LESSON LEARNED
One collapse, one comeback...and team news for today!
October 6: BRIGHTON 3-2 SPURS
So let’s go right to it. After Brennan Johnson extended his PL scoring streak to 6 matches and James Maddison added another first half goal, we fell apart in the first 20 minutes of the second half.
On Brighton’s first goal, Mitoma was allowed too much room to send in a cross, which Destiny Udogie made a mess of—not exactly sure what he was trying to do, but he’d have done better to boot it back to where it came from—and Minteh took advantage.
For their second, Bentancur and Romero allowed Mitoma too much space and assisted Giorginio, who found space between van de Ven and Udogie.
For their third, Giorginio spun Udogie in the box and found Welbeck for the header as Romero was caught ball watching.
How’d this happen? It was a combination of our boys letting up with an 0-2 lead and Postecoglou not making any changes until the 79th minute. When asked about the latter, Ange seemed to dismiss the point: “We didn’t deserve on our second-half performance, irrespective of subs or anything else, to get something out of the game. But I think if you do get something out of the game, you’re falsely rewarded and I don’t want to get falsely rewarded.”
Many had a problem with his answer. But while he could’ve acted more quickly (put a pin in that), he was right: our players switched off, and they can’t do that, especially away in the PL. I’ve railed many a time against those who speak of a “mentality” issue at the club, but such criticism was apt on this day. And while some of us may be expecting too much of Udogie to jump right back to peak form after his surgery earlier this year, one may fairly wonder why Romero, our vice-captain and winner of a World Cup and Copa America, has these moments where he seems to unplug.
I think back to the summer of 2017 when we’d ended the season on a high, undefeated at home, and were hoping to kick on. I’d wanted us to bring in somebody like Michael Carrick, a player with experience winning things in England to help us see matches out. (Instead, we sold Walker and brought in Sanchez, Foyth, Gazzaniga, and Aurier.) Matches like Brighton, I wish we had someone to look around at our team and say, “Nah, boys, this ain’t happening.”
October 19: SPURS 4-1 WEST HAM
As noted in this article by the “New York Times” (Athletic), Ange wasted no time making subs in our match with West Ham.
Off came James Maddison, in what might be the most unfair yet smart switch this season. Madders had played well. He’d created 5 scoring chances in the first half along. He’d notched the assist on Kulusevski’s equalizer.
And it wasn’t as if we were playing terribly. Johnson looked on it and arguably could’ve scored thrice. He’s feeling so giddy these days that he’s back on Instagram. (Now get behind him, you monsters.) And Son nearly found netting with one of his magic curlers.
But Ange saw how vulnerable we looked in the middle of the pitch. (I also suspect he planned to remove Madders early, anyway, to save him for today.) West Ham had opened the scoring when Bowen undressed the out-of-form Udogie and served up a wide-open Kudus, who would’ve scored earlier if not for a deft deflection from Vicario. But this time, with Pedro Porro marking a man to Venom’s right, Johnson failed to pick up Kudus.
Still, Ange liked what he saw from Johnson’s all-around game. While our latest Welsh winger saw his scoring streak end, Ange observed: “I mentioned it to the lads, I know Brennan Johnson didn’t score today, but I thought that was his best performance for us with the amount of work he did to help out Pedro and help out the team in a defensive capacity and still be a threat going the other way.”
KULUSEXY!
Dear god, Deki! Kulusevski was imperious on the day. He was everywhere: tracking back, going box to box, showing up on the left and right. On his equalizer, a Solanke touch sent Maddison on a counter, and Madders dished to Deki, who cut in and sent a low shot through traffic that West Ham keeper Areola got his hand on and pinballed off both posts before crossing the goal line. The Swede looked like a man on the mission and takes home USMOTM honors.
His goal was just his second of the PL season, but who else thinks it seems as if he’s scored at least 5 or 6 for us? That’s how good he’s been for us, and in a season when he started Match Week 1 on the bench.
EIGHT MINUTES IN HEAVEN
It looked as if we were clicking, but Ange wanted more defensive stability in the form of Pape Matar Sarr, who delivered. And with three goals at the 52’, 55’, and 60’ marks, respectively, our boys turned the match around:
Bissouma scored the kind of goal we’ve seen before on a heads-up runner into the box to collect a smart pass from Udogie and deposit it into net.
Deki made space for Son to cut in from the right, and although Sonny’s shot was not the best, it had enough on it to bounce off Areola, Todibo, and Areola again for an own goal.
Then Solanke snuffed out a West Ham attack in our end, Sarr collected it and found Sonny far down the left, and our captain produced yet another moment of magic. Oft criticized for his lack of 1v1 excellence, he performed not one…
not two…
but three stepovers to set himself up for a low liner past Areola for one tit of a goal.
4-1, match over…largely because Ange acted quickly while Hammer coach Lopetegui seemed caught in indecision with substitutes ready to come on but held on the sideline for much too long. I recall a theater professor in my grad program who once remarked: “That is what we in the business call irony.”
This seems to be who we are in Ange’s second season. We’re not yet contenders for the league as some of us imagined in the heady “Could we?” days of last season. But we’re pretty damn good, if inconsistent. We’re seventh in the table…but just four points off second. We’ve scored 18 goals, second highest in the league, and allowed 9 goals, as many as Man City has. We’re growing. We’re poised for a run at Top 4 and for a deep run in the Europa League.
And what’s this? Arsenal is finally drawing red cards?
Sit back and enjoy the ride.
Next up: Here’s our XI for AZ Alkmaar:
Forster; Udogie, Davies, Dragusin, Gray; Maddison, Bergvall, Bentancur; Werner, Richarlsion, Moore.