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Slow starts

coys200

Well-Known Member
May 22, 2017
8,436
17,403
2018 table below. Actually think it’s even better 1 more win. What do we think the reason is for the kick on in new year ? Last minute transfers ? Poch training regime ? Whatever it is there is definitely a consistent pattern now and can’t be a coincidence. Infact if I’m correct it’s not always start of season but around Oct/nov time.Next season again won’t be helped by World Cup and new stadium, but at least transfer window will close early.
6DBDFA12-6AE1-47CD-9727-0C2D1D4D03C7.jpeg
 

hellava_tough

Well-Known Member
Apr 21, 2005
9,429
12,383
Have we been unlucky with injuries during this part of the season, for a couple of seasons in a row?

Wasn't Kane out a couple of seasons ago and this season I think there was also a CM injury crisis? Oh, and a defensive injury crisis.

I think...just a thought to get the thread rolling
 

spurs9

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
11,905
34,430
IMO, I think it's to do with our fitness training. At the start of the season we aren't too bad as it hasn't taken it's toll yet, but we look fatigued in November until mid December but then after that, we start to benefit from the earlier intensity of training and we gradually improve until we hit beast mode in mid to late Jan.
 

hellava_tough

Well-Known Member
Apr 21, 2005
9,429
12,383
IMO, I think it's to do with our fitness training. At the start of the season we aren't too bad as it hasn't taken it's toll yet, but we look fatigued in November until mid December but then after that, we start to benefit from the earlier intensity of training and we gradually improve until we hit beast mode in mid to late Jan.

If that is the case, and I'm not doubting it, then we'll probably have to change our fitness regime as there's no way we'll win the league with a 2 month dip in form, every season
 

JimmyG2

SC Supporter
Dec 7, 2006
15,014
20,779
Football like life is very complicated.
No single factor will be the absolutely verifiable single, cause.
There will be a jumble of things:
fitness regime, injuries, form, confidence, momentum, weather.
In each season it will be different combinations of these factors.
Wembley can be added to the pout pourri this year.

I leave it to the spreadsheet boys to narrow it down if they can
 

Bobbins

SC's 14th Sexiest Male 2008
May 5, 2005
21,617
45,243
It would be interesting if we got a squad big/talented enough for Poch to be able to measure out some of his fitness training so that not every player was working on the exact same regime, potentially meaning we might have some players fresher at certain periods of the season than others.
 

lukespurs7

Well-Known Member
Feb 21, 2006
4,833
4,259
Interesting question.
For the last 4-5 years it’s been because of a new manager implementing his style, late transfers and the squad being unsettled and then this season the slow start was because of Wembley. Hopefully next season the new stadium will be a big positive rather than cause of another slow start. World Cup should effect most top teams similarly.
 

Shadydan

Well-Known Member
Jul 7, 2012
38,247
104,143
It's wierd how every November we seem to take a dip. Reckon it's to do with our fitness training, probably the double sessions and pre season taking their toll.
 

hellava_tough

Well-Known Member
Apr 21, 2005
9,429
12,383
Interesting question.
For the last 4-5 years it’s been because of a new manager implementing his style, late transfers and the squad being unsettled and then this season the slow start was because of Wembley. Hopefully next season the new stadium will be a big positive rather than cause of another slow start. World Cup should effect most top teams similarly.

Yeah it could be this - we've essentially been in a bit of a transition period for the last few seasons

Let's see how we're doing in 3 or 4 seasons time, hopefully with Poch still at the helm (y)
 

Mate

Well-Known Member
Dec 9, 2006
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3,891
If that is the case, and I'm not doubting it, then we'll probably have to change our fitness regime as there's no way we'll win the league with a 2 month dip in form, every season

Well we got 86 points last season, so if that is the output of our regime then I'm more than happy with it :)
 

hellava_tough

Well-Known Member
Apr 21, 2005
9,429
12,383
Well we got 86 points last season, so if that is the output of our regime then I'm more than happy with it :)

