he does not control our midfield. And there lies the problem.

The player we need is an attacking-minded CM with the voice that makes everyone listen and follow. In his team, you don't drift into right midfield when positioned on the left; you don't rely on a half-time team talk to gee-up the team; and we, as supporters, don't get 'the feeling' that we all get (you know the one) synonomous with games like these.

You can bring in all the quality you like, the voice of this team will not grow any louder. And subsequently, our undoubted quality will never be fully effective and our win ratio on days like these will not improve. Players like Jenas, Tainio, Zokora are just not stepping up to the plate. There is no Boss. Players like Reo-Coker will not solve this problem. Someone in the mould of Gerrard preferably, otherwise a Lampard. (Jenas should be our Lampard, but he hasn't shown me anything to convince me that he is willing to step up yet.)

We NEED this guy, it is massively important. And aside from glaring left-sided deficiencies, this should be our absolute priority. English, French, we shouldn't be fussy, although he must be an excellent communicater. But he must be brought in. Money/wages no object; he will be the most important player in our team.

...Until we address this issue, unobserved by many, I fear we won't fulfil our brimming potential, both individually, and as the great team on paper we are all waiting to come to fruition.

[Yorkshireyiddo]

yeah a big miss with jj out, even more with lennon too.

[Boony]

Jenas has been raved about by every manager he has played for including Bobby Robson who has managed some awsome players in his time, the fact the he has been a captain at Newcastle and Forrest means he has a big influence both on and off the field and at 22 / 23, maybe the overhype of him makes people expect too much (see joe Cole). I think the boy needs time and now with Zakora, he doesnt have all this burden on his shoulders. Between them they will come good, im sure of it

[Jimmypearce7]

It is easy to miss someone like Jenas when he has not played for a while- we forget his faults. He has talent but has not progressed to the stage where he can dominate a game in the way the top midfielders do.
Hudd needs a rest but I think he is the one with the most talent and the best Carrick replacement, to build the team around and we need to find the best partner for him. I think Zokora is the most likely of the players at the club, even though he has been disappointing of late

[leneker]

So, Malbranque, Hudd, JJ, Lennon (L to R)?
I think that's probably my first choice midfield at the moment.

[LionKing]

about time people started talking about JJ... He is the engine of the the team and it's his running that allows us to play. I agree with your write up.

DZ and TH are both holing midfileders where as JJ is the forward force. the problem we have is that we have no quality cover for him.

[alfiespurs]

I really hope he is back for the trip of the BARCODES ! I do like Jenas, he is pacey and apart from some of his wayward passes, he is a good player ! All is forgiven, come back Jenas !

[18Klinsmann]

I agree that Jenas will make a difference, but he is not the long-term solution. I'm reposting this from the other day, as it's relevance is clear in response to your article.


We only really need one player. But a very specific player who will bring this team together, get the most out of teammates, switch our away form around and, most importantly, Captain the Club.

Ledley is captain by default. As Mr. Spurs, he was the natural choice. But he is not, by my eye, an inspirational, driving captain and he does not control our midfield. And there lies the problem.

The player we need is an attacking-minded CM with the voice that makes everyone listen and follow. In his team, you don't drift into right midfield when positioned on the left; you don't rely on a half-time team talk to gee-up the team; and we, as supporters, don't get 'the feeling' that we all get (you know the one) synonomous with games like these.

You can bring in all the quality you like, the voice of this team will not grow any louder. And subsequently, our undoubted quality will never be fully effective and our win ratio on days like these will not improve. Players like Jenas, Tainio, Zokora are just not stepping up to the plate. There is no Boss. Players like Reo-Coker will not solve this problem. Someone in the mould of Gerrard preferably, otherwise a Lampard. (Jenas should be our Lampard, but he hasn't shown me anything to convince me that he is willing to step up yet.)

We NEED this guy, it is massively important. And aside from glaring left-sided deficiencies, this should be our absolute priority. English, French, we shouldn't be fussy, although he must be an excellent communicater. But he must be brought in. Money/wages no object; he will be the most important player in our team.

...Until we address this issue, unobserved by many, I fear we won't fulfil our brimming potential, both individually, and as the great team on paper we are all waiting to come to fruition.

Good point. Edgar Davids was that player last season, and his immediate effect was clear to everyone. His partnership with Carrick made us a real force, even away from home, and we sorely miss his form from the first half of last season. The loss of Carrick along with Edgar's demise has brought about the inconsistency and lack of bite in midfield.
I am still dreaming of one last good pack of games from the old pitbull, but sadly it seems that we are indeed going to have to look elsewhere for this character you describe.
The problem is, of course, that these players are few and far between - especially the available ones that don't care about Championships and Champions League.

