Saturday, August 18, 2007

Tottenham vs Derby Player Ratings

That's more like it. It may well have only been Derby, but this is precisely the type of game where a Tottenham or team with similar pretensions needed to come out and administer a good thumping.

So Spurs back from the brink then. Again, not really. They were never actually going down the pan. It was two games that yielded no points. That's not spin, friends, them's is facts. Had we thrown two games like Sunderland away and Everton at home in November nobody would have said boo.

Well done Tottenham. Thanks for the goals, the manner in which you played and let's press onwards.

Robinson 7 Really wasn't troubled in a very one sided affair.

Gardner 6.5 Coped against pretty poor threats.

Chimbonda 7.5 Good stuff. Solid.

YP Lee 7 Good to see him back. Feisty enough.

Rocha 6.5 Coped well enough.

Huddlestone 8.5 Wonderful touch.

Routledge 8 More please...

Jenas 8.5 Jekyll & Hyde incarnate. Today, Mr Wonderful...

Malbranque 8.5 A technical masterclass. Precise and imaginative.

Zokora 7 Sharp enough.

Taarabt 7.5 A menace in the making.

Keane 8.5 Hungry as you like.

Bent 8 Really impressive team player.

Defoe 6.5 On the fringes.

The site out in front when it comes to highlight links are only... a click away


57 comments:

Anonymous said...

To Mr.Numpty (you know who you are),

I suppose Steed was 'booed' AGAIN today..........twice !!


Sttteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeddd!!


Hahahaha



Harry,

Can't agree with yr ratings for Keane (6 at best imo) & Routledge (6) but it was nice to see Routledge get a run-out all the same

Man of the Match:
Tom Huddlestone - everything good today was through him, his passing was, at times sublime and he even got stuck into a few tackles aswell!!

Off and running, here we go !!

Anonymous said...

CyprusYid says... Thanks Harry for letting me relive the relief of our beloved Spurs finally bossing a game! I'm sure that BMJ will be the most relieved of all, concerning Spurs!

Anonymous said...

8.03 Relax 7 enjoy mate...

I happen to believe that SM has been booed in the recent past... however, I wasn't at the game today - I was watching in a noisy juicer where the bleedin barsteward had tyo be asked three times to turn the sound up... and I could hear Steeeeeeeeeeeed clearly on this occasion!!

I have been actually at 3 games when it WAS boos.

54.

EL said...

Bleedin 'ell Harry you must be the hardest working/fastest Spurs blogger out there. Hope it pays. ;)

Great stuff!

Anonymous said...

Mr 54,

'I have been actually at 3 games when it WAS boos'


I don't think so pal


And 3 games ?!! ......no wonder you think it's boos, hahahahah


Please stop embarrasing yourself!


Out of interest where exactly did you sit in your 3 games?

Harry Hotspur said...

I wish! But cheers El...








Oooh, gotta go, one of the peacocks needs shooing off the bonnet of the Roller...

Anonymous said...

Only Derby, agreed, but this is what we need to be doing to the lesser teams every time out. (No offence Derby). Great to see Jenas have a great game - coincidence that he did it without Zokora? MMMMMM

Steed loves the shirt - look at the passion on his face.

coys

Harry Hotspur said...

8.16 Who may well be 8.03 or a blood relative, everyone's welcome but let's lose the aggressive edge, mate.
The fella you're talking to supports Tottenham.

There's forums out there for mindless infighting/cannibalism.

This blog is simply mindless.

Thankyou.

HH

Anonymous said...

I feel you may have watch another match. Routledge was his shocking self, when once did he beat the opposition for pace or show any skill? And sure Jenas scored a good goal, but does that meen we forget hwo useless he is against opponents that have half a brain and are able to play football? Finally can I just say Taarabt is literally the best thing since sliced bread! legend COYS

Anonymous said...

jenas and steed deserve higher. yes thats jermaine jenas. he has obviously been cultivating a pair of bollocks in a jar in his cellar over the last few days. I even applauded the little shit off. good job.

bent and Keane average. Defoe must start next game.

clearly there is no place for Zokora in our first choice 11 when we Huddlestone.

As a side note, i am glad that I am not the only one here that folows the cannibalism forums. its all good fun. until someone loses an eye.

Anonymous said...

What has happened to the videos?

Oops!

