Tottenham Hotspur lost in their last London derby, so maybe a 1-1 draw against West Ham United isn’t all that bad of a result.
Spurs fans may have been fearing a repeat of the 3-0 thrashing they were dealt against Fulham in March as they headed into another London derby.
Saturday’s 2-1 win over Luton Town gave Spurs some confidence and they took a very early lead at the London Stadium.
Brennan Johnson tapped home Timo Werner’s ball across goal, opening the scoring from close range.
Tottenham couldn’t hang on though and saw Kurt Zouma bring West Ham level, nodding home from a corner.
Conceding from another set piece should concern Ange Postecoglou, especially as it cost Tottenham two points on this occasion.
Spurs dominated possession throughout but just couldn’t find a winner, ending up with a point in a 1-1 draw.
BBC pundit concerned with Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham were just too safe at times, playing sideways as a strong West Ham defence forced them into a fairly pedestrian second-half display.
The lack of cutting edge was a real concern, especially with top players like James Maddison, Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski featuring.
Pundit Sebastien Bassong – a former Tottenham defender – has now shared his verdict on the performance.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Bassong suggested that the ‘downfall’ of Postecoglou’s style of play is that his players all stick to the approach.
Bassong wanted to see Tottenham players try something a little different or shoot from distance just to give West Ham something else to think about.
Bassong noted that even Tottenham’s substitutes were rigidly sticking to the plan when he wanted to see something a little out of the ordinary.
“The downfall to Ange Postecoglou’s style of play at times is that the players really stick to it,” said Bassong.
“Sometimes you need the players on the pitch to realise that it is not working and to try something different. Take someone on or take a shot from distance. Ange made some changes but it seems like they are still sticking to the game plan,” he added.
Tottenham mavericks unable to produce
Tottenham do have players who can produce a moment of magic and break away from the ‘script’, so to speak.
Maddison can create something out of nothing, able to pick out passes that nobody else sees or capable of rattling home a long-range strike.
Goalscorer Johnson has the pace to terrify any defender and if Timo Werner had been more switched-on, some of his approach play wouldn’t have gone to waste.
Son can score from almost anywhere and on either foot, Kulusevski’s guile has been a threat for a while now and Richarlison’s goal-poaching ability has come up big at times this term.
Sadly for Tottenham, the maverick abilities in these players just wasn’t on show against West Ham and part of that is down to David Moyes coaching a well-drilled back line.
Postecoglou will, of course, be disappointed with the result but he will be confident that his attackers will come up with big displays on another day.
The post BBC pundit claims to have spotted 'the downfall to Ange Postecoglou's style of play' against West Ham United appeared first on HITC.
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