Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Spurs : match report

[Geez]

Much-changed Tottenham were outclassed by Borussia Dortmund, who took a commanding lead into the second leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.

Read the full article at BBC Sport 10 Mar 16

 

[dominguezmonkey]

Comfortably the best team we've played all season. Irrespective of the team we put out I'm shocked by the gulf in class. Hat's off to them.

 

[vuzp]

disappointing, they were the best side by miles, but 3 points on Sunday and all fogiven

 

[greywizard2020]

After watching that first-half, particularly, it showed that we are yet to truly have a squad that is capable of competing at the highest level in competitions. The Poch ought to be able to leave certain players knowing full well the replacements can come in, acquit themselves well & give the manager something to consider for future selections; however they did not.

We didn't keep the ball well enough & because the back-four was not given the protection it normally is by Dier, we looked all at sea. Our pressing game was disjointed with not the same intensity that we normally see. Make no mistake this was a virtually full-strength Dortmund side that showed they can play & credit to them.

The tie isn't completely lost because all it takes is an early goal in front of our fans & we suddenly have momentum. Come what may at the end of the season I think the Poch will need to be ruthless in terms of who he decides to move on. If we want to be competing at the top end of major competitions next year, then the depth of quality needs to be taken up several notches because the 7 changes we saw out there didn't cut it.

Next season Manchester City, Chelsea & more than likely Manchester Utd will have new managers who will spend a kings-ransom on new players. Liverpool will continue their re-structuring, as well as Everton with their new investors millions & we've not even discussed Arsenal, or even Leicester. We will need to be quick to make canny acquisitions whilst others assess their situations & similarly be rapid in disposing of those not able to compete.

Regardless of tonight I actually feel optimistic that we will put in a much better performance next week & certainly give Dortmund a scare at the very least. Come on Spurs.

 

[coys63]

With arguably 7 of our first choice 11 not starting and 5 missing altogether, I didn't expect anything less. They are in the top echelon of teams in Europe.

 

[yiddopaul]

Comfortably the best team we've played all season. Irrespective of the team we put out I'm shocked by the gulf in class. Hat's off to them.

You can't say irrespective of the team we put out. They had a full strength team out. We had a second string team. Of course the there'll be a gulf in class. Had we a fully fit first 11 out there, I'm quite sure the 'gulf' would not be noticeable.
As has been pointed out already, we play in, probably the hardest league in the world, where every game is hard fought, and we don't get winter breaks as other country's do. So we are probably more shagged than the opposition.

 

[stuffies]

Expect a 1 or 2 nil lost...and yes we were outclassed by a REALLY good team.
However that was almost our 2nd team....would like to see our first 11 against that team next week,would make it a very good game.
Overall can't fault this season when looking at the bigger picture.....would have gladly took top 5-6 and a cup run.

 

[dekka]

What worried me tnite was the lightweight pairing of Mason and Carroll.Wrong team selection that needed to be changed at half time when we were only 1-0 down cos the 2nd half only got worse.True we were up against a quality side but how on earth we persisted with those two for the full 90 minutes beggars belief cos they were out of their depth imo.If we rest players to try to qualify for cl football next season then what do we do when we are in champions league and doing well in premier league?The obvious answer is to have a quality squad to be able to compete on all levels but will Mr L spend big to do this?

 

[ginola007]

Disappointed at the performance, but not necessarily the result. We learnt a few things. First, Poch's faith in Carroll might not be rewarded; second, Mason is not a holding midfielder; third, Son and Chadli have yet to linked up well.
Still, I have no problem with Poch's selection, as we seemed a bit jaded when playing against West Ham and Arsenal. We were not able to dominate them in the last 15 minutes as we had done with other teams earlier. Dier and Kane looked tired towards the end of the two matches. Now that we look likely to be out of the Europa Cup, we can concentrate on the League. Arsenal and Man City now many more games to play than us. Hopefully, with a lighter fixture, we can maintain our second spot, even if we don't do one better.

 

[yid-down-under]

What worried me tnite was the lightweight pairing of Mason and Carroll.Wrong team selection that needed to be changed at half time when we were only 1-0 down cos the 2nd half only got worse.True we were up against a quality side but how on earth we persisted with those two for the full 90 minutes beggars belief cos they were out of their depth imo.If we rest players to try to qualify for cl football next season then what do we do when we are in champions league and doing well in premier league?The obvious answer is to have a quality squad to be able to compete on all levels but will Mr L spend big to do this?