Anonymous said...

8.38 You are Tottenham.

Harry Hotspur said...

As a wise man once said... Such are the vagaries of you tube...

Anonymous said...

Keane was pap today but Bent actually scored and had a hand in 2 others. His cross lead to Steed's 2nd and it was his run that created the space for Jenas to exploit and score from.

Defoe has to start next game or he might aswell hand in a transfer request, because when Berbatov is back he might well struggle to get on the bench, which would be a great shame

Huddlestone was MOTM for me today and Taarabts (albeit very raw) tricks & introduction was most enjoyable

Anonymous said...

H Rarely comment on here, no disrespect of course, but have to say I applaud your work. Pretty sure you do not make fortunes out of this thing (peacocks to one side) but you do give enormous value and pleasure to thousands. (Yes I do look at your stats). Anyway, well done H and keep it all going.You are possibly the future. I only say this as my son has made a good career out of the Internet and he has yet to provide me anything as fun to read as you regularly do.

Anonymous said...

8.03 Good comments all around. I noted one turnover from Tommy the entire game. His wonderful passes led to the 2nd and 4th goals. He is amazing at delivering balls across the pitch perfectly into the path of his teammates - only Beckham does that better.

What I really like about his game is that he never looks pressured when he has the ball, he just turns his big frame to protect the ball, and then delivers a perfectly weighted pass.

Anonymous said...

huddlestone was immense... hh first time on here pal, fucking love it mate!

Anonymous said...

Yes, it'a only Derby, but the curse can be applied to any team.


mark my words.


let Berbatov go!


13 days to sell the guy.


Nemesis

Anonymous said...

All round good performance, bit generous on Routledge though although was nice to see him included and he did play reasonably well.

I can't reiterate enough how nice it was to see the future of Spurs Huddlestone and Taraabt play so majestically. I was beginning to lose faith in my earlier prediction that Thud would be twice as good a carrick one day, but on today's performance he is looking on course again...keep it up son. Taraabt surely can't be denied a place on the bench too often with a few starting spots thrown in. This lad has skill and talent that money may one day not be able to buy.

Yeah nice work Harry, fast and responsive to the needs of our daily Spurs fix.

Would be nice to have the comment moderator turned off though so we can respond to each others comments in accordance. It's your blog though mate, I can understand you trying to control the quality of the posters and keeping the "idiots" away.

Anonymous said...

i fink its to early to say that jenas is capable of doing what he did 2day 4most of the season! he had acres of space everytime he had the ball which he wont get nex week so i fink we should all hold back the over praising of a player who is no more than average!!!! TAARABT now dats wot i call class but needs an end product. well done 2day lads!!!!!! COYS!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

hmmm lets not go mental about THud...he is slow and it is was Derby...a perfect kind of game for him...play him in that kind of role against Arsenal and we will get ripped to shreds...and lets be realistic about Taarabt, hes got skill and bags of it, but hes no-way near the whole package just yet (needs to learn when to release)

Anonymous said...

Isn't it great having someone like Darren Bent around?, it takes away some of missing Berba pains...a quality addition to the mix.

It just don't feel right when we had just Keane and Defoe available and even Mido was was very frustrating last season, a poor stand in never living up to his first season's form. Hope Defoe keeps happy though, looked very keen to steal that Bent goal today lol.

Anonymous said...

Huddlestone did look alot fitter n slimmer 2day though than wot he did previously which made him more mobile around the pitch. i hope MJ plays him nex week n i hope he proves himself to evry1 wiv a cracking long ranger which he is more than capable of!!!!!!! COYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Nice one, although I think you were a little kind on keane and harsh on Y.P. Never thought I'd be so keen to see the return of the little fella, but he was very solid and is not even near match fit! Every game we play we're going to get more players back and they'll seem like new signings! Rocha looks like he's been down the gym all summer. Good performance and looks able to cope with premiership challenge! Agreed that Jenas and Steed look much better with Thud at the helm. Taarabt... great entertainment value when you're 3-0 up but needs a final ball. I'm sure he gets told this every day, but what a class player! Routledge wasn't great but the added width really helped us so well done. Spurs need to play 442 with at least one winger. COYS

"to dare is to do" said...

i was at the game them watched it over a couple of time tonight.hudd was fantastic but never again will he get that much space and time,majestic passer that he is but he's just not mobile enuff.
bents off the ball running was brilliant,it created so much space for others and keane worked hard but things didnt come off for him
steed was industrious and got the breaks he derserved,and just to comment about the booing in the past.he was booed by a section in the seville game and a couple after that.we do have some plonkers following us.
anyway, a good confidence booster ahead of some tough games,i think a point at old trafford and we will take the gunners at home by the odd goal.
love the this site,its great to get an opinion from a man with the club at heart

"to dare is to do" said...

nice to see yippee lee back and cant wait to see taarabt when he's the finshed article

spursphil said...

