Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has been hailed as the difference as the Lilywhites are beginning to look like Real Madrid in terms of the playing style, according to Garth Crooks. (BBC Sport)
Spurs had a tough start to the Premier League season, with their form at temporary home, the Wembley Stadium, not being up to the mark. However, Pochettino’s side has maintained an excellent away form, with three wins on the road in September, leading them back into the title mix.
Capping off a fine month, Spurs notched a 4-0 away win over Huddersfield on Saturday with star striker Harry Kane notching up another brace. It was a brilliant performance with no regrets for Pochettino, as even Moussa Sissoko found his way to the score sheet.
Former Spurs forward Crooks was very impressed with the performance of the team’s full-backs Ben Davies and Kieran Trippier, choosing both of them in his BBC Sport Premier League team of the weekend.
Davies had a goal and an assist to his name while Trippier set up both of Kane’s early goals, making it a great day for the wing-back duo. Interestingly, had things gone in the normal manner, both these players wouldn’t have played together.
Had Danny Rose not been sidelined with his knee problem or had Kyle Walker not left the club to join Manchester City, opportunities for these two would have been minimal. Not just this, Crooks was impressed with the way Pochettino is developing a certain style with his squad. In his team of the week column for BBC, Crooks wrote:
“If Guardiola is trying to get Manchester City to play in the style of Barcelona then you could be forgiven for thinking that Mauricio Pochettino looks like he is developing a team in the image of the current Real Madrid side.
“The one-touch football played by Spurs against Huddersfield was, at times, mind-blowing. The goal which involved practically every member of the Tottenham team, resulting in a memorable finish by Ben Davies, was just pure quality from start to finish.”
As the sides head into the international break, Spurs go with a lot of confidence as they look set for another tilt at the Premier League title. However, as Crooks noted, failure to win silverware could mean nothing even if their football is scintillating to watch.
“While I get the feeling Spurs fans could watch this style of football forever, regardless of the outcome, it would be a crime if the team couldn’t crown these sorts of displays with a trophy at the end of the season,” he added.
At the moment, Manchester City look like the team to beat as we go into the international break. Their performance against Chelsea is one for the connoisseurs although Spurs aren’t far behind with the style of football they are producing at the moment.
Kane is probably in the best phase of his career and if Pochettino’s side can win silverware, there would be no doubt that this would be the best Spurs team of all time.
