How can a football club like Tottenham Hotspur be fixed?
Always on the brink of an existential crisis, Spurs suffered perhaps their worst defeat under Ange Postecoglou on Sunday, falling to a 2-1 loss to Ipswich Town and give up the chance to head into the international break in third place in the Premier League.
Given the tight nature of the table, there may not yet be any serious concerns from the Australian boss. However, the inconsistency shown by his side in the early stages of the campaign has been nothing short of infuriating for supporters. Going from victory over Manchester City and Aston Villa in defeats against Galatasaray and Ipswich in the space of a week is proof of that.
The underlying numbers suggest Tottenham should be far better than they currently are, but what do they need to fix to enjoy a more prosperous 2024/25 break?
Tottenham You have a very defined Achilles heel right now. And no, they are not corners where they often seem most vulnerable.
The north Londoners often find themselves struggling to block crosses from their left, but when their centre-backs come in and drag them in, Pedro Porro is absorbed and Brennan Johnson can be blamed for not tracking to the fullest.
This leaves room at the back post, where the likes of Leicester City, Brighton & Hove Albion, West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Man City have taken advantage to hit the back of the net.
It’s a maddening flaw in Postecoglou’s game plan and one that absolutely needs attention, otherwise opponents will continue to rinse him for all he’s worth.
There’s no doubt that James Maddison can’t offer power-running stars such as Pape Matar Sarr and Dejan Kulusevski, which makes his recent omission of multiple Premier League Starting XI is somewhat understandable.
And while Postecoglou has got his substitutions right at points in recent weeks, giving the England international just six more minutes of stoppage time off the bench against Ipswich was a curious decision.
Maddison is arguably the most creative passer in Tottenham’s squad and something incisive was needed at the weekend to open up a resolute away defence. He didn’t get enough time to make a difference and his skill set simply cannot be underutilized when few players in the team can create chances like him.
It has been a frustrating start to the campaign for the Tottenham captain.
Son Heung-min he has struggled with a hamstring problem and hasn’t been able to get much pace. Three goals and three assists in the league isn’t too bad at this stage, but it’s not as good as the South Korean is capable of.
Many times he has been placed on the side almost as a touchline-hugging winger. Although Son has moved inside to look for opportunities to launch his signature attacks from distance, he hasn’t threatened as regularly as he would like.
His partnership with Dominic Solanke still needs time to develop, but the 32-year-old can no longer watch games go by. It needs to be more involved in the core areas where it is so devastating.
Radu Dragusin arrived from Genoa to rather enthusiastic reviews, having provoked one tender war with European giants such as Bayern Munich supposedly interested.
However, so far the Romanian has failed to convince anyone of his pedigree and was, perhaps unluckily, at fault for Ipswich’s second goal. Unfortunately or not, the drop in quality from Micky van de Ven to his recent replacement is terribly steep, especially since Dragusin can’t provide the quick pace that the Dutchman does.
Thin hamstrings like Van de Ven’s role will be a big concern as he’s already had to miss a lot of games at Spurs, but Tottenham’s style of play is perhaps more reliant on him than any other player. He should be available for the first game after the international break, an intriguing trip to Manchester City who have lost four games in a row.
There was a strange moment at the end of the Ipswich defeat where Postecoglou appeared to pick out a member of the home crowd for a staring contest, presumably because something foul had been shouted at the terraces.
Yes, fan discontent is growing. Yes, the team’s inconsistency is borderline ridiculous. But it is also Postecoglou’s second season in charge and the club’s second campaign without legendary striker Harry Kane.
There were always bumps in the road and this latest defeat changes nothing. Indeed, there may be another couple of low points before Spurs look like genuine, reliable contenders again.
Supporters are quite justified in being upset after losing to a team that had not won a league game prior to playing in north London, but Tottenham are still going through their own rebuilding process and more time needs to be given to Postecoglou to modify their tactics. .
For context, Postecoglou has 25 wins in his first 50 Premier League games. Jurgen Klopp and Mikel Arteta both managed 26, while Pep Guardiola’s tally was only 36.
There may be a bright future ahead for Tottenham, but there will be pain to endure along the way. Once this holistic truth is widely accepted, the easier it will be to heal after each ridiculous defeat.