Yeah the speed at which they cut through out midfield was scarey. I'm surprised bentaleb didn't get a look in

 

[Jenko]

Disappointed with the last three performances. We look jaded. A bad performance against villa and we'll all be thinking 'burn out'. Very big game.

Next Thursdays game just seems inconvenient now.

 

[Roscilous]

I think if we end up with Champions League football next season, you would have to think a few players would be either moved on or drop down the pecking order. Carrol, Bentaleb and Mason may not be good enough to play at the highest level. I think a few upgrades are needed just to improve the overall quality of the squad. Nobody is bad, but we don't have many "World Class" players. Poch has worked wonders with improving team confidence and harmony. But that won't beat the Barcelona and Munichs of the footballing World.

 

[Yakflange]

I think if we end up with Champions League football next season, you would have to think a few players would be either moved on or drop down the pecking order. Carrol, Bentaleb and Mason may not be good enough to play at the highest level. I think a few upgrades are needed just to improve the overall quality of the squad. Nobody is bad, but we don't have many "World Class" players. Poch has worked wonders with improving team confidence and harmony. But that won't beat the Barcelona and Munichs of the footballing World.

I'm sure we'll strengthen over the summer, hopefully with the addition of one or two top class players. You're right that those three you name (and a few others) are not first team standard if we're going to be pushing on, but they're exactly the kind of players that would be great to have in the squad as backups - if you can keep such players happy in the squad without much game time and they can slot into the team and do a job when needed, they're perfect.

 

[Japhet]

They stuffed us without getting out of 2nd gear. Midfield was like boys v men which pushed our back 4 beyond the limit and gave us no service up front. Either Carroll or Mason would have been OK but both together was asking for it.

 

[buckley]

just listened to ian wright giving his opinion on last nights game also our next four games of which he basically said we could win lose or draw all four the genius of the man is amazing

 

[longtimespur]

Beaten by a very impressive team.

I know we made 7 changes but it was a needs must situation.

and Dier look tired, Dembele cannot play 2 games in quick succession, Rose was injured, Deli was suspended. So only Lamela and Walker, from the last game, could have started.
Perhaps CCV could have started at the back and played Toby or Wimmer as holding DM. For whatever reason Bentaleb seems out of the picture. Winks possibly could have been given a start (might have played great or possibly poorly) either way it would have been a gamble.

IMO Poch went with whom he felt could do a job, it just didn't work because Dortmund are a very impressive team.

 

[spursZed]

Very disappointed, would have been different if we played our best team. Looking forward now on Sunday's game.

 

[deluded-yid]

Even our 1st team would've struggled last night and no doubt would've burnt themselves out trying to nick a result.

Unfortunately injuries to Mason/Bentaleb/Son and Chadli all at the beginning of the season seems to have hindered their progress.
But if we're serious about the title or champs lge this season or in the future Mason/Bentaleb and Carroll are not good enough for the cm position, not even as back up.
After last nights performance I can see a few people moving on at the end of the season.

 

[eddiebailey]

I'm sure we'll strengthen over the summer, hopefully with the addition of one or two top class players. You're right that those three you name (and a few others) are not first team standard if we're going to be pushing on, but they're exactly the kind of players that would be great to have in the squad as backups - if you can keep such players happy in the squad without much game time and they can slot into the team and do a job when needed, they're perfect.

Agree, but they are good enough back ups, playing in the more attacking central midfield roles, but none of them can cover for Dier.

The problem with the squad is not any of the individuals currently within the squad, who are all adequate when correctly deployed. The problem is the players who are missing from the squad: the like for like backs up to Dier and Kane.

 

[Yakflange]

Agree, but they are good back ups to Dier, playing in the more attacking central midfield roles, but none of them can cover for Dier.

The problem with the squad is not any of the individuals currently within the squad, who are all adequate when correctly deployed. The problem is the players who are missing from the squad: the like for like backs up to Dier and Kane.

Yep - we definitely need to sign understudies to Kane and Dier this summer!