Match Ratings Ratings vs APOEL

[jonnyp]

Hugo - Kicking/distribution decisions baffle me. When will he learn?

Toby - Apart from the assist, was really poor tonight.

Davies - Not his best game

Sanchez - OK

Trippier - OK, fantastic assist.

Aurier - Struggled

Dier - OK I guess.

Winks - Good

Sissoko - Good

Kane - Exceptional

Son - Hopeless tonight.

Llorente - Nothing of note.

GNK - Did nothing.

Poch - Didn't get it right from the start again but sub helped provide a better shape.

Defensively we were shit tonight, we let them get chances far too easily.

 

[DJS]

He's promising, but he is definitely nowhere near Dembele's level.

Yet.

Give him a chance Dembele has been around a lot longer.

 

[BringBack_leGin]

Nowhere near as bad as is being/ will be made out. Ah well. Ultimately we scored three, conceded none, away in the Champions League with no Rose, Vertonghen, Dembele, Wanyama, Dele or Eriksen. We never left first gear, perhaps rode our luck a touch, but got the job done. No complaints from me at least.

Lloris made a couple of decent saves but deserves shooting for THAT clearance.

Alderweireld was fine, great pass for the opener.

Sanchez attacks everything, he needs to learn that there's occasions where dropping off is better. He will.

Davies looked far happier at left back, he wasn't quite sure where to put himself at centre back.

Aurier was a mixed bag, I feel he will be for a while. Some nice overlaps, some poor positioning.

Trippier overlapped well and threatened from the left for once, but looked happier on the right of course. Nice pass building up to our third, like Aurier struggled with their attack down that side. Lovely link up with Kane fur his assist.

Dier was fine, but when we have him in midfield with no Dembele the gap to the forwards is huge.

Sissoko looked clumsy in the middle but you can't fault his determination and effort. He may have lagged finesse but showed at lot more gumption at least, and he did quite well when moved to the right in front of Trippier. Would happily see that again.

Winks was solid, improved as the game wore on and seems to have rediscovered his sharpness and touch. Still want him to impose himself more and be a bit more adventurous.

Son was not great. For all his energy and taking up of good positions, which I applaud, he was very wasteful.

Kane was selfish on occasion but he scored a great hatrick and was our leader out there.

Llorente did little directly when he came on, but all of a sudden Kane seemed unmarked and running from deep.

Nkoudou saw a fair bit if the ball, felt he was trying too hard to do something special but if it had come off we'd all be salivating. It'll come for him I'm sure.

Georgiou came on. Assuming he's of Cypriot descent so if he never makes it with us, at least he has tonight.

 

[cliff jones]

Aurier - surprised he managed to play the whole game with the handsfree ear piece in

that was almost a good un, but you forgot he got taken off

 

[nedley]

Kane Sissoko Winks in that order for me. I know it's fashionable to bag on Sissoko, but he has started to show he can play well and show some consistency.

Sissoko played well but not as well as Winks IMO.

 

[double0]

Strange formation with some resulting poor performances. Aurier though was shocking; he was always out of position, always beaten for pace and more. His first game for us showed he can play but he clearly needs some time to settle in.

Only one MOTM - Kane was impressive with the three he scored. He looks almost dismissive when he is on this sort of form as he showed in the last two games of the Premier League last time

Shocking is over the top.

 

[cliff jones]

Disappointed with Toby first half, and Kane, for that matter, Son was busy but wasteful, Aurier was Walker, Sanchez caught too high a few times. Everyone else was good, especially Winks, and Kane's stunt double who came on after the first goal.

Well relieved after that, hopefully no new knocks and two or three back fresh for the weekend.

Coys.

 

[Teemu]

Nowhere near as bad as is being/ will be made out. Ah well. Ultimately we scored three, conceded nine

Tell you what, I did not expect everyone to be so calm after a 9-3 defeat

 

[ohh_when_the_spurs]

Kane was the blatant MOM but it seems I vote for him most weeks so I decided to vote for the other Harry.

