Spurs 22/23: So, do we have a manager?

Jimy Hendrix

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Truly stupid match.

It is so hard to reconcile the league table and XG numbers and CL advancement and everything (all very good) with what my eyes are telling me very often watching the matches this season (this looks very bad)
 

DJnVa

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They gave Kane only 60 minutes and brought in guys that have been out for a while. They didn't care about the match. Same with Arsenal and their result.
 

scott bankheadcase

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This season feels so weird. I feel like there’s been so many issues, yet the World Cup break comes and Spurs are too 4 (maybe 3), and topped their group in Champions League.

it’s like an anti-spurs season. Normally I feel like they’re playing really well but somehow are 6th on the table and had some luck thatwould have pushed them to Europa instead of the last 16.

Ill take it.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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Deki makes all the difference!

I know it won't harken but oh how I wish Levy will go all out for Kim Minjae, perhaps the most in-form CB in Europe right now. Dier is back to his inconsistent self without Romero.

The hype train for Kim has already left the station too:

View: https://youtu.be/X6aPkaUBE1A


View: https://youtu.be/lTGlSLridT4


P. S. Contè seems set on Bastoni, however.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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Tangled Up In Red

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Spurs had two chances. Once when playing in China (just €6m) and then after Turkey (€15m). Son pushed for him too. What a miss. His market value is at €35 now but I think it's much closer to €50m after his showing at Napoli.

https://www.transfermarkt.com/min-jae-kim/marktwertverlauf/spieler/503482
Says " The contract includes an exit clause of 45 million euros, which will apply exclusively to foreign clubs from summer 2024 on. "
But also that he's on a 2 year mutual option contract, which would put him out of contract in summer 2024. So confusing.

Who cares? Let's drop €50m and get our rock CB for the next 6 years.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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Says " The contract includes an exit clause of 45 million euros, which will apply exclusively to foreign clubs from summer 2024 on. "
But also that he's on a 2 year mutual option contract, which would put him out of contract in summer 2024. So confusing.

Who cares? Let's drop €50m and get our rock CB for the next 6 years.
He has become an absolute fan favorite and there is talk that Napoli are negotiating with Kim to remove the exit clause.

Why has he become such a favorite? He does shit like this.

Dances to Gangnam Style for his club introductory "hazing":

View: https://youtu.be/LWS8klN-fsU


Posted an apology for losing possession that led to a goal, possibly his first real mistake in 15 games:

https://football-italia.net/kim-min-jae-apologises-to-napoli-over-first-mistake/

No one is missing Koulibali at Napoli and that's saying something.
 

Zososoxfan

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Of all the things Spurs need to get done in the January window, none is more important than getting a player who Conte considers a real alternative to Deki at RW--which in the system is the real playmaker. Having Deki on the RW also opens up so much more space for Arry the Playmaker, but clearly Deki's the focus. I wish we'd seen more Ringo Gil because he's the only player who's even come close, but at the end of the day Conte needs to trust the guy, not fanboi.

Just looking at RWs on expiring contracts, 3 familiar names stand out: Marco Asensio, Angel Di Maria, and Willian. Willian is actually getting minutes for Fulham so I assume he's not a fit. But both Asensio and ADM are not getting much time at all--Asensio has played 14% of possible minutes while ADM is at 18% (although ADM has missed time due to injury). I wouldn't mind either, although ADM is probably not the right fit as he's more of a starter even at his age.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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SeoulSoxFan

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I can't watch Dier screw up anymore. Why isn't Levy in on the Kim Minjae sweepstakes? KMJ and Romero together would solve a lot of problems for the Spurs.
 

wonderland

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Nothing would totally shock me but I don’t see Napoli moving Min-jae in the middle of the season where they are in the knockout stages of the CL and leading Serie A.
 

SeoulSoxFan

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Nothing would totally shock me but I don’t see Napoli moving Min-jae in the middle of the season where they are in the knockout stages of the CL and leading Serie A.
There's a 2-week window for Kim to negotiate with other teams in June.

Why do I have a feeling that Levy not only won't sign Kim but also sell Sonny to pay for Kane, especially if #7 continues to struggle in Conte's system?
 

Jimy Hendrix

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Well, I’m ready to go drunk dial the ex, managerially speaking.

Get Poch, give him full backing. Not just in the transfer market, but also to do like he did last time and sideline anyone he needs to, no name off limits, in order to clear out whatever nasty smell is emanating from the locker room.

