History Repeating

The Emirates curse lives on | A great start to the Conti Cup overshadowed by an injury | Previewing an away trip to Frankfurt

It was an eventful weekend for both Spurs teams, and while I would prefer to start on a (mostly) positive note with the Women's match, we may as well rip off the bandaid and start with the Men's frustrating derby defeat to Arsenal.

Arsenal 3 - 1 Tottenham

I think I may have finally learned my lesson about going into the away NLD fixture with a positive outlook. We really do just seem to be cursed when we play there. Only a curse could produce such a nonsensical refereeing decision as we saw in the second half. But let's back up first.

It honestly wasn't a terrible first half. Sure, we conceded a fairly early goal in the 20th minute (and to the most odious player possible, Thomas Partey), but it didn't take long to equalize after forcing a penalty in the 31st minute through some brilliant attacking play. Harry Kane naturally converted the penalty with his usual accuracy—albeit by shooting down the middle, which is not his signature penalty technique. We'd taken a while to grow into the game, but by the end of the first half, it felt like the momentum was firmly on our side and we had a good chance of grabbing a lead early in the second half.

Unfortunately, a rare double error from Cristian Romero and Hugo Lloris allowed Arsenal to regain the lead in the 49th minute through Gabriel Jesus. After making an initial save on Bukayo Saka's shot, Lloris wasn't able to hold onto the ball and it deflected out to Romero, who instead of clearing the ball attempted to pass it back to Lloris. Since they were only a couple of feet apart, Hugo couldn't react quick enough to get back down and the ball bounced under him and Gabriel Jesus was able to get around them both to tap the ball into the goal from close range. Spurs still would have had a decent chance to get back into the game after that if it weren't for what happened in the 62nd minute.

Emerson Royal came down on Gabriel Martinelli in what was undoubtedly a foul (and a stupid, needless one at that, happening in Arsenal's defensive third), but certainly didn't seem dangerous or malicious. Head official Anthony Taylor sent Royal off with a straight red card. Even though I disagree that it was a challenge worthy of a straight red, I could have lived with Taylor's decision if it weren't for the fact that he hadn't given out a single card of any color up until that point in the match, despite plenty of yellow-worthy challenges from both teams. There was one in particular by Martin Ødegaard on Son Heung-min in the first half that I was astonished to see him get away with.

But it had felt like Taylor had made an early judgment call to let the derby match be physical and that there was a high threshold (by his standards) for what sort of foul would constitute a booking. I genuinely feel that he broke his own precedent by giving Royal the straight red, and it was unwarranted in the context of the game. And crucially, it changed the course of the game, all but ensuring the result would remain in Arsenal's favor as Spurs went down to ten men. Taylor decided to make himself the main character in a story that already had a compelling cast and was making its way to its natural climax before his intervention rushed the conclusion. We complain a lot about VAR determining the outcome of matches, but it's just as bad when an official does it unilaterally. Either way, it's frustrating when otherwise interesting, competitive matches are ruined.

Arsenal were able to double their lead through a Granit Xhaka goal in the 67th minute. Clément Lenglet attempted to make a last-ditch block, but Xhaka's shot went past a slow-to-react Lloris.

Conte was too conservative (though not surprisingly) with his choice of a starting 3-4-3 formation; a 3-5-2 formation, much desired by fans, would have given us more control in the midfield and made it possible to dictate the flow of the match from the start, rather than failing to get a foothold in the game until the end of the first half. You would think he would have learned a lesson from his predecessor, Nuno, who also saw his midfield overran in the disastrous away NLD last season.

But I do think it was wise of Conte to accept that a positive result was out of reach after Royal's sending-off, and he did the right thing to utilize all five of his substitutions to take off and protect key players ahead of the next midweek Champions League game—we can ill afford another group stage blunder—while simultaneously giving some minutes to players who desperately needed them. Lenglet, Ivan Perišić, Richarlison, and Son made way for Davinson Sánchez, Ryan Sessegnon, Yves Bissouma, and Matt Doherty in the 72nd minute, and just a few minutes later Pierre-Emile Højbjerg was replaced by Oliver Skipp. Yes, Skippy lives! Full disclosure, I had mentally checked out of the game by this point due to despair, so I don't have much analysis to offer in the way of how the substitutes did, but I think the man management aspect from Conte is the most important takeaway.

