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Match Ratings Ratings v Stoke

Man of the match?


  • Total voters
    223

BringBack_leGin

Well-Known Member
Jul 28, 2004
27,719
54,929
Not exactly vintage today but at least we won...

I think it would be easy to be overly critical here, and yes we didn't play well, but credit to Stoke for doing what they do best, which just so happens to be what we struggle with most. We never enjoy playing against a side cast aside any concern for their opponents physical well being, and when it's a side who are fighting to stay in the division it becomes double dangerous. That said, considering our players had been off for the past week I was surprised by what looked like legginess from a lot of them. The changes shouldn't have had much of an effect, particularly as the worst culprits were the four up front who are used to playing with each other, but I think today falls under the 'winners win when they don't play well' category. I can live with that, it's a world away from the Spurs I grew up with. Aside, I was pleased to see the switch to 433 in the final third of the match, it helped us see out the match in relative control and get Eriksen on the ball in more space.

Lloris - I think the time has come where we need another goalkeeper who can at least push Lloris for his spot, he's made a lot of mistakes this season and almost all of them are down to make a poor decision. He was fine positionally, fine in rushing off his spot, but lacked any composure in whacking the ball straight at Diouf. If today's opponents go down as expected, then their goalkeeper in place of a departing Vorm makes a lot of sense, but if not him then we need someone. Lloris is no longer consistent enough, nor is he making enough by way of brilliant saves, to justify him being untouchable as he has been for so many seasons.

Aurier's energy up and down the flank was great, he didn't err defensively and he was a genuine threat all game long. Unfortunately he wasted every single crossing opportunity so all his good work in getting into those positions was left wasted. Still a decent performance though.

Sanchez was good, he used his physicality well in the face of Stoke's rugby tactics and knew when to play out, when to clear his lines. He has improved visibly over the past month.

Vertonghen was foot perfect I thought, some great interceptions in there, brought the ball out nicely a couple of times and imperious in the air.

Rose improves as the game went on. He didn't look overly susceptible defensively while going forward, like Aurier he offered a threat throughout, albeit without end product. Seemed to wind up the Stoke players without doing anything wrong really, which I enjoyed, and won several free kicks in dangerous positions.

Wanyama had a decent game on and off the ball, showed good energy and linked well with those around him. Seemed to tire, his withdrawal was probably at the right time.

Dembele was my man of the match. He won't get the plaudits because of Eriksen's brace but defensively he showed for the ball and carried it forward when we were under pressure, he took Stoke players out of the game constantly outmuscling some very brutish challengers and he brought our attackers in from the periphery throughout.

Eriksen scored a lovely first and a lucky second, but that aside I was a little disappointed. Maybe it's because he has set such high standards, but I found him wasteful (for him) and he made a few poor decisions.

Dele wasn't great either, he never really found a rhythm and was also pretty wasteful, but like Eriksen he was effective when he needed to be, playing very intelligently to hold the ball up and assist Eriksen for the opener. I can think of others in the side who would have hit a hopefuly cross to Kane where there was not gap, or wildly thrashed at the ball hoping for a lucky goal.

Son, if you hadn't guessed, is the target of my final comment in Dele's paragraph. Too often he made poor choices, he didn't link up well with anybody, and he seemed to find the least effective option and apply it every time he got the ball in a dangerous position. Unfortunately his sparkling form appears to have dissipated somewhat. Rightfully subbed.

Kane was a mixed bag. When he was in advanced positions he was cumbersome and his touch was heavy, he has definitely lost a bit of sharpness both in mind and body over the past month. However, when he dropped deeper he did hold the ball up well and play some lovely passes to bring others into play. Hopefully now all rustiness has been shaken off ahead of the final stretch of games.

Lamela came on and added some sharpness and variation to our attack, definitely a threat, but he was frustrating in dallying a few times when an early ball could have secured a third. Still, he looked better in half an hour than the other three attacking midfielders did all game long.

Dier came on didn't perform well in my opinion, dragging our midfield too deep when we should have been pinning Stoke back and almost making one very costly mistake with an under hit back pass.

Sissoko came on and had little time to do anything positive or negative.
 
Last edited:

Marty

Audere est farce
Mar 10, 2005
39,885
62,561
Three stars, hockey style.