[chrizzah]

Have thought this ever since the end of last season where we had no jenas for like the last 5-7 games(?) the bloke is class and well under-rated. Cant wait to see him in action again :)

[mog123]

The Jenas debate rolls on.......

I would personally be very glad to see him back and playing. As mentioned earlier, in out biggest and ultimately worst game of the season he showed true character after coming on. For me that speaks volumes.

[dickyid]

Agree with Chimbo! here; we tend to get overrun in midfield without him, especially on the break. Hoping when he's back, his pace will mean we can keep shape a bit more defensively. Think I've said this before anyway...

[lukespurs7]

Yea good post, agree with most of it.

Jenas is perhaps NOW being over-rated lol don't expect miracles when he comes back however he should be better than anything else we have. He's a good player and scores some vital goals also has a good set-piece on him.

The main point is that we lack his attacking runs and just presence on some attacks. Lennon,Malbranque,Jenas and Ghaly are arguably the only players we have who are capeable of creating and attacking well from midfield, Whilst Lennon and Jenas were out we had Ghaly and Malbranque which was just about ok, but we still lacked that 3rd attacking option in midfield. Now Lennon is back him and Malbranque contain just about enough creativity and natural attacking play to make up for Jenas's absence HOWEVER put Jenas with 2 from Lennon,Malbranque AND Ghaly along with a defensive CM and we'll have our best midfield, enough creativity and attacking ability to finally start scoring some serious goals and more importantly keep the ball down the opponents end hence less pressure on the defence and mabye some clean sheets like last season.

As they say attack can be the best form of defence.

[YiddoJames]

Definitely agree about Jenas. I was making the same point to a friend today. He's improved since he joined and does a lot of off the ball work that probably goes unnoticed. His pace is essential to the midfield and partnering him with Huddlestone could be our best central pairing. We have looked shockingly slow in some recent matches when Lennon has also been out. The point I disagree on is Lee YP. He is a constant worry! He very nearly cost us a crucial goal at Cardiff and consistently makes mistakes. His crossing is appalling and too often he is targeted by the opposition as the weak point defensively. At times he shows tenacity and looks a decent defender but more frequently he looks like a liability! Looking forward to the return of JJ and Lennon in forthcoming games. We'll need their pace against Arsenal in the carling cup semi that's for sure!

[elDiablo]

The Jenas debate rolls on.......

I would personally be very glad to see him back and playing. As mentioned earlier, in out biggest and ultimately worst game of the season he showed true character after coming on. For me that speaks volumes.

did he get man of the match from that game for just 45 mins?

Someone correct me, but surely he has had very little time to "gel" with players like malbranque, and even berbatov to an extent (due to injuries). I think the same way that defoe benefits from a striker who can create as well s score so will jenas. Jenas likes to advance and looks for litttle flicks and when he gets back we will see this.

i take the original articles point in that, sometimes lee does look like a lost sheep, and there is no one down in that channel to bail him out. In the end he just pumps the ball in and its usually disappointing and we lose possesion. Lee would benefit from a player (like davids) with the tactical awareness to cover.

[topcat2007]

Totally agree with Lion King

What many do not appreciate is that it is Jenas' sheer athleticism that gives us the room to play against many teams. He is by far our most mobile midfielder and always finds room to receive a pass, something that Tainio has failed to do in the last few matches, putting more pressure on the holding midfielder. And his great engine gives us the ability to stretch a game in the second half. How many times have you seen JJ striding freshly up the field with the ball in the 85th minute while the opposing team are beginning to wilt.

Yeah the lad misses the odd chance but he's an honest player, a hard worker and we're better with him than without. He could form a great partnership with THudd.

So get off his back people!

COYS

[lyndonh]

Been reading spurscommunity for a couple of years now and this is my first post. It has been interesting reading everyone's comments about Jenas, look he is still a young player who Will improve but some of you so called spurs fans need to get off his back, i think last season he has proved his quality and industry for Spurs and also contributed 7/8 goals, how many did Carrick score? He is easily one of our best midfielders and we do miss him, even towards the end of last season when he was out the team were not the same without him. For all those who moan and cry about him not being able to pass a ball 6yards in front of him need to watch some of our curent midfielders passing ability of late including the legend in the making THud, who sometimes makes stray passes. At the mo i would swap JJ for Zokora, Ghaly, Murphy and Tainio who for me have been huge let downs this season. If i was picking a midfield from a full squad then JJ would be in everytime he always gives 100%, scores goals and never stops running, apart from Malbranque, JJ's goal tally for last season beats all the midfielders named above combined goal tally for this whole season need i say more....

[YidGraham]

I'd certainly play him in my first choice midfield.

I think he's still our biggest goal threat from midfield. With him, Lennon and Malbranque in midfield it gives us 3 players who should all be getting around 6-10 goals per season.

