Penalties Save the Day

Spurs advance to the next round of the League Cup despite squandering an early 2-0 lead.

It was another midweek game, so you know what time it is:  bullet points recap.

The good

∙ We got off to a strong, attacking start again, and it was good to see Ndombele get a goal, as well as Kane from a superb Dele through pass. That Dele-to-Kane goal felt like a flashback, in a good way.

∙ Bryan Gil continues to impress, especially with his very confident penalty. I was also relieved to see Reguilón take his penalty well since he subbed into the match right before the final whistle for expressly that purpose. No Mark Noble misfortune for him.

∙ Skipp had probably his best performance so far this season. He was my vote for Man of the Match. He displayed a good balance between defense and offense, and was easily the most dynamic midfielder on the pitch. Because...

The bad

The bad

∙ ...Ndombele didn't exactly cover himself in glory on the defensive end. He was largely responsible for both goal concessions, which was disappointing after the admirable individual effort on his goal. On the plus side, he did play the full 90 for once. Perhaps I'm alone in this opinion, but I can't stomach another season where our midfield and forward lines are lackadaisical on defense. Yes, we need to prioritize the attack, but it's wasteful to concede such avoidable goals (no. more. set-piece. goals!) and negate all the work done in the attacking third.

∙ Since we did lose control of the match, Nuno was forced to bring on some reinforcements that we would have much rather seen fully rested for the NLD (Son, Højbjerg). I was a little surprised that Dele was taken off, because we know that he's a capable penalty taker. I've never seen Ndombele take a penalty (that I can remember anyway) and his defensive focus clearly wasn't there, so he would have been the man to step aside if I were making the decision.

∙ Sánchez is showing some signs of reverting to his previously questionable decision-making. If I had to choose just one CB pairing to start for the rest of the season (which of course would never happen, but allow me the hypothetical), it would have to be Dier and Romero, based on everything we've seen so far. That being said, I still think Rodon has a lot of potential, if he could just get some more game time under his belt. I'd like to see him featuring more in the cup matches going forward.

Special topic:  Pierluigi Gollini

So, I had my information wrong for a previous issue. Turns out, Spurs do have an obligation to buy if Gollini makes a certain number of appearances (20, I believe). He definitely has some weak areas that can be improved upon, but he came in clutch with a penalty save against Wolves. I still think it's too early to have a definitive opinion on whether he's cut out to be Tottenham's eventual #1, but the clear enthusiasm he has for the club (and the fans) makes me willing to give him a chance. Let's get behind him!

The bad

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The bad

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The bad

The bad

And now, London derby #3

And for the love of all that is good in the world, please don't let it be the third PL loss in a row.

Y'all, I've got nothing when it comes to a coherent preview for the NLD. We know that form just goes out the window when we play our rivals. Both teams are coming off a League Cup win, but Spurs definitely had the tougher opponent. We've both had up-and-down starts to the PL campaign--or down-and-up in their case. It's never an advantage to be playing them at the Emirates, but at least the away fixture is happening at a time in the season when Arsenal haven't completely gelled yet. I would argue that we have, but only in flashes--we just need to put in a complete 90-minute performance.

As far as I'm aware, Arsenal don't have any injuries coming into the match, while we have Bergwijn still out as well as Sessegnon, who was unlikely to feature anyway. The big question is whether the likes of Son, Dier, and Lucas are back to full fitness. I know Son and Dier have both played since recovering from their injuries, but there's always a worry of reaggravating the injury, especially with Son's muscular issue.

From a practical standpoint, I would be very surprised if Ndombele started, considering how many minutes he's racked up in the past week and his known fitness concerns. For that reason, I suspect we'll see Dele shifted into the midfield and Lucas brought back into the starting lineup. If we can get the same kind of performance out of Skipp as we saw in the Wolves match, I would happily have him replace Lo Celso; Gio just has not been consistent enough, and his poor defensive efforts have been frustrating. I would keep Emerson at RB rather than Tanganga, simply because this is the kind of game where Japhet could be a disciplinary risk again (à la Lamela in the last away NLD). And again, Dier and Romero is my current preferred CB partnership. The rest of the team picks itself at this point.

While it would be incredible to get the first away win at Arsenal in 11 years, a draw would be a very decent result. Above all, I just want to see some fight from the team, for the whole match. That was the most disappointing part about seeing the lead slip away in the last NLD--this fixture means too much to the fans for the players to be giving anything less than 100%. Another performance like the opening day win against Man City (okay, with a lot more attacking intent, hopefully) would mean a lot.

COYS