Tottenham Hotspur were back to winning ways this evening and what better way to do it than a victory over their bitter North London rivals, Arsenal?
Spurs grabbed a late winner through Toby Alderweireld to see themselves take all three points in the first meeting between the sides at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
So, what did we learn from the match?
4-4-2 balance –
The 4-4-2 formation had a much nicer balance to it against Arsenal today when compared to the recent 4-2-3-1 formations against Everton and Bournemouth. It allowed Son and Kane to link up in attack, while isolating Lucas Moura on the wing against the opposition defenders. Not only this, but Lo Celso had space in the middle to roam and dictate play in the first half.
Full-back problem –
The one negative to take from the match is the clear and obvious reality than neither Davies nor Aurier are good enough to start for Spurs. The club simply must either bring new players in or give the likes of Sessegnon, Walker-Peters, Tanganga, and Cirkin a chance.
Tanganga return –
Japhet Tanganga returned to the matchday squad today for the first time since his injury. While the young centre-back did not feature, Mourinho will be glad to have him for the final matches of the season and the summer training beyond.
Sissoko at RM –
Moussa Sissoko was arguably able to showcase the better sides of his game against Arsenal today from right midfield, rather than a central role. There was less emphasis on his passing and more on his defensive work to cover for Aurier and his lung-busting runs down the wing. Perhaps this is the ideal position for him moving forward.
Oliver Skipp given a chance –
For the first time since lockdown, Oliver Skipp was given some minutes on the pitch under Mourinho. This meant that we saw an all-academy central duo of Winks and Skipp at the end of the match. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come for the youngster for the rest of the season and the 2020/21 campaign.
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