Jenas also has fantastic pace and runs all day. He got 7 goals last season from 40 games which is a very good return from a midfielder.

He can be frustrating sometimes with his negative passing and composure but he has the technique, pace and energy to be a great midfielder and i think him and Hudd would be a great partnership.

[gloryglory]

Is Jenas missed? Yes - and it's interesting to see how much more appreciated he seems to be on here since he's been out. The grass is always greener.

Has he been the most important absentee? No. King and Lennon are more central to our cause because their contributions cannot be replicated at all.

Our defence has looked shambolic at times without King, and Jenas wouldn't have made much of a difference to that. He's just as prone to Headless Chicken Syndrome as the next man.

Our attack has lacked threat at times without Lennon, because there's little pace and we're not direct enough. Would Jenas have made a difference? Maybe a bit, but he won't scare defences and he doesn't often help us get the ball into dangerous positions.

It's a shame that his absence has coincided with poor form from both Tainio and Zokora, both of whom are clearly capable of better than they're currently showing. Zokora needs time to settle in the Premiership, while Tainio seems to be off the pace defensively. We do lack a goal threat from midfield, and JJ is the best answer we've got (though he misses far too many).

It'll be good to have him back. But just as many here have been far too quick to write him off in the past, let's not get too carried away about his ability to save our season. He's not the saviour.

That's Lennon.

[justfookinhitit]

In the next 6 months it is highly likely Murphy, Davids and TT will leave the club. I liked TT when he was a livewire in the midfield, closing opponents down all the time etc etc but a run of injuries has meant he hasn't stepped up a level from last year. Him being out, along with JJ's injury, has given Hudd the chance to cement his place in the isde and I believe he is here to stay. Murphy has never done it for me and I'd let him go while we have the chance to recoup a couple of million from him.

We do need a midfield general. Don't necessarily agree it needs to be an attack-minded player but it certainly does need to be one that has the tactical nous and the physical presence to boss the game. The only player I can think of in the current squad that I could see fulfilling that role is the Hudd but he still has much development to do to get there. I believe he will reach that level, and when he does we will be a force to be reckoned with, but it will not be an overnight transformation.

[meesterlee]

I'm sorry but I can't see what all the fuss is about Jenas. Surely to be a good midfielder you need to have an ability to be creative, have good distribution, to be able to tackle, to be able to read the game and adjust the tempo accordingly, as well as get on the score sheet occassionally. At the very least you have to have a blend of these....

With Jenas he appears to have little of any of these skills, his passing is poor, when it is accurate it invariably holds up play and often loses the momentum of the attack, I can't recall him supplying a killer pass. He is unable to tackle, and doesn't appear to be able to read the game effectively.

He does strike the very occassional good freekick, and often gets himself into decent scoring positions, however his finishing lets him down and he often misses sitters.

While he was playing for Newcastle, I couldn't see why he was getting in the England squad every time, and since he's come to us there is even less evidence in my mind and I can't see how he has progressed. The question you have to look at is whether he is ever likely to be an England regular first teamer, and surely the answer is no. Ergo if he is not good enough for a poor England side, how can he make the grade at the mighty Tottenham Hotspur? If we are looking to be Champions League material, we have to ditch those that don't make the grade, or at least acknowledge their position as squad players. My feeling with Jenas is that he thinks himself as an automatic starter, in wich case ship him off to a team that can accomodate him in this position....West Ham etc...

Huddleston is our future, and although young and currently appearing to struggle with the intensity of games, is of so much higher standard. As long as we don't overplay him, future sides can be built around him.....

[gloryglory]

I agree. In the long term, Huddlestone and Zokora are potential worldbeaters. Jenas is not.

But in the short term, he would be good to have around.

[UbeAstard]

Lee I feel gets a lot of unfair criticism on here and is infact fairly solid as a full-back. Sure he makes mistakes but few other than ledley seem capable of recovering as quickly from them. I give you stalteri as a contrast. He when beaten stays beaten.

Lee is improving his delivery of crosses and now gets height and pace. All he needs to learn now is to wrap his foot around the ball and he will be providing good service.

The other interesting thing about him is that he has steadly learned to go at the other full back and does get past him with his little step over trick. If he fails he then looks for a simple ball to maintain pressure but the key is he has held possession well into the half of the opposition which gives the defence and mifield time to get their shape further up the park.

Agree with you fully on that and I cant understand why people keep saying we should get rid.
ooops, apart from his cockup that couls have cost us against Wigan. How amazingly stuupid was that!