Winks was pure class tonight. Retained the ball very well, played some great balls and went on a few driving runs from deep.

I appreciate him so much as a player as he plays my position.
Strange how a 33 year old Sunday league player can learn so much from a 21 year old

 

[Univarn]

You know guys I think this Harry Kane guy isn't half bad...

Hugo "Heart Attack Shot Block Whack" Lloris - 7
Keiran "Bringing Left and Right together" Trippier - 8
Toby "Long ball wizard" Aldeweireld - 8
Davinson "Energerizer Bunny" Sanchez - 7
Serge "Oh no oh no oh no yes yes yes oh no yes oh no yes" Aurier - 7
Ben "Get in my pocket" Davies - 8
Eric "No Wanyama no problem" Dier - 7
Harry "No Dembele no problem" Winks - 9
Moussa "ASSIST! HE DID IT!" Sissoko - 7
Heung Min-Son"powered engine" - 7
Harry "Get Fucked Doubters" Kane - 10

Fernando "Street Smarts" Llorente - 8
Georges "Come on ball go in your home" Kevin-Nkoudou - 6
Anthony "Literally didn't know you made it on the pitch but good for you" Georgiou - 5

Maurico "Put those points in my belly" Pochettino - 8

 

[The Apprentice]

Kane, Winks, Sanchez and Trippier second half all quality.

Sissoko was awful for 60 minutes with his ultra safe five yard passes being his highlight. He then came alive out on the right late in the game and played a big part in making the game safe.

Aurier looked ropey again. Positionally a bit all over the place. Early days for him.

Everyone else was varying degrees of alright.

Kane is really very special. Enjoy these moments.

Great result considering the absentees. A big statement.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

Pick and Mix

I don't think that was ever a terrible performance, but it was never very cohesive, until around the 75th minute.

Poch made really hard work of it with his selections and tactics. There were several options he could have chosen, which could have kept the WB balance on either side; he could have gone 433, he could have played Foyth, he could have played either Dier or Aurier as CB's, all of which could have kept Trippier/Aurier and Davies as WB's in the system we play, which would have stretched their bus park laterally. And it wasn't until Poch's first sub that this was really rectified, and even then I think he went a really strange way around it, deciding to go 442, which you would assume was not a particularly attacking move - Poch himself saying post match it was about getting us pressing better higher up, which I assume was to try and prevent that through ball that kept getting played inside our advanced FB's. But what the logic was behind bringing Llorente on but pushing fb's back from a more wing back orientated type system I don't really get. And having watched it unfold I still don't. In that respect I questioned why not leave the faster, stronger - defensively - Aurier on, but as it turned out leaving the offensively superior Trippier on, and switching him to RB obviously, was actually what sealed the game, with Trippier really providing the key passes for both goals two and three.

I still think Poch made hard work of it, tactically, and the reason we looked so incoherent for 60 minutes was Poch's tactical application. No proper LWB, Sissoko in CM along with Dier, and like when we play the system with Eriksen, left only one player in CM who's comfortable playing out of pressure, Winks, so when they applied it, even moderately, it all got a bit desperate. Dier and Sissoko can't take the ball under any kind of pressure, and if they do have it under pressure it's hot potato passes that get made, the ball gets whacked to the nearest white shirt they see, whether that shirt is under pressure themselves or in a good position to build out or not. It was partly out of this desperation and lack of midfield options that ironically saw us go in front as Alderweireld got so fed up with having no out ball from Dier or Sissoko he just went route one, hit Kane, who finished off superbly.

We were aided by the fact that Apoel aren't very good, and if they'd made better use of situations a couple of times, we may have come unstuck, but by and large this was a lot like a few of these European away games we've played under Poch, and they didn't actually create too much of real quality. But then again neither do we. Poch seems to apply the Pick and Mix formula to these games (although that's been true of most lately) and what gets pulled out of the bag is all a bit hit and miss.