I think we need to enjoy a win dont you think!
Huddlestone was my man of the match, he's the best passer at the club, and as someone has already said may the pass be long or short it's perfectly weighted. He may be slow but what he lacks in pace he makes up for in vision.
Wasn't teddy and gazza slow!
COYS!

Anonymous said...

Although pace is lacking for Big Tom Huddlestone, positioning and good distribution are more vital for the defensive midfield role. (Did carrick have pace?) Zakora's got pace and positional sense but lacks distrribution. I say go with big Tom and get the rest of the team to help him out. Very pleased for Steed as he's done nothing wrong in my book. I can forgive own goalsl 3 goals from midfield today, haven't seen that for a while! Well done Spurs!

Anonymous said...

yes yes yes 4-0 is fab BUT and i stress BUT did you watch as we switched off in the second half.

At half time a mate of mine was saying to me (scouser) remember man city, remember manure and so i couldnt celebrate or show any positive emotion as i was more than aware that we have imploded in the past.

In the early parts of the second half we looked like we wanted to play at derbys level and not a continuation of the first halfs intensity. why do we do that? it must be psychological and im sure the manager would have the shrinks in this week to speak to the players about that cause we should NEVER take the pedal off the gas when we are driving a million miles an hour. Just remember though all you people that are saying 4-0 is great that and that we are back, this was against a very poor derby who after that display will be odds on to go back to championship (although i saw them against the black cats and they were so much better than that).

But please remember we have the Amish of the north this weekend coming and this is a totally different kettle of fish and this game will REALLY show where we are.

All in all a very satisfying display with routledge playing well the T-Hudd having a great game and taarabt making himself quickly the love of the lane with his willingess to take on players and live up to our motto - to dare is to do. Go Adel and hopefully BMJ will give you more of a chance in the future... i may sound negative and believe me i only want the best for my beloved spurs who i have been supporting for 27 years but 1 slightly above average game does not make us back to where we should in all rights be at. lets hope we show the first half game against the amish this weekend and i will be much more happy not even taking into account the final result...COYS

Anonymous said...

Okay after watching the game (this is probably really obvious but what the hell) its apparent what our problem is . When we are given time on the ball.. we decimate the living %$*@ out of most opponents , or at least have the ability to do so. However, to me at least,it seems we have no 'plan B'to revert to when we are not given any space to work with . This needs to be sorted or we will get bullied off the ball all season long as the opposition comes to realize that we have no game to counter this tactic. Anyways enough of that. Well played lads , you finally made me smile :) COYS !

Anonymous said...

why the zokora love-in after the first goal?

anyone?

Anonymous said...

jgm

a show of solidarity after zokora was dropped? right decision to drop him in my opinion.

coys

Anonymous said...

Harry
You heard it here first (well sort of). Our No 31 shirt will very likely soon be worn by Matthew Taylor.
Insider info from one of the High Heid Yins at Fratton Park let slip that - while Spurs had “not made a formal offer yet” – “unofficially” Pompey have agreed to a sale “in principle”. The devil is in the detail – and not just the transfer fee. A Spurs’ “squad member” could be going the other way – initially on loan, then possibly permanently. It “definitely won’t be” Ghaly though :(. Nor will it be Defoe. Despite what the red tops say about Pompey primarily hunting a striker, Redknapp is keen on getting specialist defensive cover at right back (with Johnson returned to Chelsea, ex-gooner Lauren injury prone). The suggestion that a deal might involve Stalteri or Ifil elicited a non-commital “that would be speculation” response.
Apparently any deal is also complicated by issues at Spurs’ end (i.e. whether they pursue Curtis Davies + our own defensive injury problems).
A word on Matty Taylor. When not at the Lane, I’m an occasional visitor to Fratton Park (I’m a Tottenham boy – well, Stoke Newington actually – but worked in Portsmouth for 15 years now). I’ve followed Taylor’s career quite closely since Pleat almost signed him for us from Luton, but he ended up at Pompey. Most outsiders will know him for his fantastic long range goal strikes. He is extremely hard-working (good attitude) and, crucially, naturally left footed. But he is not IMO better defensively than, say, Lee – in fact, MT is often caught out of position at LB (look at the way Teale skinned him in the season opener). If we sign him, I would imagine it would be as LM primarily (Redknapp prefers to play him there) – but be under no illusions, he ain’t Wesley Sneijder.
POMPEY YID