While I have learned my lesson about expecting to get something out of this ill-fated fixture, I will still persist in trying to find some silver linings after a defeat:

• Spurs remain 3rd in the PL table

• Skipp finally made his return to PL action after being out for months, and will hopefully be an active presence in the squad during this jam-packed month of fixtures

• This was only the first loss of the season, and again, it's one that we should all come to realistically expect, however bitter a pill that is to swallow

• Lenglet is proving to be a pretty capable replacement for Ben Davies when the latter is injured, although I still prefer Davies myself, and think his previous NLD experience would have been an asset on Saturday

On a final note, I wish that the larger fan community would stop being so reactionary when it comes to individual performances. Earlier in the season, most people would agree that Royal and Richarlison had been playing well and doing their part to contribute to the team, but after this NLD they were being widely panned. For the record, I don't actually think Richarlison had that bad of a game, to begin with—despite missing a big chance in the first half—but to each their own. There was also some revisionist history going on from folks saying Dejan Kulusevski should always start, when many of the same fans were clamoring for Richarlison to get more starts, and we know he isn't always going to be rotated with Son (and yes, Deki will require rotation from time to time, he's not a machine, with his current injury presented as evidence). My point is that having one bad day at the office doesn't mean a player should be written off for the rest of the season. They will both have their part to play in the long, busy season ahead. I think it would be better for fans to get behind them when they most need the support. If that makes me a happy clapper, so be it. And like it or not, this is the squad we have until at least January.

Kicking off the Conti Cup campaign

Now to discuss a much more positive result, Spurs Women's first group stage game in the Conti (League) Cup.

Reading 1 - 2 Tottenham

In fairness, another one-goal win margin suggests that there's still a concern around finishing games strong, but overall, this was a much-needed improved performance after the disappointing NLD last weekend.

Rehanne Skinner opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Ash Neville finally getting a chance to start in the right-hand side attacking role that she previously flourished in last season. I was a little surprised to see Becky Spencer starting for the third match in a row, not because her presence in the net is ever unwelcome, but because I thought we were due for a Tinni Korpela appearance. Other notable lineup choices included Angharad James returning to the starting XI and both Cho So-hyun and Celin Bizet starting for the second game in a row, whilst Nikola Karczewska got her first start for the club.

Perhaps more significant than any of the individual starting lineup choices was the situation with the bench. Luckily, the originally announced bench of just four players was upped to five when Ellie Brazil was put in as a late addition (and just for some foreshadowing... very necessarily!), but that number is still a dire reflection of the early-season injury crisis Spurs have found themselves in. Although we haven't heard any specific injury updates on them, both Jess Naz and Ramona Petzelberger were nowhere to be found in the matchday squad, and of course there are a few more players that we already knew were ruled out due to injury or suspension. The starting XI was going to be under a lot of responsiblity to get a result, because there wasn't much reinforcement to be found on the bench—just three outfield senior players, plus Korpela for a keeper sub and the young, untested Gracie Pearse.

Spurs got the goal scoring started early thanks to some quick thinking from Eveliina Summanen to take an awarded free kick right away and feed Neville for her second goal of the season, a fine finish with her left foot in the 7th minute that caught Reading completely flat-footed. As Summanen said in her post-game comments, "Ash is on fire, just give the ball to her!" It's clearly a winning strategy at the moment, since Neville has been full of confidence to start the season.

Over the course of the first half we saw the press looking far more organized than in the Arsenal match, and the passing accuracy was also much improved. At one point I might have even shouted "liquid football!" at my TV. Perhaps I was feeling a little overzealous, but you can't blame me for being so delighted with the lively performance after such a turgid display last weekend.

We were rewarded with a second goal in the 30th minute after a superb display of distribution from Spencer found Neville on her perfectly timed run past the Reading defensive line, who then laid off the ball to a similarly just-onside Cho. Cho sat down her defender and got off a decent shot, which was saved by Reading's keeper, but the fox in the box herself, Karczewska, had arrived unmarked to tap in the rebound from close range. It was our new Polish striker's first competitive goal for the club, which came on her full debut, and proved how valuable her innate poaching instincts can be for the team. She nearly got onto another missed shot from Cho later in the game (that one had beat the Reading keeper but was cleared off the line by a defender) but was just a step behind the ball that time, and when she is back up to her full fitness standard I am sure we will see many more such goals from her.

Speaking of Cho, I think she deserves a special mention for her bright performance. Rehanne showed some faith in her by giving her a second start in a row (her game time last season was quite sporadic) and a chance to play her way into some form. But more importantly, Rehanne was trusting her to play a pivotal attacking role in a game where there wasn't much margin for error, personnel wise, thanks to the thin bench. She stepped up to the moment and was very influential in the attack, directly involved in our second goal and also creating another big chance later in the game. After a match in which the whole team seemed to lack initiative and drive, Cho had them in spades for this game and was a key factor in the team's overall bounce back performance. With the current injury situation, she will probably continue to get more opportunities to prove herself and I hope she will take them! She definitely made an argument for her continued presence in the starting XI with this performance. There are a few other fringe players that would do well to follow her example.

