An immovable object: Tottenham Hotspur Ft. Mauricio Pochettino

It is fair enough to say that the most famous league in the world, richest league in the world is also the tactically poorest among the other major leagues. The already exorbitant demands of the premier league clubs and the immense pressure on managers to deliver was done no favor when Leicester City and Ranieri went on to lift the league title lasts season. But there are still people looking to strike a balance between the desire for instant success and playing good football. This, being a rare breed  includes the likes of Guardiola, Klopp, Koeman and Pochettino.

Right after the initial few rounds of fixtures, there were few games which I really wanted to be played instantly. One of them was Manchester City v/s Tottenham Hotspur, and it was every bit the spectacle. When the league's best forward line faces the best defense it was never easy for both of them, but it was the Spurs who put in another rock solid performance to walk out well deserved winners. Right from the off, one thing was obvious Spurs are not going to sit back and let city dictate play. They played their usual high press, but what set them apart from the other teams who've tried the same against City is that, they sustained the pressure even if City progressed through their initial press. This may seem easy as an idea but requires extremely high levels of physical fitness and discipline from the players part.

The Tottenham Press:

 By now, we know how much Pep Guardiola likes to involve his goalkeeper to achieve numerical superiority in the initial build-up phase. This generally creates a 4v3 situation for City in defense and this more often than not enables them to negotiate the press. Spurs mostly deployed a 3 man press which occasionally became a 4 man press. In the 4v3 two Spurs players mark one of the Center Backs and the defensive midfielder respectively. While the other player tracks the ball; his job is to press the ball while at the same time blocking the passing lane by formation of a "pressing shadow".This way the other Center Back or the goalkeeper is effectively taken out of the game without any direct pressing. Usually these 3 players were, Son, Alli and Lamela. Should the City midfield drop further or if the forward is not able to cover the passing lane of the free CB, then Eriksen also joins the picture thereby creating a 4v4 which forces City to go long.The pressing shadow calls for awareness of the opponent's exact position and is a super-smart way of pressing which can backfire if not applied properly.

 Tottenham also tend to play with a vertical compactness enabling players to be close to each other. This is important in the sense that players can cover up space for a team-mate who is going out on the press. The 3v4 Spurs press forced City to play long and this was backed up with late runs by Rose/Walker/Eriksen into Spurs's zone 14 to intercept these air balls. This enabled them to win back possession in very dangerous zones.

To play with the high intensity press and follow it up with a secondary press in midfield requires spurs to commit men forward. To play this way and still concede the fewest goals in the league is some achievement. This comes through disciplined controlling of spaces. Eriksen plays deep with Wanyama when he's not pressing the opposition defense. Often, Sissoko is also seen in tandem with these two in the center. This gives Spurs the muscle in the middle. Eriksen and Sissoko are given the license to accompany the press with the full backs Rose and Walker joining them. Pochettino has given a very fluid design to the Spurs line-up with a collaborative aim of controlling spaces. In order to maintain some order over this entropy, there are a few constraints over some players. Both the center-backs and Wanyama are the restricted to playing in and around the half-line while Spurs have the ball. 

The role of the defensive midfielder is crucial for Pochettino as he uses this man to create space for the center backs, Alderweireld especially, in order to use his exceptional passing range. The Belgian played long balls frequently to catch the on-rushing City defenders out of position. Alderweireld's long diagonals have become constant outlets for attack in current Tottenham team.

And regarding constraints in defense, there are none. Right from Harry Kane, to Heung Min Son in recent weeks, to Lamela, to the newly joined Sissoko everybody has a role in defense. The center forward alone seems to have the liberty of defending in the opposition half alone. We also see the center-forward constantly dropping to the flanks to occupy wide positions. This is another feature in Tottenham's style to bring the wingers and the attacking midfielders into play. With Son or previously Harry Kane before he got injured, dropping to the wings this allows space for Alli, Eriksen and Lamela to run into. This allows the likes of Alli, Lamela to occupy the center backs and make late runs out wide to receive balls played down the line by Son. As they move out they draw center backs out of position and create space for Son and Eriksen to run into. Eriksen, especially in these kind of situations is lethal, due to his Mueller like instincts for space.  

But Pep Guardiola chose to stay compact against this granting control of the flanks to the Tottenham attackers. This resulted in the wingers playing freely out wide letting full backs also support in attack with Kyle Walker's pace being a constant threat.

Tottenham's Lateral Passing:
 

Another recurring pattern with Tottenham is the use of lateral passing. Very often against low-block teams, Tottenham play a patient passing game to generate momentum giving time for the attackers, wingers and even fullbacks sometimes to occupy positions which could cause damage to the opposition. This starts off with passing the ball from side to side forcing the entirety of the opposition midfield and defense to shift focus from one side to the other. While the opposition is going through this horizontal transition one of the spurs players breaks the norm to provide a run in between the vertical lines which is met with a long ball from the man in possession.This vertical penetration is mostly done by Eriksen who is really smart at attacking spaces and sometimes others as well to maintain unpredictability. Frequently in the City game Kyle Walker who is turning out to be one of the best defenders in the league, gave vertical runs from defense through the spaces in the vertical lines with Sissoko covering for him.

All in all what makes Tottenham stand out is a laser like devotion to Pochettino's vision of Football combined with extreme discipline and high levels of fitness. They've also added more muscle in midfield through Sissoko and Wanyama along with what's possibly the best central defensive partnership in the premier league playing alongside the offensively and defensively brilliant Kyle Walker. Add to this the sparkling form of Heung Min Son and Kane's goal threat once he returns, Spurs seem like an immovable object slowly but surely becoming an unstoppable force.