LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 02: Kyle Walker of Tottenham Hotspur (C) and Dele Alli of Tottenham Hotspur (R) embrace after the final whistle during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at White Hart Lane on October 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
5 things Tottenham learned by dominating Manchester City
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 02: Kyle Walker of Tottenham Hotspur (C) and Dele Alli of Tottenham Hotspur (R) embrace after the final whistle during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at White Hart Lane on October 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
Tottenham learned a lot about themselves today
You can bet that Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino isn’t getting too excited about his club’s 2-0 victory over Manchester City. He realizes the Premier League season is a marathon, not a sprint.
That doesn’t mean that he isn’t excited about Spurs’ performance on the day though. On the contrary, I’m sure he is quite encouraged about the way his squad performed in their biggest match of the season.
The key for both clubs will be to learn valuable lessons in the aftermath of the intriguing clash. City will use the match as motivation to work harder in training, while Spurs will use it as a shining example of how good they can be against elite competition.
Tomorrow, Pochettino will step into his office and start to really digest his side’s performance. He’ll want to glean every bit of knowledge he can from his victory over Pep Guardiola.
Luckily, you don’t have to wait that long. Read on to discover the five more important lessons Tottenham learned in their dominating victory.
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<p>Firstly, he went away from his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation to begin the match to get his most talented 11 players on the pitch. That meant deploying Victor Wanyama as a single defensive midfielder.</p>
<p>It was a bold move by the Spurs manager. Manchester City have world-class attackers all over the pitch, yet Tottenham chose to start less defensive midfielders than normal. That’s certainly a counterintuitive philosophy.</p>
<p>Wanyama responded to his manager’s decision by playing his best match as a Spur. He also got significant defensive contributions from both Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen playing just in front of the Kenyan destroyer.</p>
<p>Pochettino made a subtle, but significant shift in formation, and it paid off big time for Spurs.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2016/10/03/5-things-tottenham-learned-dominating-manchester-city/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 4. Son can be a striker </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-421394" src=https://playingfor90.com/2016/10/03/5-things-tottenham-learned-dominating-manchester-city/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F10%2F611954548-tottenham-hotspur-v-manchester-city-premier-league-850x560.jpg" alt="" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 02: Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur (L) takes the ball past Pablo Zabaleta of Manchester City (R) during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at White Hart Lane on October 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>4. Son can be a striker</h3>
<p>Son Heung-Min isn’t a natural centre forward, but he can do a job there against elite competition. Pochettino placed his faith in the Korean to lead his line against City, and Son delivered an excellent performance.</p>
<p>He’s still better on the left wing, but he does give his manager another option up top. That’s of particular importance considering the current injury to Harry Kane. The absence of Kane leaves only he and Vincent Janssen as senior strikers available for selection.</p>
<p>Son can play in Kane’s spot, but he goes about his task much differently. He wants to play on the last shoulder of the defender almost exclusively. Unfortunately, this earned him quite a few off side calls against City.</p>
<p>Even more impressive than his play leading the line on offense, was the way he led the front wave of Tottenham’s high press. He was a complete menace to keeper Claudio Bravo and the City back line. Son’s effort on the high press set the tone for the entire match.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2016/10/03/5-things-tottenham-learned-dominating-manchester-city/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 3. Christian Eriksen has been studying Luka Modric </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 02: Raheem Sterling of Manchester City (R) is put under pressure from Christian Eriksen of Tottenham Hotspur (L) during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at White Hart Lane on October 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>3. Christian Eriksen has been studying Luka Modric</h3>
<p>We may be watching a profound shift in Christian Eriksen’s career. Up until now, he’s always wanted to play as an attacking number 10. Lately though, he’s looked more comfortable playing further back in the formation.</p>
<p>That move can’t help but conjure reminders of the way Luka Modric played in the midfield for Spurs. Like Eriksen, he isn’t the most physical midfielder in Europe, but he can control the match with his passing.</p>
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<p>I’m not expecting to see Eriksen transition fully into a defensive midfielder anytime soon, but it’s nice to know he has the flexibility to play there if need be. More importantly, it means he can play a deeper role than Tottenham’s other attacking midfielders. That should create a lot of space for players like Alli, Lamela and Son.</p>
<p>Perhaps I just want to see Eriksen become the next Modric, but it really seems as if he’s taking a cue from the Real Madrid star. At the very least, it’s something to watch as the season progresses.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2016/10/03/5-things-tottenham-learned-dominating-manchester-city/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 2. Hugo Lloris is still a star </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 02: Hugo Lloris of Tottenham Hotspur (L) collects the ball before Sergio Aguero of Manchester City (R) can reach it during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at White Hart Lane on October 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>2. Hugo Lloris is still a star</h3>
<p>The way Tottenham have played as of late, it’s easy to forget just how good Hugo Lloris is. After all, the talented Spurs defense typically does a good job keeping shots away from their French captain.</p><div class="widget fs_ads"> <div class="fs_ad_widget-ad" style="margin:0 auto; width: 300px;"> <div class="fs-ll-ad" data-ad-type="minutemedia_slideshow_inline_300x250__desktop__tablet" data-vendor="minutemedia">
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<p>The backline played a really good match against City, but they couldn’t keep all of the trouble away from Lloris. That allowed the Frenchman to show his full range of talents with a variety of really top-notch saves.</p>
<p>In all honesty, it’s unfair to Lloris that we forget his brilliance even for a moment. Spurs fans have been spoiled by his spectacular player over the years. Matches like this serve as a reminder of how good he used to have to play every match.</p>
<p>You also can’t underestimate how much comfort Lloris’ presence is for the rest of his club’s defense. Knowing that you have one of the best keepers in the world playing behind you has to embolden your play as a Tottenham defender.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #0" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2016/10/03/5-things-tottenham-learned-dominating-manchester-city/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> 1. Spurs can win without Harry Kane </a>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 18: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur is put onto a stretcher after coming off injured during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland at White Hart Lane on September 18, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>1. Spurs can win without Harry Kane</h3>
<p>Lost in the euphoria after the big win, is the fact that Tottenham beat the current Premier League leaders without their most prolific goal scorer. Harry Kane’s absence became a real afterthought after Spurs’ dominating performance.</p>
<p>That’s a pretty amazing statement. Before the season, Spurs fans would have been in a panic about the possibility of playing without Kane for an extended period of time. The emergence of Son Heung-Min as a legitimate goal threat has changed that completely.</p>
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<p>Now, every member of the Spurs squad knows they can win a big Premier League match without Harry Kane. That could pay immense dividends as the season progresses. Even after Kane returns from his current knock, it gives Pochettino the ability to rest him whenever he sees fit.</p>
<p>Ultimately, it’s a testament to how Pochettino and Daniel Levy have built this squad from top to bottom. It’s the most complete Tottenham squad in years.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