***Eriksen
**Rose
*Vertonghen

EDIT: Because although Eriksen was quiet for large spells he was the decisive factor in both our goals.
 

fortworthspur

Well-Known Member
Nov 12, 2007
11,244
17,536
good - Sanchez, Verts, Dembele, Alli and Rose in the second half
not so good - Son, Aurier and Lloris
OK - Wanyama, Kane, Eriksen
 

Rob

The Boss
Admin
Jun 8, 2003
28,014
65,116
(use the match ratings prefix next time, I added it for this one)
 

whitechina

Well-Known Member
Dec 27, 2012
4,225
9,094
Eriksen - but only because of his goals.
It was a real mixed bag today and I'm just really happy we are now level with Liverpool and closer to UTD.
I really think second is ours for the taking now and if you'd have said where we are and how 95% of this season has gone I'd have taken it at the beginning of the season with Wembley and all.

@Bulletspur- my thoughts are with you today. Best wishes under the circumstances
 

CornerPinDreamer

up in the cheap seats
Aug 20, 2013
3,716
8,088
Eriksen just about MOTM
Verts & Sanchez good
Hugo, please use up all next seasons mistakes when playing for France this summer
 

SirNiNyHotspur

23 Years of Property, Concerts, Karts & Losing
Apr 27, 2004
3,125
6,743
Sanchez, only one mistake I counted, otherwise bossed the back, won nearly every header against Crouch, and some good tracking and tackling throughout.

On the opposite end of the Spectrum rarely have I seen a poorer few minutes than what Dier produced, effectively was playing for Stoke, and that's not a joke.
 

matthew.absurdum

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
3,732
10,120
Never ideal when you need to face relagated-threathen team at this stage, but we are very professional to see this out

Lloris - He needs to improve if we really want to challenge for the league or CL. A dilemma to us

Aurier - No foul throws. Hurray?

Rose - I thought he was Marcos Alonso today. As if he did murder someone in Stoke

Sanchez - Good game. Always the victim for Hugo's errors? But his error did lead to an Aurier' foul, and Shiqiri almost equalise from that

Jan - As usual.

Dembele - Look. Any other journalists/board-casters would award Eriksen the MOTM. If you really pay attention to the match (just like the members here), Dembele is the real MOTM (sorry eriksen). Sometimes it is not just down to goals or assists. He dominates the possession, and builds up the first goal with a delicious through ball.

Eriksen - Extremely poor first half, but second half he is back. Almost Motm but Moussa is just slightly better

Dele - Good game again.

Son and Kane - below average.

Dier - Not sure what he is thinking. He is a good player, but his concentration is a big problem. Not sure the Wanyama-Dier sub is spot on. I would rather play Dier WITH wanyama
----

Diouf - Not sure what he is thinking when they are 4 vs 2 against us

Shaqiri - Really impressive today. But perhaps he is really inconsistent
 

spids

Well-Known Member
Jul 19, 2015
6,647
27,841
++ n/a
+ Eriksen, Sánchez, Vertonghen, Dembele
<> Dele, Wanyama, Rose, Aurier,
- Lloris, Son, Kane
- - n/a
 

EastLondonYid

Well-Known Member
Jan 26, 2010
7,837
16,145
Never ideal when you need to face relagated-threathen team at this stage, but we are very professional to see this out

Lloris - He needs to improve if we really want to challenge for the league or CL. A dilemma to us

Aurier - No foul throws. Hurray?

Rose - I thought he was Marcos Alonso today. As if he did murder someone in Stoke

Sanchez - Good game. Always the victim for Hugo's errors? But his error did lead to an Aurier' foul, and Shiqiri almost equalise from that

Jan - As usual.

Dembele - Look. Any other journalists/board-casters would award Eriksen the MOTM. If you really pay attention to the match (just like the members here), Dembele is the real MOTM (sorry eriksen). Sometimes it is not just down to goals or assists. He dominates the possession, and builds up the first goal with a delicious through ball.

Eriksen - Extremely poor first half, but second half he is back. Almost Motm but Moussa is just slightly better

Dele - Good game again.

Son and Kane - below average.

