** Rubin Kazan v Tottenham Hotspur Match and Predictions Thread**

[Beni]

You say that, but ultimately it's given our players who are lacking a fitness a run out against a former Champions League team, it's given our kids an away experience they're unlikely have to experience again (in terms of harsh conditions) and got most of us using names like Townsend, Fredericks and Carroll like they play every week.

It's great exposure for the kids - and it's good to see what we've got coming through.

If you're expecting them to be World Beaters, you're not tuning in for the right reasons. 6 games that the kids and unfit players wouldn't necessarily have.

Better than a 'reserve' game. This is a competitive game after all.

Totally agree with this.

We will still qualify 1st or 2nd with our reserves / Youth team, and just proves how bad this tournament is these days, that we will still qualify with the team we put out.

Obviously the further along we go in this tournament the more serious we will take it.

 

[Houdini]

You say that, but ultimately it's given our players who are lacking a fitness a run out against a former Champions League team, it's given our kids an away experience they're unlikely have to experience again (in terms of harsh conditions) and got most of us using names like Townsend, Fredericks and Carroll like they play every week.

It's great exposure for the kids - and it's good to see what we've got coming through.

If you're expecting them to be World Beaters, you're not tuning in for the right reasons. 6 games that the kids and unfit players wouldn't necessarily have.

Better than a 'reserve' game. This is a competitive game after all.

This.... is what it is!

Especially the, "6 games that the kids and unfit players wouldn't necessarily have."

 

[tototoner]

Got what I thought we would tonight, lets just win our next 2 games to go through

 

[Spurs1960]

Well Mr Bassong that is why you were dropped for Ledley King, because he is 10 times the player you will ever be. Ledley concentrates, you don't. Would have been 0-0 but for you and then you went to pieces.

How the hell can Pav be offside when we are defending on our 18 yard box? Instead of us getting a free kick when we clear it and one of their players raises a foot as you try and head it, they get one for you being offside and we have to defend again. Bloody lazy and bloody useless again.

Pienaar was poor, expected a lot more from a player of his experience. Gallas was a class apart and Cudicini had the best game iv'e seen him have for us.

Thought Fredericks did alright for a winger playing full back. Townsend was disappointing, Carroll found it difficult. Great experience for the youngsters though and the result expected. Rubin just put 11 men behind the ball all the time and waited for us to come forward, midfield was to crowded and our youngsters had great difficulty dealing with it.

 

[kaz Hirai]

love for us to win this cup, and then get completely and utterly raped by barca in the super cup, it would be a pleasure to be raped by them :lol:

 

[Houdini]

love for us to win this cup, and then get completely and utterly raped by barca in the super cup, it would be a pleasure to be raped by them :lol:

I worry about you sometimes...






:lol:

 

[Kingellesar]

You say that, but ultimately it's given our players who are lacking a fitness a run out against a former Champions League team, it's given our kids an away experience they're unlikely have to experience again (in terms of harsh conditions) and got most of us using names like Townsend, Fredericks and Carroll like they play every week.

It's great exposure for the kids - and it's good to see what we've got coming through.

If you're expecting them to be World Beaters, you're not tuning in for the right reasons. 6 games that the kids and unfit players wouldn't necessarily have.

Better than a 'reserve' game. This is a competitive game after all.

Don't forget the extra cash too! I'm sure Levy is happy with the competition.

I think we are doing well in it, I just hope we stick with these lads and if we progress further we don't start using some bigger names, at the end of the day if this competition changed the prize, winners get CL, then this would be a much better competition overall. As it stands its just a run out for some fringe and kids, as well as getting fitness back for some players. Can't complain and we get more Tottenham on the telly.

 

[Mr Pink]

Was Gallas's injury the same calf problem?

Good run out for a few of them and an invaluable experience for the youngsters.

