Tottenham’s season promised so much under Ange Postecoglou, but has it all come crashing down? A blistering start had fans dreaming, yet injuries, defensive frailties, and inconsistency have derailed their top-four hopes.
Now, the Europa League looks like their best route back into the Champions League. Our sports team are breaking down where it’s gone wrong for Spurs, what they can salvage, and whether this season still lays the foundation for future success.
Now, the Europa League looks like their best route back into the Champions League. Our sports team are breaking down where it’s gone wrong for Spurs, what they can salvage, and whether this season still lays the foundation for future success.
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00:00Yeah, I mean, it is hard, isn't it, at the moment to find the positives, but, you know,
00:06I do think Anton Inkinski is a small positive. A lot of sports fans might disagree with me
00:12on that one. It is a bit of a controversial selection. He was obviously hugely at fault
00:16for the first goal. Whether he took his eye off it, I'm not sure. He seemed to be playing
00:20on emotion rather than actually playing the occasion and obviously threw one into the
00:25net and cost us a goal there. But actually, for a 21-year-old, I think that was his seventh
00:29starting goal. He's just come into the league. He's played in some huge games already. A
00:34lot of mitigating factors around for Inkinski. He's playing with a different back four every
00:39single game and half of the team that are playing in the defence are not defenders.
00:43He made three or four really, really big saves after that to keep the score down, particularly
00:48the first half. The second half, he made a big save from Ramsey and that will do his
00:54confidence the world of good, actually. The last thing you want to see is a young goalkeeper
00:58void of confidence and making errors. It's not a very good start to his first career.
01:02So, I actually think, in terms of a positive, he stood up. He showed real character and
01:08a lot of desire and, as I say, made a couple of really, really big saves there to keep
01:12us in the game. So, he is a marginal positive.
01:15And then for my second positive, I think you've got to give that to Mateus Tell. He didn't
01:20see a lot of the ball, to be fair, but he was always available. He was working hard.
01:25He led the press and he scored a terrific goal at the end. So, if we're looking for
01:29a crumb of comfort there, he's up and running, you know, just one and a half games into his
01:33Tottenham career. He's already got a goal. It was a really, really good clinical finish
01:37as well. So, hopefully, that gives him some momentum to come into the coming games, which
01:42we're obviously growing bigger and bigger by the week.
01:46And James, obviously, we mentioned out of the Carabao Cup with a wimper, out of the
01:51EFA Cup with a bit of an improvement, but they are still out of that as well. You know,
01:55really suffered in the league this season. How important does the Europa League now become
02:00for Spurs and Antropos Tocoglou and this side that have been desperately chasing trophies
02:08for a number of years and that drought could look to extend even further. It already has
02:13domestically this season. How important does the Europa League now become for Spurs and
02:18Spurs fans and the club's future as well?
02:20Yes, it's absolutely massive now, the Europa League. I mean, you know, I think what we
02:24need to do really is, you know, get those 13, 14 points on the board to be absolutely
02:29mathematically safe. I know it might sound a bit dramatic, but let's get safe in the
02:32Premier League. You know, let's get to 40 points as quickly as we possibly can. And
02:37then if we need to, we start resting players in the league and we really throw everything
02:40at the Europa League. Obviously, a huge prize at the end of it, potentially, with a spot
02:44in the Champions League, you know, the Holy Grail. So, it really is, you know, everything
02:49into that now. You know, we've put a lot into it so far and the performances have been
02:53relatively strong. Only one defeat in that competition against Galatasaray so far. Safely
02:58into the round of 16. Still awaiting our opponents, obviously, as well. But, you know, all the
03:04eggs need to go in the Europa League basket for me now. We've got to pick the league floor,
03:08no doubt, but let's get safe. We're not going to trouble the top six unless we have a real
03:13raffle and some of our rivals really sort of fall off a cliff. So, you know, if we can
03:17get into the top 10, I think that'll be something considering the problems we've had this year.
03:21But let's throw everything at the Europa League. And, you know, it's interesting now, no midweek
03:25football for two or three weeks. You know, I think Ang said about having a reset. I think
03:30this is the real time now we start to judge Ange Postacoglu. You know, he's had all the
03:35sort of excuses, the mitigating factors around the injuries. We've now got players back.
03:40We've now got four weeks of training. We can rest players. We can rotate the players that
03:44are mentally and physically fatigued and can obviously get a breather in as well.
03:47Could judge Ange Postacoglu on a level playing field, if you like, once these players are
03:51back in the XI. You know, he said that he thinks we'll be an outstanding team. We haven't
03:56showed that previously when we've had a fit squad, it must be said. We've lost 21 out
04:00of 45 games now, which is, you know, an absolutely horrific form. So, you know, a lot of people
04:05have been prepared to give him a bit of a pass. I've been a little bit more sceptical.
04:08And, you know, certainly seems to be worrying signs on the pitch, particularly, as I say,
04:13in that midfield area. We almost seem to have lost the ability to play in his sort
04:18of philosophy. But now, you know, a full week of training, Manchester United ahead, big
04:23test. But I want to see the real Spurs turn up now. And, you know, if not, I think ultimately
04:28it'll cost Postacoglu his job.