Individual:

Lloris - the usual Lloris blunder first half. better second half

Aurier - Some good, some less so.

Trippier - Pointless playing him as a LB, he's just not effective there. Once switched played a vital part in us sewing up that game. As I've said all along, offensively he's better than both Walker and Aurier. Kane will get the lion's share of the credit for us winning that game, but a close second has got to be Trippier, who's clever, composed passes put Sissoko in behind the defence for the second and set up Kane with an unmissable header with a delicious ball for the third.

TA - Lovely ball for the first. Couple of shaky moments at the back though.

Sanchez - I know he's young, and he's doing OK, but am I the only one thinking, 40m really ? I mean, I'm not as angry as the 30m we spent on Sissoko or anything, but he just looks a bit raw to be costing 40m, no ? I'd be a little bit worried if we had to play him in a 2CB system right now. I can see he's got pace and aggression and technique, but his decision making can be a bit woo sometimes, just in our 3cb system it's not always getting exposed or punished right now. Early days and all that, hopefully it's just a young fella learning and he'll improve. Just I seem to be the only one watching some of the things he does and thinking "hang on, not sure that was very clever".

Davies - Never convinces me as a LCB. We started to look better when he got switched to LB.

Dier - Meh. Couple of times he flapped under the press and gave some really poor hurried passes, his inability to play out of the press does inhibit our play sometimes and means we have to turn backwards and start again etc.

Sissoko - I don't really give a shit if Sissoko played the pass to Kane for the second goal, he's a fucking awful footballer, and anyone trying to convince you otherwise is blowing smoke up your arse. The role he finished up in, as a wide right AM type role (or wide right in the 442 in this case) is really the only one he's ever been viable in, charging at LB's and LCB's, he shouldn't be trusted anywhere near the central midfield areas where technique and composure are essential, but even then I don't understand people saying he was good. he did one or two "good things" that isn't being good generally.

Winks - Saw plenty of ball (more than anyone else ahead of the defenders), moved past opponents with it occasionally, breaking lines and played a couple of nice passes too. Nothing stupendous but is a shitload more comfortable in that 8 1/2 type role in our 3331 system than Sissoko.

Son - Pretty meh game really. Not involved or influential enough. Wasted a great chance to play someone in (I forget how now) latter stages.

Kane - A brilliant perfect hat trick aside, there were some annoying moments when he really should have just passed the fucking thing. But he really is a fucking monster.

 

[matthew.absurdum]

Sanchez - I know he's young, and he's doing OK, but am I the only one thinking, 40m really ? I mean, I'm not as angry as the 30m we spent on Sissoko or anything, but he just looks a bit raw to be costing 40m, no ? I'd be a little bit worried if we had to play him in a 2CB system right now. I can see he's got pace and aggression and technique, but his decision making can be a bit woo sometimes, just in our 3cb system it's not always getting exposed or punished right now. Early days and all that, hopefully it's just a young fella learning and he'll improve. Just I seem to be the only one watching some of the things he does and thinking "hang on, not sure that was very clever".

Oxlade-chamblein costs liverpool 40m in his final year of contract. 40M is buying average finished product or raw players with potential today. Aurier would cost us 40m+ if he were not an idiot in the past

 

[yusrisafri]

Obviously Kane was motm but thought Winks did well and Sissoko was lively and worked hard. The rest to be honest were pretty average.

Good result without Verts, Rose, Wanayama, Dembele, Eriksen and Alli who can genuinely claim to be first choice 11.

Alli in his current form should be nowhere near the 1st 11

 

[TEESSIDE1]

A few things to bear in mind when rating players.

1) we were missing half a dozen 1st team regulars
2) we had Winks who’s short of match practice, Aurier has only been with us a few weeks and has had next to no integrated preseason, Sanchez is also new, young and learning
3) we had players not playing in their favoured positions
4) the pitch was described as very sandy and extremely bobbly... nowhere near the standard of a premier league pitch and thus very difficult to be consistent on

To come away with 3 points and another learning curve for our young team is a testament to them.