Anonymous said...

pompey yid

who is the number 11 shirt being saved for then, now lardarse has gone?

coys

Anonymous said...

Jenas was amazing yesterday and i keep feeling that when we have jenas and huddlestone in the middle of the park we are so much better than than with Zokora in the middle. Zokora just isnt the right kind of player to work with Jenas, Jenas needs a holding midfielder like the Hudd, Carrick or if we got him b4 Man U snapped him up Hargreaves with him. Thought Steed and Routledge played well also but Huddlestones passing was top draw yesterday and i hope we play that midfield against man u and the team plays as well as this against them. This performance and midfield was so much better and imaginative than the other 2 matches. Good ratings Harry.

Anonymous said...

Jenas was amazing yesterday and i keep feeling that when we have jenas and huddlestone in the middle of the park we are so much better than than with Zokora in the middle. Zokora just isnt the right kind of player to work with Jenas, Jenas needs a holding midfielder like the Hudd, Carrick or if we got him b4 Man U snapped him up Hargreaves with him. Thought Steed and Routledge played well also but Huddlestones passing was top draw yesterday and i hope we play that midfield against man u and the team plays as well as this against them. This performance and midfield was so much better and imaginative than the other 2 matches. Good ratings Harry.

Anonymous said...

Let's hope this result does not 'paper over the cracks'. I thought that Jol had finaly realised the ineptitude that Zakora has for the game we call football, yet he brings him on and puts Jenas at right back?? we had a Stalteri on the bench?

Jol needs to stop accomodating crap in the team and yesterday by playing THudd with Jenas, it was a much better midfield and Jenas was allowed to play a 100% better.

BTW Sunday 10.21 what possible reason would you want spell 'think' as 'fink', 'that' as dat?

Anonymous said...

harry any news on the riquelme situation.

Anonymous said...

have you got any news on the riquelme situation

Anonymous said...

any news on the riquelme situation

Anonymous said...

No idea Dannyboy - but did notice old lardarse fluked a goal vs Fulham - and those "tapered" 'boro shorts do 'im no favours.
POMPEY YID

Anonymous said...

jenas, tom and steed won this match.

back 4 were solid (still cringe when gardener goes near the ball though).

routledge did absolutely ZERO today. did nothing wrong and nothing right. A total non entity.

bent and keane were fine, but they hardly set the world on fire.

Adel Taarabt was a breath of fresh air. The crowd was electric whenever he got the ball. Needs to learn to pass though...he got bollocked by steed, keano, hudd chimbo. Not bad for 15 minutes!

by the way, Robbo looks sharp this season had very little to do but pulled of a great strong wristed save. Englands no.1 is back.

Anonymous said...

whoever was booing jenas as the teams were read out should be banned from the ground. what kind of idiot thinks that is supporting their team? I'm not his biggest fan but the lad needs 100% support if he is picked to play for our team. I was at the Everton game too and yes he totally frustrated me, but actually booing someone affects their game detrimentally.


blame the manager if you dont want to see his name on the teamsheet.

"to dare is to do" said...

lets not get carried away boys

Anonymous said...

Sorry but I don't necessarily agree with Jenas and Hudds being the ideal combination. I can remember We were saying the same thing about Hudds and Zokora playing together at the beginning of last season and sometimes it has even been said Zokora and JJ are our best pairing.

Zokora is in bad form right now, but must've been a tough decision for MJ as to who to drop between him and Jenas for this one. In my book jenas has played one more better game than Zokora this season...thats all. Zokora needed a kick up the arse, I'm sure he'll come out with something to prove the next time he plays and hopefully pleasantly surprises us, just the same as he did towards the end of last season, when we were all saying he is finally starting to look the real deal remember??? But then thats the beauty of having competition for places,people get dropped and thats when it hits home to get their arses into gear. MJ should do this more often and not just stick to favourites.

