Opinion: The five things that Tottenham are consistently doing wrong under Mourinho

Another week and another loss for Tottenham in the Premier League, as the Lilywhites do their best to write themselves out of contention for the top four.

Spurs led the game twice against Wolves today, but eventually lost the match at home by three goals to two.

I wanted to run through the five huge issues I see at Spurs at the moment –

Hollow midfield – 

In my opinion, Spurs need one player who is going to sit in that central midfield position and hold it all day long. I’m thinking like the Wanyama of old or Scott Parker at his best. Winks did a decent job a few weeks back, but Mourinho keeps pushing him forward in recent matches. A defensive midfielder with discipline is needed to make sure players can’t just dance into the box unchallenged.

No focal point – 

Dele Alli, Steven Bergwijn, and Lucas Moura. All three played as forward players today, yet not one occupied the striker position. Bergwijn came in from the left, Lucas on the right, and Dele as a false nine. With wing-backs pushing forward all day long, there was rarely more than one player in the box for a cross. Spurs need a focal point who is going to play as a striker and a striker alone for 90 minutes. Whether it is Dele, Parrott, Etete, Moura, Bergwijn, or whoever, they need to be present as a number 9.

Pressing from the front –

Spurs are struggling defensively when they attempt to see out games. They also have an abundance of pace at the top end of the pitch. Why are they not taking the pressure off the back line by defending from the front. With Lucas, Bergwijn, Dele, and Lo Celso pressing at full pace, the defenders have to work to beat them or clip it long for the Tottenham defenders to gobble up. Yet Spurs continue to sink deep and make it easy for the opposition.

Making changes – 

Spurs were 2-1 up today against Wolves at half-time. However, you could never say that they looked comfortable at the back or capable of going on and scoring a couple more. This is when I want to see the Mourinho of old. The head coach who knows how to whack on a couple of extra defenders, close down the space, and see out a game. Wolves’ attackers, such as Jota, Jiminez, and Traore, feed off of that space in behind. Spurs granted them those breaks all day long. I don’t mind park the bus football when it is needed to see out a game in desperate times such as these.

Parrott and Etete – 

Simply put, what have Spurs got to lose at this point. Play a striker who knows how to play in that position.

Related Topics