TOTTENHAM-LY DOMINANT

Towards the end of last season, I noticed how powerful and forceful a team Tottenham had become, but for the inexperience and the blow out at Stamford Bridge which drained the team and cost them a crack at the title, Tottenham Hotspurs under Mauricio Pochettino for me, had come of age.

If anyone needed reminding of how good Tottenham have been since the arrival of Pochettino, then you need look no further than Sunday at White Hart Lane; they harassed, bullied, out run, out fought, out thought and out played Manchester City for 90 minutes.

I have not seen a team so dominant against City, who were reduced to ordinary men after all. From minute one to minute ninety, Tottenham played a high pressing, high energy game, led by Son and Lamela and City had no answer to the furious assault all afternoon. By the thirty fifth minute, I got up as I knew the game was heading one way and City would be lucky to escape with three goals.

Tottenham have sent out a warning to the rest of the Premiership and the rest of Europe; we are coming and we have come of age and you would struggle to name three serious contenders for the title now without mentioning Tottenham FC.

If they can be consistent even against the bogey teams, if they can be ruthless even when teams go a goal down against them, if they can stay injury free and if they can cope with Champions League and EPL, then I wouldn’t bet against Tottenham not only finishing above Arsenal but winning the league.

They’ve got the talent, they have bundles of energy and have a fantastic manager, congratulations Tottenham for showing EPL how to batter Manchester City

ARSENAL FIND A WAY

Congratulations to Arsene for 20 years on the throne. The last twelve have been without a Premiership title, but you can’t knock him for winning the FA cup a few times in twelve years.

Interestingly of note and a credit to Arsenal is how they always find a way against the bogey teams. They did it again on Sunday – albeit with the hand of God – with almost the last kick of the game, well it ain’t over until it’s over and I wonder what it’s like to be an Arsenal fan these days.

Burnley have their game plan and they follow it to the last detail – ask Liverpool – against Arsenal however, they were snookered in the last seconds of the game.

Can Arsenal challenge for the title? I think they can, if they keep Sanchez fit, he drives the team with energy and is so fearless and lethal in front of goal. When he wants it, you can’t get the ball off him and once he starts to play, Ozil, Iwobi and the others swing to action.

The season is already exciting and when you look at the league table, I think it’s a mirror of what we would have with six, seven games to go as we enter squeaky bum time.

UNITED NEED TIME AND LUCK

After watching United draw against Stoke, I have come to the conclusion that perhaps it would be second season lucky for Jose Mourinho and Manchester United.

Jose Mourinho needs time to change the whole Manchester United team completely, develop talent within, find a winning style of play and supplement the team with top quality players – he has brought in Zlatan, Pogba, Bailly & Mikhytarian already and kept DeGea at United – and he also needs a bit of luck to win games. They had so many chances against Stoke, was it pressure on the players? Demands on their shoulders? Or was it just pure bad luck?

Bad luck started in my opinion after Sir Alex. Moyes had a huge job to do after Sir Alex – can’t step into the big man’s shoes without added pressure and he thought he had time with the backing of the board – he had a job to rebuild but I think he bought Fellaini.
No disrespect to any player, but how you treat and talk to Pineear or Fellaini is different from how you treat Wayne Rooney and Carrick etc (cue Mourinho’s diplomacy)
Moyes was not a terrible coach, he just got lost in the big arena and lost his players too in the process and the result was the inevitable sack

Then came LVG…..
Another roulette in Manchester; spent the most and bought a lot of players, but what type? Wasn’t there a time that United bought only the top quality marquees?

Patrice Evra
Jaap Staam
Andy Cole
Dwight Yorke
David Beckham
Ryan Giggs
Roy Keane
Rio Ferdinand
Edwin Van Der Saar
Paul Ince
Berbatov
Nemanja Vidic
Owen HeargreavesThe game changed after Sir Alex and United stopped attracting the calibre of players needed – don’t underestimate the pull of a powerful manager – and then came LVG turned the players into robots.
I mean I can’t even believe it’s Wayne Rooney any longer.
He used to be explosive and decisive but
now, he is so lethargic and just off pace its unimaginable.
I wonder what Jose has to do to get him back, because he is a big game player and a fantastic strikerWell, 2 years in LVG’s laboratory and series of experiments on ball possession
with over 36 players means that United fans have to be patient ……
There’s too much pressure on Jose, Pogba, Zlatan, (Mikhytarian has folded) to deliver…..
It’ll take time…
But seriously, watching them in past two/three games I’ve been impressed and
if they keep playing as they have done in the last three games and stay close to the top until Christmas, who knows?

LIVERPOOL AND CHELSEA LEAVE IT LATE

Okay it was late, but both teams demonstrated why they’ve been labelled as title favourites

Chelsea started with nerves but grew into the game and by the second half it was only one team playing. Still no room for Cesc Fabregas and Oscar seems to have been found out by Conte.

It’s early days but the 2nd half display deserved the three points.

Liverpool almost bottled it, but then again a strong second half gave them the three points and condemned the Swansea coach to the Unemployment office.

The defence is still very suspect and if Swansea took their chances (especially the one in the 92nd minute) it would have been just the single point for Jurgen Klopp.

They battled, ran, played and got their reward in the end.

FRANSESCO GUIDOLIN AND ROBERTO DI-MATTEO

Once again, Roberto DiMatteo loses his job after promising to deliver without results.

Chelsea, Shalke and now Aston Villa.

We don’t like anybody sacked, so we wish him the best of luck in his next project.

As for Mr Guidolini, shame he couldn’t deliver what the board wanted and the fact that Mr Bradley of USA was appointed immediately means that there was no way he could have saved his job in the long run; and as the Italians say, he was bound to sleep with the fishes.

Good luck in your next project.