It will be even more interesting when KPB is added to the mix. Lets hope he gives us a pleasant surprise and lets the others Hudds, JJ and Zoks know they have one more reason to play up or they will be dropped, just the same as Taraabt will come in for attacking players not pulling their weight.

These are just observations and not criticisms, as of course I'm delighted in the comprehensive manner we took Derby apart, I thought it would be scrappier to be honest.

I think this seasons premiership is going to be even more competitive than last season with at least 8 or 9 teams improving considerably with solid managers at the helm, letting the so called top 4 know they'll have to scrap for every point in every game, at the same time it will be a scrap for UEFA places too.

It's last minute point losses like at Sunderland we should be cutting out as every point will be vital this season. Wish we would get out of the habit of these over confident starts to season resulting in slow starts just like last season, all these little things determine our champs league aim destiny come the end of the season, lets face it we have the squad to do it, a little more luck and you never know...GO ON, GET IN THERE YOU SPURS!!!

Anonymous said...

Come on Harry wheres the footage of Mr Adel doing his twists and turns your slacking

Summerspur said...

Goodness Gracious chaps,

1 could we please refrain from posting blogs on here straight after a game!!
Disappointment and high emotion are clouding judgement. Lets just count to 10, or in the case of the blokes who sit behind me, 5 twice.

2 Have a look at our injuries for crying out loud!!!
Lets not be too hard on the guys standing in. they will have a big part to play when fixtures pile up and we are being dropped of at stamford bridge, still wearing boots after just having played farawayvia.


3 Sunderland would run through a brick wall for their manager or get thrown through one.
Everton are not a bad side, nevertheless the score flattered them.

4 Jol is a good coach, a good man to man person, not necessarily a top 4 manager. Maybe he should have houghtons job, and houghton will have to find someone else to play Os and crosses with on the back of a fag packet with.

5 lets play midfielders in the midfield. messing players positions rarely works (alan smith}

6 jenas is a decent enough player but we all know he is capable of more, thats what gets our goat up, but pleeeeease, ease of the booing.

Harry Hotspur said...

6.34 You missed 'em.

Anonymous said...

Please dont sign mat taylor, he may be good, but hes not good enough for spurs

Anonymous said...

So, Jol is getting it.
He's shit and he should know it. But the guilty party is the Board who should have changed the management during the Summer.

Now, get rid of Berba and things will settle down. Man U are shit, they still need him. And the Arse still needs a top striker.

You have 12 days.

Nemesis

Anonymous said...

Even if Jol is sacked and Ramos comes in, there are big problems to be solved due to the stupid buyings during the Summer. Petrov went to Erikson because he didn't want Jol, so if Jol were not there Petrov would be there now. And then they bought Bent and made a mess of the strikers (the only strong point of the team) instead of getting the much needed left-wing.
I don't get it: Jol is responsible but so is Levy. If Ramos comes in , he has to bring a good left winger with him and then, maybe, we'll progress.

Anonymous said...

Anyone has seen Berbatov yesterday?

Anonymous said...

i am getting extremely sick of tottenham, they have the best manager they've had in 20 years and after just three games he's about to go. i feel damien comolli should leave after buying all these players we don't need and undermining jol's job. the players reaction too was dubious on saturday as steed malbranque celebrated his first goal by goin to the bench, not to jol, but to zokora. jol opened his arms to steed but he was ignored. all i can say is god knows whats goin on but i hope jol stays and tottenham sort their backroom problems out before we see the consequences!

Anonymous said...

There are troubles at WHL alright. In Bulgaria they are investigating why part of the money of Berbatov's transfer was send to a dutch lawyer instead of going to his first club, Pirin. This doesn't sound good to me...

Anonymous said...

I read it and I still don't believe it:
who was the bastard who posted this character assassinnation?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berbatov

Will someone clean this shit, please?

Rough times. INDEED!

"to dare is to do" said...

thats right lets sack jol and have enic sell the club after selling all our players and try with a new bunch... 3 games guys, come on
those who want jol out have lost all perspective

Anonymous said...

nemesis, why aren't you funny any more?