It's all relative to our opposition though and if we keep on coming up short we need to change things

Also interesting to note that our title rival and eventual champions Chelsea didn't have European football to play last season
 

Trix

Well-Known Member
Jul 29, 2004
19,583
331,212
One factor is our fitness is better. As the season goes on it makes more and more of a difference
 

ExpatFan

Well-Known Member
May 11, 2005
1,878
1,680
It would be interesting if we got a squad big/talented enough for Poch to be able to measure out some of his fitness training so that not every player was working on the exact same regime, potentially meaning we might have some players fresher at certain periods of the season than others.
I seem to remember reading that Fergie did something like this... started resting/rotating 4-5 players come November.
 

DogsOfWar

Well-Known Member
Jan 12, 2005
2,303
3,645
The way I saw it injuries had the biggest effect.
No Lamela meant no attacking subs if we played 4-2-3-1 (forcing us into 3-4-3 a lot) and losing Rose meant no rotational option for Davies.
So when the CL kicked in we had to prioritise between the league and the CL, and due to the quality of the opposition, we went CL.
Since the return of Lamela and Rose, and the purchase of Moura, we have been able to field a competitive 4-2-3-1 in every competition.
 

danielneeds

Kick-Ass
May 5, 2004
24,182
48,812
One factor is our fitness is better. As the season goes on it makes more and more of a difference
i think that's right, in the first half of the season - Aug-Dec - most of the teams are on a level playing field fitness-wise. But after Xmas our superior conditioning kicks in, and other teams become jaded, and we run over the dross with greater ease.

Also we just seem to get a some bastard injuries each November.
 

mckenz

Well-Known Member
Jan 27, 2011
967
2,355
Didn't Fergie teams usually start slow? I seem to remember thinking at the beginning of the season they looked beatable but by the new year they were cruising....

might be selective memory
 

14/04/91

Well-Known Member
Jan 13, 2006
3,572
5,762
Our poorest run (Arsenal, Leicester, WBA, Watford included) occurred just after Toby got injured & we went from back 3 to back 4.
This disrupted us & meant Sanchez had to learn fast. Plus we had other injuries.

This was when we stumbled imo.
 

Spurs 1961

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2012
6,684
8,754
If we could just have started decently over the last couple of seasons all might be different. Like others I can only surmise

1) Tough training regime and when we start we are not match sharp perhaps from the training. The upside of this is we don't run out of steam as we did a few seasons back on a regular basis. We finish stronger than anyone else.
2) Late transfers both in and out which seem to unsettle our squad
3) Injuries and sometimes suspension of key players at the start of a season
4) See above and add International call ups with many of our players being key individual for their national teams and by nature of being a modern Spurs player give everything to the cause

Perhaps also we are too cautious early on in a season
 

RichieS

Well-Known Member
Dec 23, 2004
11,916
16,436
If we could just have started decently over the last couple of seasons all might be different. Like others I can only surmise

1) Tough training regime and when we start we are not match sharp perhaps from the training. The upside of this is we don't run out of steam as we did a few seasons back on a regular basis. We finish stronger than anyone else.
2) Late transfers both in and out which seem to unsettle our squad
3) Injuries and sometimes suspension of key players at the start of a season
4) See above and add International call ups with many of our players being key individual for their national teams and by nature of being a modern Spurs player give everything to the cause

Perhaps also we are too cautious early on in a season
Wasn't it last season that we had our best start since 60/61? As @coys200 says in the opening post, it's usually around mid-October that we start a "poor" run.

I think we deliberately play within ourselves during the first half of the season and due to the fact that our players are so much better than most other teams', we usually rack up plenty of points while doing so. The problem is that around October/November when the games start coming thick and fast and one or two injuries crop up, some of that gulf in quality is negated. Hopefully after this summer we will have more quality throughout the squad which will enable us to keep players fresher and turn some of those Autumn draws into wins.
 
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