After three Premier League outings without a win, why are Mauricio Pochettino’s team struggling? What have been the problems ahead of the North London derby against Arsenal? WhoScored.com have the answers
Friday 26 September 2014 15:12, UK
Both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur have endured mixed starts to the season after promising summers and, whereas in recent seasons they have come into the derby with positive mind-sets, this time around it is in some sense a case of which side is dreading the game less.
Each team has suffered disappointing defeats to lesser opposition within the last week, although the Arsenal’s Capital One Cup loss at home to Southampton will be brushed off more readily given the vastly inexperienced team fielded by Arsene Wenger.
The lack of depth in Arsenal's defence has been much publicised, and with a back four of Francis Coquelin, Hector Bellerin, Calum Chambers and Isaac Hayden there was always the chance they would slip up. This weekend, however, they will have their four fit defenders back in their starting positions and, presuming they suffer no more injuries, should be confident of shutting out what has been a rather blunt Spurs attack of late.
Tottenham recovered from a desperately poor home loss to West Bromwich Albion last weekend with their second string coming from behind to beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 in midweek. That win will have boosted morale but manager Mauricio Pochettino will bring back the majority of the players who failed so miserably in their last game, with his first-choice XI quickly becoming clearer in his mind.
Younes Kaboul has been made club captain, and in recent games he has been partnered at the back by Vlad Chiriches. Error strewn and oft caught out of position, the two looked woefully fragile against West Brom last weekend, surrendering possession far too frequently in far too dangerous positions. A better team than Albion would have punished them even more.
Pochettino obviously wants his teams playing the ball out from the back. Hugo Lloris has played one of the lowest proportions of his passes long of all Premier League goalkeepers (54.2 per cent) and Spurs are averaging the third most possession in the league (60.6%). At present, however, the team do not have defenders sufficiently comfortable in possession along with incisive passers in central midfield to move play smoothly from defence to attack.
Tottenham are well-stocked in midfield but are still - as they have been for years now - struggling to replace Luka Modric with another adequate ball-player. Etienne Capoue moves the ball about in front of defence, having completed the most passes in the Premier League this season (391), but he offers little in the sense of starting attacking moves. Mousa Dembele, meanwhile, dallies in possession far too much and lacks end product, having played only one key pass in his four league appearances of the season thus far. He has only one goal and one assist to show for his efforts in 32 games since the start of last season.
Pochettino has preferred inverted wingers - as he did at Southampton - with Erik Lamela on the right and Nacer Chadli on the left. Chadli is the league's third-highest goalscorer (three) but he struggles mightily against better defenders, and in particular fast ones. He has completed just one successful dribble this season, and given how ineffective he was against West Brom last week, might not be the best option against the young and sprightly Chambers.
Lamela, meanwhile, has been vastly improved this term compared to last, already topping his assist tally with two so far. However, he is deployed on the right to dribble infield and threaten with efforts on goal or through balls. Only Eden Hazard has completed more dribbles in the Premier League this season than Lamela (16), but the Argentine international has yet to have a single shot on target or complete a single through ball.
As has been the case for a while now for Spurs, inverted wingers is cramping the space available to them in central areas in the final third, and chances are thus at a premium. In a 293-minute period of action between Christian Eriksen's 48th-minute goal at Sunderland on the 13th September and a 71st-minute Harry Kane header against Forest 11 days later, Spurs failed to score and managed only one shot on target. Even that was tame and easily saved by West Brom's Ben Foster.
Pochettino has vast variety available to him, yet seems reluctant to change things too much in Premier League games. Three league outings without a win and the prospect of a derby could force his hand, because anything like a similar performance to that which they put in last weekend and Tottenham will be heading back across North London empty handed. They are in real danger of being left behind their rivals.
All statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, where you can find yet more stats, including live in-game data and unique player and team ratings.
