What has happened to Angeball?
It was the question on the minds of many observers at Brentford on Sunday as Tottenham dropped deeper and deeper, clinging onto their narrow lead before eventually grabbing a second goal on the break to seal a much-needed, morale-boosting win.
It was the most defensive display of Ange Postecoglou’s reign, with Spurs making 49 clearances, 15 more than in any other Premier League game under him. The average position maps from that game, contrasted with the rest of the season, illustrate just how forced back Spurs were.
Tottenham’s average positions against Brentford (right) saw just two players in the opposition half – in contrast to their more usual front-foot approach
It was a performance incomparable to the early, bombastic days of Postecoglou’s time in charge, where Spurs fans revelled in the front-foot, thrilling approach of their side.
Last season, Angeball, briefly, took the Premier League by storm, before injuries to key players and inconsistent form blunted their edge. The infamous defeat at home to Chelsea underlined their commitment to the Australian’s demands, even when down to nine players.
Despite all the challenges of this second campaign, Postecoglou and his players have largely stuck to the general idea. Spurs rank second in the top flight for high turnovers, fifth for how high up the pitch they win the ball back and first for the amount of passes they allow the opposition to make before reclaiming possession.
They usually take the game to their opponents and don’t let them settle.
Until Sunday.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights from the Premier League match between Brentford and Tottenham
Victory over Thomas Frank’s side ended a four-game losing streak in the Premier League and a seven-game winless run in the competition. There was clear caution in Spurs’ first-half play with the ball, wary not to give possession up too easily or get caught out too high up the pitch. They then became even more pragmatic after Vitaly Janelt’s own goal.
Adaptation paid off. But it also brought to mind an early interview Postecoglou gave to Sky Sports in pre-season before his first Spurs campaign.
“No, no mate,” he said, laughing out loud at the suggestion he might instruct his team to defend a 1-0.
“I can’t coach that way. I wouldn’t know what to do to tell my players in the last five minutes just to hold onto a one-goal lead. It’s just not part of who I am and the way I coach.
“If I sort of chop and change just depending on the circumstances they’re going to go out there with no real clarity about where we are and what kind of team we want to be.”
Has Postecoglou changed? Not quite. He references “circumstances” in that quote but the injury crisis he and his squad have faced this season – and the subsequent need for players (including teenagers) to play twice a week without rotation – is not something he would have foreseen.
Since they beat Manchester City 4-0 at the Etihad on November 23, 18-year-old Archie Gray is their second most-used player in the Premier League. First-choice defenders Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have been sidelined for long periods with injury, along with No 1 goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.
It is that context which made Postecoglou bristle when the obvious question was put to him after the game on Sunday. What has happened to Angeball?
“It’s very difficult for a group of players to play Thursday-Sunday and maintain energy levels,” he said. “They’re giving maximum effort. That means you can’t be sharp with and without the ball. They’re humans not robots. I know the reality.
“It wasn’t a game we could go out and dominate. Brentford had a week to prepare for this, we had 50-something hours. In that context the performance was outstanding.”
Postecoglou also rightly pointed to Spurs’ second goal, a brilliant, slick move converted by Pape Sarr, as an example that his side were still looking for opportunities to attack. “We were always a threat when we had it,” he said.
But what Spurs will we see at Anfield for the all-important Carabao Cup semi-final second leg with Liverpool? Once again, they have a 1-0 lead to defend.
Thursday 6th February 7:00pm
Kick off 8:00pm
They were beaten 6-3 by Liverpool in the Premier League in north London just before Christmas but engaged in a tighter encounter with Arne Slot’s side in the first leg of this semi-final.
Liverpool had more possession, shots and shots on target and Radu Dragusin was needed to clear Trent Alexander-Arnold’s shot off the line before Lucas Bergvall’s controversial late winner.
Van de Ven – rested at the weekend as he returns to fitness – is likely to be back in the XI and Spurs will surely have plenty of defending to do against the Premier League’s top scorers.
How they go about it will be intriguing to see…
