Tottenham: 3 takeaways from preseason win vs. Ipswich
By Aaron Coe
A new formation
Outside of the addition of Hojbjerg, the biggest story of the Tottenham transfer window has been the right fullback position and what Tottenham is going to do to support Serge Aurier or even replace him.
Today, Jose Mourinho demonstrated a different approach, simply do not employ one. Yes, Gedson Fernandes played in a role similar to Aurier’s from last season, but it was clear his focus was forward as opposed to backwards in defense as Tottenham employed a true three-man back line.
It was obvious from the team sheet that something was going on as both Ben Davies and Ryan Sessegnon were in the lineup and there was no obvious right fullback in the side. As it turned out, Juan Foyth played on the right, Davies on the left and Toby Alderweireld was in the middle of the two, and maybe Ryan Sessegnon has found a position in the midfield.
With Foyth and Davies both more than adequate passers on their own right, this formation created a lot of space and opportunity for Alderweireld to ping the ball all over the pitch. We particularly saw a lot of Toby hitting the ball wide and forward to Gedson way up on the right wing. With these three along with Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier, and Japhet Tanganga – and a bunch of matches – might we see a back three rotation for much of the season? It is quite possible.
The key to making a back three work is what is happening in front of them to put them out of position. While the questions around whether two holding midfielders would sit in front of a back four with Hojbjerg now at Spurs, having two in front of a back three makes complete sense.
The pairing of Harry Winks and Hojbjerg shielded the back line well, allowing almost any of the five players to join in the attack at different points in the game. More importantly, defending primarily with five players allows five to participate almost full-time in attack, which is maybe more important.
Whether you called it a 3-5-2 or a 3-2-3-2 formation, it was obvious that there was a bit of pressure on Fernandes and Sessegnon to cover a lot of ground on the flanks, but in general, their focus was on attack. Those two, along with Dele, Son, and Lucas Moura clearly did the job for Spurs and demonstrated that maybe this team will not be quite as predictable as they had become the last few seasons. We will see.