Yesterday’s win over Manchester City sees Tottenham sit in second place to begin the month of October.
In order for Tottenham to be considered legitimate title contenders this season they would eventually need to beat the Premier League’s best teams. And on Sunday, Spurs did just that in dominating fashion.
Pep Guardiola and Manchester City weren’t able to cope with the immense pressure from Spurs’ high-press when the match started. For a majority of the game — especially in the first half — Tottenham pressured Man City into conceding possession in their own half setting up multiple chances for Spurs to score a goal.
Tottenham’s first goal was a perfect example of Spurs’ high-press working to perfection and eventually finding the back of the net after seven minutes.
Victor Wanyama would win the ball back before finding Érik Lamela who laid a pass to Danny Rose down the left flank. Rose would send a cross into the box which was inadvertently hit into Claudio Bravo’s net because Aleksandar Kolarov didn’t connect on his clearance.
Dele Alli who scored Spurs’ second goal said that the game plan for yesterday’s match was to press them relentlessly from start to finish.
“The plan was to get in their faces, we knew — and there is no denying the fact that they [Manchester City] are a great footballing side — but we knew if we stuck to the game plan, kept on the front foot and kept pressing and forcing them into mistakes that the chances would come and thankfully, when they did, we put them away,” Alli told Spurs’ official website.
“It was a great performance. From the moment the game kicked off we were on top of them, working hard and thankfully we were rewarded with the three points.”
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As simple as Mauricio Pochettino’s game plan sounds, there’s more to it than what Alli let on. For the entire match, Spurs’ shape remained consistent. They all moved together as a unit and didn’t over-commit to leave open space for the Citizens to take advantage of.
For Tottenham to do this, one key area was to win their one-on-one challenges. That way when Spurs won the ball back, the rest of the team could quickly go on a counterattack. Again, Wanyama fighting for possession of the ball saw Tottenham transition from defense to offense immediately.
“We got numbers around the ball, kept pressing and every player was fantastic, from the keeper to the striker, everyone worked so hard. Winning one-v-ones all over the pitch, dominating and getting on them, no matter where the ball was.” Dele Alli explained why Tottenham had their way with Manchester City.
Spurs had a dominate win over Stoke City on September 10 but the the Potters were a team that couldn’t find their way to begin the season. Currently, they’re still 19th in the league table.
Games against Everton, Crystal Palace, Liverpool and Sunderland were difficult as Tottenham fought very hard to earn eight total points.
Against Middlesbrough, they conceded two quick goals before pulling one back, but Spurs never looked like they would lose even with Boro taking more chances.
Next: Tottenham's Win Over City Was No Fluke
Overall, every single result that Mauricio Pochettino’s side has gotten to begin their 2016-17 Premier League campaign has been good. Although winning against Man City for their third straight time dating back to last season’s double is what could be seen as a statement win.
“We knew what we were capable of before kick-off and it was just about showing everyone that we’re here, that we’re fighting,” Dele Alli continued. “It’s important that we don’t get carried away with ourselves and focus on the next game, as we have been doing, just look at each game and try and get three points.”