[Eyebrowman]

Jenas is a good option at the moment and when i fit i believe he should play.
However, Zokora has far more of potential upside, imo. This is an Ivorian player who has come from the French Ligue with alot of hype and a big money tag, and is expected to settle in and produce miracles right away.
Anyone else come to mind?
Now I'm hoping that Zokora doesn't turn into a cheating piece of scuzz like Drogba, and I also hope he doesn't take the better part of two years to come good ( though I always rated the job Drogba did for his team even when he wasnt scoring - not many forwards are physical enough to tie up both centre halves) but i think that Zokora will prove to be a world class player in the middle of the pitch.

[PaulWalsh'sHair]

was this article written by Jermaine Jenas' dad?

He is way overrated and has an annoying penchant for long glamour passes that always go to the opposition

[kungfugrip]

I am not a huge Jenas fan, but it will be good to have him back. Stamina, speed and a goal threat are qualities that spring to mind. Zokora is a very good player and just needs a bit of time to truly find his feet. Murphy looked woeful against Cardiff - slow, clumpy and looked like he was in the closing stages of a marathon during the entire match. I know he's capable of unlocking defences and over the last year I've been hoping he would get a proper run in the team, but, it's plain to see he's not the answer...not for this Tottenham team anyway. We need pace, power, and the skill to go past men in our midfield. Tainio is another who I always want to do well but rarely does he put in a very good display. Often his contribution is ok, but we now need players to be putting in awesome performances on a consistent basis to take us up a level. TT I'm afaid won't be able to do that.

[johna]

Joe Barton is the man we need

[meesterlee]

We have a youth and reserve set up of some promise.....Surely he would hamper the vision of our prospective midfielders?!:wink:

[mawspurs]

Jenas has definitely been missed. His form was really starting to improve, and his pace was vital when Lennon was out injured. I felt his consistency was improving as well and then he got crocked which was damn poor timing.

Lets not be impatient with him when he does come back because he will be pretty rusty after the length of time he has been out. He will obviously take time to get back up to speed again.

[elDiablo]

Is Jenas missed? Yes - and it's interesting to see how much more appreciated he seems to be on here since he's been out. The grass is always greener.

Has he been the most important absentee? No. King and Lennon are more central to our cause because their contributions cannot be replicated at all.

Our defence has looked shambolic at times without King, and Jenas wouldn't have made much of a difference to that. He's just as prone to Headless Chicken Syndrome as the next man.

Our attack has lacked threat at times without Lennon, because there's little pace and we're not direct enough. Would Jenas have made a difference? Maybe a bit, but he won't scare defences and he doesn't often help us get the ball into dangerous positions.

It's a shame that his absence has coincided with poor form from both Tainio and Zokora, both of whom are clearly capable of better than they're currently showing. Zokora needs time to settle in the Premiership, while Tainio seems to be off the pace defensively. We do lack a goal threat from midfield, and JJ is the best answer we've got (though he misses far too many).

It'll be good to have him back. But just as many here have been far too quick to write him off in the past, let's not get too carried away about his ability to save our season. He's not the saviour.

That's Lennon.

you say that jenas didnt help out king in defence,but i remember numerous occasions last season when he was back there helping out carrick and the defence!!

[yiddotilidie]

Since JJ has been missing, count how many clean sheets we have kept.
His workrate from box to box is a massive factor in us defending as a team. When Carrick left us (still cant believe some fans were happy about that) lots of people thought the Hudd would slot in and be a straight replacement - well its quite clear that he isnt the same player. He has great vision, fantastic shot and links quite well, but he isnt as mobile as Carrick is and that leaves our defence exposed. You take JJ out as well and that leaves our defence naked!!!

JJ is so underrated by spurs fans i amazes me.
Oh, and Zokora needs a season before we see the bes from him. Two of the prems most in form players are Essien and Drogba, both pretty ineffective last season, but african like Zokora, so maybe they take a bit longer to settle. he has everything in his locker to become a quality prem player.

[mitch8the8spur]

jj rocks

[DeeJay_Yid]

Is it Fair to say last season we had Carrick and Jenas running the engine room, albeit Jenas was on the right 50% of the time, and we did well.

Invariably comparisons to last season has to happen, and our form may have suffered as of late cause these 2 players have been missing, like it or not.

I'll be the first to say selling Carrick for 18m cause he WANTED to leave according to Jol was shrewd business. Jenas is the other link compared to last season. We bashed him quite a bit last season,i think we miss him this season. I liken him to Pedro Mendes, always there when u need a player to pass to. His next pass may be woeful to some, but he is always available for a pass. Also he got himself into some good scoring positions last yr. Finishing though, needed one on one counselling from Defoe!

Jury's out on him. But when comparing the missing links from last season and this season, invariably he is one of them.

Now i just wish he and Lennon will stop clubbing so much when they are injured as exemplified by the society pics we had posted in SC and get their head in the game.