Tottenham Hotspur may have taken a 1-0 lead to Anfield in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg, but that did little to prevent a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Liverpool.
Yet another trophy goes begging for Tottenham
Another year, another trophy. Tottenham Hotspur still feel no closer to actually ending that silverware drought. Tonight was a real chance to set up a cup final against Newcastle – a team in a similar boat when it comes to winning trophies. Too many Spurs players not only failed to rise to the occasion but actively shrivelled away from it.
They always say that the Carabao Cup is the ‘easiest’ route to a trophy – but that door is well and truly shut now. If Ange Postecoglou wants to follow through on his promise of winning something in his second season, Tottenham need to find some form – and fast!
No pressing, no passion, no bravery
No matter what the result this season, Ange Postecoglou has always built his team on one core concept – attack is the best form of defence. Of course, no manager sets their team up to concede, but if you score more than your opponent, it doesn’t really matter how many you let in. No matter how determined Ange has been to stick to that principle, it has faded away in recent weeks.
This evening, Tottenham showed absolutely nothing for 90 minutes. They barely attempted to press beyond the halfway line at times. They gave the ball away for fun in the middle of the park. They seemed allergic to actually taking people on in attack. At 2-1, we even saw Spurs players jogging around instead of breaking their necks to win the ball back. I know they are fatigued this this injury crisis, but it’s a semi-final and they showed no grit or determination from minute one. Beyond frustrating to see.
Pedro Porro rested for a semi-final
This one left me boggled. Yes, he hasn’t been in the best form of late, but Pedro Porro can create you a goal out of nothing, and Tottenham only have maybe two or three players who can do that. The Spaniard has been run into the ground for months now, but this is the game Postecoglou chooses to rest him? The most important game of the season so far. I simply do not understand the thinking behind that. Rest him last week. Rest him next week. You do not drop your first-choice right-back in a game of this magnitude.
Tottenham didn’t even show up for the midfield battle
There’s losing the midfield battle and then there’s turning up to the wrong battleground entirely. Yves Bissouma has been inconsistent all season and we saw the worst of him tonight. Pape Sarr looks fatigued and thrives more in a free-flowing high-pressing Spurs team. Rodrigo Bentancur is the one I expected so much more from this evening, but even he shied away from making those brave defence-splitting passes, and seemed reluctant to put his body on the line at times. When you bring that kind of underperforming trio up against one of the hardest-working midfields in the league, the game is already lost.
Debuts for Danso and Mathys Tel
If there is one silver lining, and I am really struggling to find one, it is that Kevin Danso actually looks like a good fit for the system. He was very much let down by the midfield in front of him this evening and did not deserve to concede four goals. Fingers crossed he gets a chance to play in a proper Ange-ball team over the coming weeks and months.
Mathys Tel barely got a kick of the ball unfortunately, such was Tottenham’s inability to actually get into the Liverpool half. I’m sure we will see plenty more of him in the weeks to come, especially if Solanke and Richarlison are both out injured.