(I know the smarter move is probably to find the next Poch rather than grab the last one, but I mean, he’s available)
 

SeoulSoxFan

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Well, I’m ready to go drunk dial the ex, managerially speaking.

Get Poch, give him full backing. Not just in the transfer market, but also to do like he did last time and sideline anyone he needs to, no name off limits, in order to clear out whatever nasty smell is emanating from the locker room.

(I know the smarter move is probably to find the next Poch rather than grab the last one, but I mean, he’s available)
Exactly what I was thinking.

Pericic and Sonny are irreparably incomparable. One of those 2 has to go & yeah, so does Hugo.

What a sad, dull loss today.
 

Zososoxfan

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I used to think the Poch stuff was a bit sad--wanting to go back to once was. But all this Conte talk about he's god's gift and we're just lucky to have him needs to stop. You're getting paid to do a job, and you're not doing it particularly well at the moment. In any event, Spurs' transfer activity or lack thereof should tell us whether the club has decided to back Conte or not. But the most important thing is the club needs to decide if they're going to be splashy spenders and try and nab a trophy, or if they want to be project club. Either is fine, but they need an identity to stick with.
 

DJnVa

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That was a fun 45 minutes.

Two Kane goals, Son scoring, White making PL debut.
 

Zososoxfan

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Are we gonna talk about it? I don't wanna talk about it. Hugo and Sess hugely bad on the first goal, but the whole team was setup poorly IMO and also played poorly. Why are we setting up in such a low block to start the match? I know it creates space to counter into, but that also presumes we're ready to defend that area well. Son looks way out of sorts. Playing with Sess on top of him like that was useless. Richarlison's antics look terrible. What the fuck do we do for the remainder of this window?

Final thought--I'm absolutely ready for Forster to be GK1 for the next month or two. He's much better with his feet, maaaaybe gets to that second Odegaard goal thru sheer height or younger springyness, and yeah. I'm just done with Hugo.
 

SocrManiac

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I don’t disagree that Hugo is cooked and needs a replacement, but I think people are being insanely harsh on the first goal. From that range it doesn’t take a massive deflection to make your first move completely wrong. That’s what happened. If that ball doesn’t deflect, there’s no own-goal.
 

Zososoxfan

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I don’t disagree that Hugo is cooked and needs a replacement, but I think people are being insanely harsh on the first goal. From that range it doesn’t take a massive deflection to make your first move completely wrong. That’s what happened. If that ball doesn’t deflect, there’s no own-goal.
Strong disagree. I saw the deflection and I know how they work on the field. If you're a defender and you're defending a cross or a shot and then it changes the angle resulting in a goal, that's unlucky--really unlucky if the ball wasn't heading towards goal and it results in a technical OG. However, when you're the keeper and you're behind the ball (like Hugo was), there's really just not much of an excuse for an OG. At best it's clunky/uncoordinated, at worst it's a sign of bad reflexes and instincts. Lest we forget that Hugo also coughed up a brutal turnover minutes before with a loose touch that Lenglet scrambled to clear. Bring on Forster.
 

DJnVa

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Why does it seem we have so much "talent" on paper and on the sideline and we absolutely cannot play like the other big clubs?

It's maddening.
 

teddykgb

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Well good news is you have City next and at this point I just write off 4/5 points a season against Spurs you’re always crazy fired up for it and have the player to do us on the counter. And we are in atrocious form.
 

Morgan's Magic Snowplow

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Why does it seem we have so much "talent" on paper and on the sideline and we absolutely cannot play like the other big clubs?

It's maddening.
All the other big six clubs in the PL have managers that want to dominate the ball, play a high line in possession, and aggressively counterpress in the other half. Conte is a great coach but he has never been that kind of manager. And Spurs don't really have the players to do it anyway because they've had counter-attacking managers since Poch left and the players on the roster, while certainly talented, reflect that approach.
 

Zososoxfan

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While there is talent on the squad, we haven't had a ton of matches with the best XI all fit and firing. I don't know how that compares to other clubs, but in a vacuum it's certainly true.

Son has been a shell of himself this season, regardless of the reason(s). Dier had a nice renaissance last year and even started well this year, but he's fallen on some terrible form recently. Bissouma has not bedded in. We don't have a single WB who's played up to Conte's admittedly lofty standards. Hugo's been absolutely dreadful.