 

[Qualsonic]

What a great result in a difficult place to go.

Really?
Difficult place to go?
Gimme a break, this is The Champions League, not the fucking Rumbelow Cup!! There won’t be any easier places to go in this cup.

But, yeah, great result.

 

[dagraham]

Alli in his current form should be nowhere near the 1st 11

And who plays in his place then? For all those that bang on about Son starting ahead of him today was a timely reminder that Son is just as inconsistent and is guilty of the same wastefulness and sloppy play. He was poor today.

 

[mpickard2087]

I don't like this 5-3-2. Depleted side or not, winning (again) or not, again tonight I saw mostly the same patterns as the previous games. We look far more open, we're not as compact, we aren't pressing as well and its easier for the opposition to bypass the 'press' that we are attempting.

Basically what we have is three defenders, two wingbacks (and ones often on their wrong side/out of position, so far this season), Dier dropping back, Sissoko running forward to join two strikers, and so just one man (Eriksen, Winks tonight) in the middle with the thankless task of trying to get a grip on the game. We barely played through midfield tonight for the first hour or so, it was just the long diagonal or hit the front man.

And then as I say we are less compact, and so when we do lose the ball this causes problems, we're not pressing that well anyway, and the 5-3-2 shape is leaving our wingbacks getting targeted by switches of play. People might say 'what's different?' to last year, but this system seems to be much more two strikers up top (and not really doing a huge amount off the ball) whilst last year you'd have Eriksen/Alli dropping in on the flanks to help out.

Selection then compounded this, Trippier offered nothing on the left but one cross and left us more predictable as to where we could look to break through them. it wasn't till Poch belatedly changed things, put players in reasonably logical and simplified positions and blocked off their switches of play going with two banks of four, that we finally looked comfortable, had our best spell, saw some ball and moved it around and killed the game off.

Look I know this was a tricky game, we had a lot of players missing and it was a big three points in terms of the group we should all be happy with. This system is proving to be effective and getting us results... But even so, I haven't really enjoyed what we have done in the last few games and if it continues then I probably wont enjoy it either - win, lose, or draw. For me it's been very messy football.

Lloris - Looked a bit rattled first half, sorted it out and was solid in the second.

Alderweireld - Smart ball for the opening goal, apart from that possibly the worst game I have seen him have for us.

Sanchez - Needs to calm down.

Davies - Unconvincing at LCB, much more comfortable when we went to a back four.

Aurier - Doesn't look settled yet at all. Not helped by the formation though in some ways.

Trippier - Offered nothing bar one cross at LWB (and admittedly should have been played in by Son). Looked far more comfortable on the right and put in a nice cross for the third goal.

Dier - Pretty anonymous. Improved in the latter stages.

Winks - For large spells of the game was the only one to show a semblance of quality, composure, and pass and move ability.

Sissoko - Wasn't really doing anything of note in the centre of the park. Looked better when we went to 4-4-2, and he picked out Kane nicely for the goal.

Son - Really poor game.

Kane - Particularly first half I wasn't impressed with much of what he did in all truth. Bit greedy, made some poor choices... Yet he's so good that he still manages to bag a hat-trick, and took all three goals very well - makes it look easy.

Subs:
Llorente - Some silky touches, not sure if he got out of first gear.
Nkoudou - Had one run, shanked it into Row Z.
Georgiou - Got on the pitch.

 

[Sid Tottenham]

Apoel have a really good home record maybe they can take something from Dortmund?
We beat them 3-0 ok they hit the bar and had a headed chance 1st half but I thought we were comfortable I wasn't worried at all to be fair
Mom is obvious
Edit with a depleted team

 

[THFCSPURS19]

Alli in his current form should be nowhere near the 1st 11

'Nowhere near'. Fucking hell

There's literally one player instead of Alli (Son) who a case could be made for.