Mauricio Pochettino: Tottenham Turned Things Around Against Arsenal
Tottenham began their return from the international break on the wrong foot, but finished a seven-match winless run on a positive note.
One of the benefits of having a short week to prepare for a Premier League game following a Champions League match, is that coaches and players get to forget a tough loss and can look forward to another game with a clean slate.
Clearly, a 1-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen at Wembley Stadium left Tottenham disappointed at the result, as it only gives them two more games to secure a top-two spot to qualify for the round of 16.
So, to go from a disheartening loss, which Mauricio Pochettino called a poor performance, to an inspired performance and draw 1-1 against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on four days of rest/training is quite remarkable.
After the game, the Argentine manager was quick to point out how his team did much better on Sunday compared to last Tuesday.
“It was a strong performance, I’m very pleased, happy for the players because we worked a lot. I thought we were fantastic,” Pochettino said (via Spurs’ official website).
“We finished strong and it was good after a month that was difficult, some small issues happened, but happy now to have two weeks to try to recover all the players so we can compete better.”
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Derbies will get teams, players and coaches up to the task as no side wants to lose against their local rivals.
Perhaps this is what sparked a change in formation and even playing Harry Kane and Mousa Dembélé after they just returned from injury.
This isn’t the first time that Mauricio Pochettino deployed a three-man backline before, as last season’s first meeting against Watford saw the 3-5-2 formation utilized to great success.
Though the timing of this tactical switch suggests that the problems Spurs have endured in recent weeks needed to be addressed.
“We played that system [the 3-5-2] at Watford last season and it’s about flexibility to try to find the right solution, to try to score goals and win games. It’s important to have different options.” Mauricio Pochettino explained.
And indeed, his side were able to create some good scoring opportunities.
Although 10 shots are the lowest amount that Spurs have attempted this season, what mattered most was how close they were to being goals after being on target.
Christian Eriksen had two chances, one that Petr Čech saved and the other hitting off of the far post on a free-kick. Another chance was Harry Kane’s header that was inches wide in the first half.
Having the extra presence of Danny Rose and Kyle Walker playing at midfield and making forward runs kept Arsenal at bay, with the Gunners’ only opportunities coming off of counterattacks.
The midfield presence of Victor Wanyama and Mousa Dembélé, plus Christian Eriksen beneath Son Heung-Min and Harry Kane, gave Tottenham width and pace down the flanks and through the middle.
Next: How Mousa Dembélé Unlocks Tottenham’s Potential
Other than the match ending in a draw, this was a very even game wherein both teams could have come away with a win. This was the kind of performance and positive result that Spurs needed following their loss to Bayer Leverkusen.
“We changed that. We turned bad to good.” Pochettino said. “That is a good way to finish the month and now we look forward and try to be strong for the next one.”
“We’re very positive. We always expect to win games but we’re 11 games unbeaten, that’s important and we’re looking forward.”