 

[Mr Pink]

Some of the comments in this thread are really perplexing. This was a team of kids and players returning from injury, mostly, playing away in Russia. Rubin are obviously a very technical outfit and if people were expecting a win or a real blinding performance they're seriously misguided.

 

[felmani26]

Some of the comments in this thread are really perplexing. This was a team of kids and players returning from injury, mostly, playing away in Russia. Rubin are obviously a very technical outfit and if people were expecting a win or a real blinding performance they're seriously misguided.

Agreed. Even with a full strength side playing it would be quite a challenge so losing tonight 1-0 is no disgrace.

I said before we kicked off though, for me, I just wanted us to come through the match unscathed which unfortunately wasn't the case as Gallas limped off but I'm hopeful it's not a setback as we could do with his presence as backup for King and Kaboul.

If I was to be critical about tonight and the selection was the continuing baffling decision to partner Deofe and Pavlyuchenko together - mainly because they are a terrible combination who don't compliment each others attributes at all well but also, I would have rathered we had another midfielder in there to gain a bit more of a foothold in the game than play with two forwards who were always going to be starved of service.

Still, I'm confident we will progress through to the knockout stage and that taking the positives out of this match, will be a valuable lesson for our youngsters to take forward with them.

 

[alfiespurs]

Well I thought the boys really stood out well ! Overally dissapointed with Bassong, his pathetic mistake cost us the Game. Pinnear just got back, so lay off him.. please. Well done Carlo Cuddicini .. you were fantastic !

 

[kaz Hirai]

wow that was bad

I worry about you sometimes...






:lol:

 

[Yid-ol]

Wasnt the best of games, we did well in patches, some players coming back did ok, shame gallas got injured though, knew we shouldnt have risked him......

Pav and Bassong were poor, i think pav was offside more than Defoe Eek

 

[eddiebailey]

A useful run out for a makeshift Spurs XI side. Impressed that playing against that standard of opposition in that atmosphere they did not get totally tonked. The kids in the side will have learnt a lot and all of them showed flashes of potential. Shame about Gallas but he needed a run out to build fitness and he could just as easily have picked up a knock against Crystal Place reserves.

 

[saintlyspur]

I just cant see any of these young lads including livermore becoming first team regulars

 

[hughy]

Did we have a shot on target?

 

[SuperSpurs_Ollie]

Did we have a shot on target?

No i dont think so.

Someone said above that Cudicini touched the ball more then any of our players on the pitch.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

To be fair, the only reason they didn't get tonked was that Ruben aren't very good inthe final third.

I have no problem with playing reserves and youngsters, I think it's the right thing to do, but there was some poor tactics, and some poor performances tonight.

You could see some of the traits of the first team in this performance. Spells of looking comfortable on the ball in midfield in the first 25 minutes, but generally poor pressing and a poor second half generally. People forgot to move, the passing went to pish and we started humping long balls everywhere.

Why did we play 442 against a team that plays a kind of 4231/451 away form home ?
It made a hard job much harder.

Why wasn't our young left back playing at left back ?

Why is Pav made of cardboard ?

 

[PrettyColors]

Why wasn't our young left back playing at left back ?

If you're asking about Rose, it's because he was injured.

But the rest of the post I agree with. I know it was only one game, away, vs. a good side, but still. Our academy really doesn't look to be producing any talent that's good enough for a CL team.

 

[MattyP]

If you're asking about Rose, it's because he was injured.

But the rest of the post I agree with. I know it was only one game, away, vs. a good side, but still. Our academy really doesn't look to be producing any talent that's good enough for a CL team.

That's probably because we've been a CL team once in over 40 years :up:

So, our academy is producing talent good enough to hold their own in the Uefa cup, which we've been in considerably more than we have the Champions League.

They probably won't improve our team, but they'd do a job in a mid table premier league team and would therefore just about generate enough transfer fees to pay for their footballing education.

As for tonight, well I was expecting a tonking, so am relieved it was only a one goal defeat, even if that was more down to Carlo than anyone else.