While that's all true IMO, I still think Conte deserves some stick for how he's managed this season. His insistence on sticking with Son, despite getting Richarlison in this year is maddening. His stubborness in leaving Spence out despite every other WB sucking is annoying. But even more so than squad selection, I think Conte's tactics just haven't been up to snuff lately. I've already discussed the two tactical errors from the NLD--but just to reiterate I thought Son and Sess were taking up the same space in attack, and I thought Spurs set up their block both too high and too low at times. They invited too much pressure when setup low, but when they setup high Saka got behind Sess for the first goal.
 

Zososoxfan

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To dare, is to gazump!

Danjuma makes little sense to me other than as a value buy. I mean, how different is he from Bergwijn for example?

Porro at least looks to address an area of need. They really should be poking around for another CB as well. I'd say keeper too but I think that market is just so much smaller and requires some real time to bed in that I don't think you can try that midseason unless the opportunity is too good to pass up. While getting a CAM would also be nice, there are more in house options to paper over that (3 man MF with Bissouma at the base for example).

With respect to Juvegate II (III?), Paratici has to be on his way out right? They can fire him for cause and if he can't do biz in Italy, then he loses a ton of his value to Spurs. I also think it's asinine that players are getting suspended over this. I did see that Chielini apparently sent out a text to the squad detailing how this was all going down, but it still seems like bullshit from Serie A. Although I admit I'm not even sure Serie A is the organization imposing these penalties.
 

DJnVa

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To dare, is to gazump!

Danjuma makes little sense to me other than as a value buy. I mean, how different is he from Bergwijn for example?
He's cheap, and if he gets in form it's just another attacking option if they're chasing a goal.

Porro is the real get.
 

Zososoxfan

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He's cheap, and if he gets in form it's just another attacking option if they're chasing a goal.

Porro is the real get.
Is he got? Seems like things are trending in the right direction, but I also fear a gazumping until a club's official social media makes a welcome post the player is actually seen training with the buyer club. Right @OCST ?
 

OCST

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6057853097956-359D-41E6-9180-8C0B87788C32.jpeg

the last appears to be obliquely referencing a Richarlison loan to Everton rumor that has been picking up velocity although it is of course silly.

FWIW although Richarlison had to know he wasn’t going to play 90 every game, I think he’s got a right to be miffed over game time even before Danjuma, and to be apeshit over Danjuma.
 

OCST

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I think we know the score with Dav. He's an elite physical player; great leaping ability, strong in the air, has great speed to recover and get challenges in. He lacks awareness and is prone to falling asleep on set pieces, which nullifies some of his aerial talents. He's been good when paired with a cerebral partner (like whenever he was with Belgians) but has struggled outside of that. Dier and Sanchez were always a risky pairing because they had similar issues on that end. In a back three it's a little more forgiving (I think Ben Davies has benefitted a lot from that) so he can be less of a risk.
I just got a flash of Jamie Lee Curtis spitting out “Shakespeare was not Belgian” in Fish Called Wanda
 

Jimy Hendrix

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Man, that Richarlison rumor requires a lot of active disbelieving of injury and fitness reporting. Seems pretty bullshitty to me.
 

Tangled Up In Red

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Maybe I'm missing something obvious, but if we're 2 over, then just getting Gil out doesn't solve things.
To my understanding, this just limits how many total we can register for UCL. Meaning, if we're 2 over, we can only register 23 active players, rather than 25...
 

DJnVa

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To my understanding, this just limits how many total we can register for UCL. Meaning, if we're 2 over, we can only register 23 active players, rather than 25...
Ah, gotcha.

Word is with Gil out, Lucas is likely to stay and be the "break glass" guy.
 

DJnVa

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Well, if the Porro deal is off as The Athletic is reporting you've got nothing to worry about.
Sporting is apparently asking the Spurs to pay the 3M in admin fees or something.

Spurs are paying more than his release clause, but not all at once and Sporting initially agreed to that and is now balking.



 

Zososoxfan

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Hopefully Danjuma is the Kulu backup, and Richy can play LW or ST like he should be. Richy has every right to be pissed about his playing time. Son has sucked this season and he still gets all the minutes. Kane you can understand because he's in terrific form for most of the season.
 

Jimy Hendrix

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I mean, he's been listed and mentioned as injured with two separate injuries since October one pre and post World Cup, which is my impression as to why he has not taken starts from Son even when Son was absolutely ass.
 

DJnVa

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Sporting has agreed to personal terms with Porro's potential replacement. Hopefully Levy can figure this out (Yes, I know).