End-Game: EPL Round-Up for Game Week 5

ThinkSpurs End-Game: Weekly Round-Up, Reviews

And so the wheel keeps turning. Tottenham followed up last week’s disheartening Champions League debut defeat to Monaco with a much needed win over a struggling Sunderland side. Tottenham dominated throughout the game and were held at bay by heroics from Sunderland keeper Jordan Pickford. However, in the end Harry Kane struck to ensure Spurs continued their unbeaten start to the Premier League season. So now; looking in the rear-view mirror, what did we learn in Game Week 5?

Son continues to shine

On a day when Mauricio Pochettino shuffled the deck in order to freshen up the First XI, Heung Min Son retained his place in the Premier League starting line-up following his impressive showing against Stoke last week (and also rewarded my faith my naming him one of my Tottenham players ready to make a leap to the next level in 2016/17). As Tottenham laid siege on the Sunderland defence, the Korean dynamo terrorised the right back Denayer from the left side of midfield, constantly probing and providing threat. Son’s delivery of ball into the scoring area from set pieces and from play was another constant source of danger, and the wide attacker was denied yet another goal to cap a fine display by the width of the post.

With Moussa Sissoko arriving and looking promising, Erik Lamela continuing to rise and the newly resigned Alli-Eriksen combination also looking like their old selves, Pochettino is faced with a tricky selection predicament, now that Heung Min Son is performing at a First XI level. This of course is a much needed issue, as Tottenham are in constant need for depth to keep competitive on all fronts. However, this raises an interesting possibility: With the attacking midfield position already looking crowded, perhaps there could be place up front…

Kane: Able?

After getting off the mark in the season last week, Harry Kane shrugged off a difficult midweek match to score the winner in the second half on Sunday after a gift from Sunderland defender Papa Djilobodji.  However, soon after Tottenham fans winced as Kane later limped off with a suspected ankle injury. Kane was said to have left the dressing later aided by crutches and Mauricio Pochettino expressed his fears of ankle ligament damage after the game.

Awarded the lofty number 3 position in my recent Tottenham Power Rankings, Kane’s importance to this side is paramount. Last year, Spurs hopes seemed to rest on Kane’s seemingly injury-proof shoulders, as Tottenham had no specialist striker in reserve all season. This year the addition of Dutch hitman Vincent Janssen has eased the load on Kane but the ex-Eredivisie marksman is yet to score in competitive Tottenham action. A loss of Kane for a significant amount of time would deal a huge blow to Tottenham’s ambitions, but if, as hoped, the injury is short-term, then Spurs fans could be quite confident that Janssen could carry the scoring load. Alternatively, Pochettino could look to keep all of his in-form midfielders on the pitch at once, and keep Heung Min Son in the side as a pseudo-striker while Kane heals.

Driving forward from the Engine Room

While the likes of Harry Kane, Heung Min Son or Dele Alli have drawn many plaudits for their attacking displays this term, and Toby Alderweireld and Danny Rose have received similar praise at the back, it’s sometimes overlooked that one of this Tottenham side’s current greatest strengths is the centre of midfield.

Even as Spurs faltered in attack in the early weeks, Tottenham’s midfield was rock-solid as Victor Wanyama and Eric Dier provided a dominant platform. In Tottenham’s four league games leading up to the Champions League tie vs Monaco, Tottenham never once conceded more than a goal. Conceding two in the first half in Wednesday’s action may have been in part due to the more attack minded presence of Dele Alli in the midfield pivot. The introduction of Mousa Dembele in the second half on Wednesday raised Tottenham’s game (and the noise level in the stand) as the Belgian powerhouse seamlessly slotted back in to his own role.

On Sunday, Tottenham pushed Eric Dier back to the centre of defence in order to allow Wanyama and Dembele to overpower the Sunderland midfield. Dembele looked like his old self, looking like a man against boys, and as a result, Tottenham enjoyed the lion’s share of possession allowing a flow of chances throughout the game.

The addition of Wanyama and Sissoko in the off-season provides a great alternative, should Dembele be rested, but keeping the battling Belgian healthy for this campaign is just as important to Tottenham’s prospects as the fitness of Harry Kane.

And…The rest of the league

  • Three losses on the bounce for Mourinho’s Manchester United charges must be making the Portuguese coach feel a little hot under the collar. The most damning indictment is that the loss to Watford was not a shock result by any means, as Watford completely outplayed their much vaunted opponents. The continued under-performance of Wayne Rooney is proving to be the most pressing headache for José…
  • What is happening at Stoke City? After drawing much praise for all angles over the summer for assembling what seemed to be a very attractive team, Mark Hughes has now seen 8 goals conceded and 13 goals conceded and only 2 scored on a 3 game losing streak. Hard to believe we are only 8 months forward from links of Hughes to the Man United job!
  • Klopp continued his impressive record in big games at Liverpool with an underdog victory at Stamford Bridge on Thursday. With no Champions League football to contend with, Liverpool could prove to be a serious potential rival to Tottenham this season…

 

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