Dier - Not sure what he is thinking. He is a good player, but his concentration is a big problem. Not sure the Wanyama-Dier sub is spot on. I would rather play Dier WITH wanyama
----

Diouf - Not sure what he is thinking when they are 4 vs 2 against us

Shaqiri - Really impressive today. But perhaps he is really inconsistent
Spot on.. Agree with all above
How Dembele isn't mom is beyond me . He was immense
 

allpaths

Well-Known Member
Oct 31, 2014
3,174
8,381
Our fans love a moan don't they? We went away to a tough and desperate and grinded out a solid result. If Lloris completes his clearance like he should have we wouldnt have even been bothered. Get a grip of yourselves.
 

Gilzeanking

Well-Known Member
May 7, 2005
6,093
5,019
Our fans love a moan don't they? We went away to a tough and desperate and grinded out a solid result. If Lloris completes his clearance like he should have we wouldnt have even been bothered. Get a grip of yourselves.

What you are possibly missing allpaths is that , as the OP pointed out , Lloris has been making bad decisions for some time now that cost us goals. Its something that has been causing widespread concern on these boards .

Blasting the ball directly at an oncoming attacker adds to the instances in this category . We don't need to get a grip of ourselves ta .
 

allpaths

Well-Known Member
Oct 31, 2014
3,174
8,381
What you are possibly missing allpaths is that , as the OP pointed out , Lloris has been making bad decisions for some time now that cost us goals. Its something that has been causing widespread concern on these boards .

Blasting the ball directly at an oncoming attacker adds to the instances in this category . We don't need to get a grip of ourselves ta .
i agree lloris was very poor, but the rest of the team was very solid. that's what i'm on about. If we are to challenge for the league in years to come Hugo needs to be better. Plain and simple.

Some folks are making it out like we played like the rest of the team played like shit which is what I totally disagree with.
 

walworthyid

David Ginola
Oct 25, 2004
7,059
10,242
What you are possibly missing allpaths is that , as the OP pointed out , Lloris has been making bad decisions for some time now that cost us goals. Its something that has been causing widespread concern on these boards .

Blasting the ball directly at an oncoming attacker adds to the instances in this category . We don't need to get a grip of ourselves ta .
Not sure I agree. Yes hugo has made a few this season but the incidents in the last 2 games are from clear cut. Last week, you could argue that if you come you have to get something on the ball but if he stays at home it is very unlikely that he saves that header as it dropped right in thr corner. It has also been argurd that his coming out put Sanchez off. Well I have watched it back a number of times and if Sanchez does duck out it is very slightly. The fact is it was a perfect cross that beat both Lloris and Sanchez. It happens. Today he did everything right but was unlucky that the stoke player was right on top of the ball. Again, it was a great through ball that actually slowed up a touch as it curled into the path of the striker. I'm not saying he couldn't have done better, I'm just not entirely sure that it was a clear mistake.
 

walton

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2006
3,162
4,963
Which was the thread where that fella gave himself a hernia when trying to counter criticism of lloris? This game again demonstrated how he's becoming worryingly unreliable, and desperately in need of a genuine challenge to his starting place.
 

Spursh

Well-Known Member
Jul 21, 2009
2,558
6,514
Lloris 5 (Another error and looked vulnerable under crosses)

Aurier 7 (Caught on the wrong side of his man a few times, but moved forward well)
Sanchez 7 (Could have done a little better for their goal, but an otherwise solid display)
Vertonghen 8 MOM (Imperious)
Rose 7 (Lost his man once or twice, but like Aurier, aggressive offensively)

Wanyama 6 (Looked understandably rusty)
Dembele 8 (Never flustered)

Son 6 (His movement was good but lacking sharpness)
Eriksen 7 (His general play was a little off, giving the ball away etc., but decisive when it mattered)
Alli 8 (Just such a graceful runner with the ball at his feet. Good all round display)

Kane 6 (Like Wanyama, looked a little rusty)


Also a word for Lamela who is the king of wasting time. So strong at holding the ball up.
 

JimmyG2

SC Supporter
Dec 7, 2006
15,014
20,779
'Untidy' as my Mum used to say about my bedroom.
Not a total messy shambles but not up to established standards of hygiene.
We conceded an untidy goal and scored an untidy goal to win it.

Good Housekeeping award.............Dembele, Eriksen
Tidy......................................................Dele, Verts,Sanchez, Lamela
Untidy..................................................Lloris, Wanyama,Kane,
Messy...................................................Aurier, Rose, Son
Unhygienic...........................................Dier.
 
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