I was also heartened to see a couple of more regular starters find a return to form after a rough start to the season, namely, Summanen and Shelina Zadorsky. They're both part of the "spine" of the formation, and when they are at their best the whole team plays stronger. And for Shelina it is even more important, since she remains captain of the squad. She sets the tone.

The defense as a whole played pretty well, and they had a lot more to do in the second half when Reading executed a few fairly successful counter attacking moves—until stoppage time. Unfortunately, I think the penalty that Molly Bartrip conceded (and it was a soft penalty, anyway) was more down to a lapse of concentration at the end of a very lengthy stoppage period than anything else. Reading's Natasha Dowie converted the penalty by sending Spencer the wrong way, and the match ended moments later at the final score of 1-2 in Spurs' favor. Rehanne spoke after the match about the need to be more cognizant of the opposition players waiting in the pocket behind the midfield for counter attack opportunities, so it sounds like she's expecting more of her midfielders on the defensive end. Drew Spence only made a substitute appearance against Reading, but in her limited game time she had another shaky performance on the defensive end, and specifically has proven to be vulnerable on set pieces.

As for the other substitutes, it was crushing to see Kyah Simon take an awkward fall that resulted in what looked like an awful injury from the vantage of the FA Player. Still no news on an official diagnosis, but it didn't look good, considering that she had to be stretchered off with her left leg in a brace. It's especially sad circumstances since Simon had just returned from another injury. Ellie Brazil has had some early season injury concerns of her own, so it wasn't ideal that she was forced to come on for stoppage time to replace Simon, but she did all right in her limited appearance. We can only hope for the best and that Kyah will get well soon.

The Women's team is now going into an international break, but the first home match at Brisbane Road is (finally) on the horizon. I'll preview the match against Liverpool closer to the 16th!

Die Männer reisen nach Frankfurt

Yep, it's time for the away leg in Frankfurt in the Men's Champions League group stage campaign. They will be looking to bounce back not only from the loss to Arsenal in the league, but also the recent away loss in the CL competition against Sporting.

We are currently ahead of Eintracht Frankfurt in the group table on goal difference—which is really not saying much, considering our goal difference is precisely zero.

While the Eagles got off to a rough start this season thanks to my beloved Bayern Munich, they have somewhat gotten things back on track in the Bundesliga and were able to grab a 0-1 away win at Marseille in the CL after a 3-0 home loss to Sporting. Perhaps most significantly, they beat current Bundesliga leaders Union Berlin 2-0 over the weekend, including a goal from a resurgent Mario Götze. They were able to hold onto their first half lead despite going down to ten men in the 68th minute. In other words, they're capable of digging in on defense, which could prove troublesome for Spurs if we have one of our less creative performances. However, goalkeeper Kevin Trapp has been showing some chinks in his armor lately, so Spurs would do well to test him often.

I haven't had a chance to catch a Frankfurt match since the first Bundesliga matchday, but in looking back at the lineups of their last few matches I was surprised to see Randal Kolo Muani (he of the recent red card) getting the start at striker lately ahead of Rafael Borré. Maybe Borré had an injury I didn't hear about, but he was very influential in Frankfurt's journey to the Europa League title last season, and I would assume he'd be the go-to man for goals now that Filip Kostić has moved on to Juventus.

On a Spurs lineup note, Dejan Kulusevski is still out with his hamstring issue, so you would think this would be a natural opportunity for Conte to give the ol' 3-5-2 another run out. I wouldn't count on it though. I also wouldn't expect much rotation in the lineup, because I think he will want to give the players that lost the Arsenal match a chance to recover their form. That, and his press conference comments (which I am not going to linger on too much, since people have already overreacted to them enough today) suggest that there are a few players he still doesn't trust to deliver at this point in the season, whether due to inexperience (Spence, Gil) or lingering injury concerns (Doherty, maybe Skipp as well). That's my interpretation, anyway. Since the fixture schedule is about to become truly relentless with a match every weekend and every midweek up until the World Cup break, Conte won't have much choice but to start rotating the lineup more often soon, but I believe he will continue to put that moment off until it becomes untenable. I do admire him as a manger, but he's not without his faults, and he already has a history at Spurs of being reluctant to fully utilize his complete squad, including in-game management as well.

I feel like this preview is suddenly going in a negative direction that I did not intend, so I'm going to wrap things up by saying that I do think we can, and should, win this game, if only because we have rarely had two terrible games back-to-back under Conte's tenure. And on paper, we have a superior squad across every position. It will be important to start off this intense stretch of games with a win, especially in the context of needing to get the CL group stage campaign back on track after losing to Sporting.

COYS

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