Tottenham Flex Muscles with Power-Packed Display That Offers Fresh Dimension

WHITE HART LANE, London — In the aftermath of Tottenham Hotspur's UEFA Champions League loss to Monaco, manager Mauricio Pochettino found a theme and stuck to it.

"We need to play with more hunger and passion," he said immediately after, per the club's official Twitter account. Ahead of their Premier League return, he reiterated that "we need to show more aggression with and without the ball, more desire, more passion," elsewhere again questioning the lack of those qualities at Wembley.

The changes Pochettino made for Sunday's 1-0 win over Sunderland were partly in line with expected squad rotation as Tottenham enter a busier period of their schedule (an EFL Cup game against Gillingham is next up on Wednesday).

The more power-based approach he engineered making those alterations was also, however, a manifestation of that need to get back to a simplicity in which his players could find that missing aggression and passion.

"We all agreed after the Monaco game—especially the first half—that we need to bring more energy and maybe more passion," goalkeeper and captain Hugo Lloris said after the much-improved performance was sealed by Harry Kane's 59th-minute goal. "The most important thing is how you react and we showed a good reaction," he said.

Having beaten Stoke City 4-0 last week, the meeting with Monaco felt like it might have confused things again for Tottenham from a selection perspective.

What should be read into more: the focus and creativity that had ripped apart the admittedly struggling Potters or the meandering, lacklustre overall effort seen in Europe?

Pochettino's choices against Sunderland have certainly complicated the task of managing his resources, but the quality of the subsequent display at least means it is in the more pleasing variety of selection headaches.

At first glance of the teamsheet (see above), the inclusion of Eric Dier, Victor Wanyama and, his six-game suspension complete, Mousa Dembele suggested a no-nonsense, powerhouse midfield was the post-Monaco response.

Indeed, it is the kind that—had it been deployed against the Ligue 1 outfit—might have meant Spurs were more suitably shored up than has been the case.

A more thorough scan, and the players' eventual lining up for kick-off revealed a rather different setup.

Instead of one of the attackers making way to form something closer to a 4-3-3 formation, the usual 4-2-3-1 was kept with Dier actually playing centre-back for the first time since January's FA Cup win over Leicester City. Ben Davies missed out at left-back (Danny Rose, the usual starter there, was still injured). In his place, Jan Vertonghen was switched out wide.

That in itself brought a bit more of a centre-back's robustness to the flank. The Belgian plays there at the international level, but it has been a while since he was deployed by Spurs out wide.

Though less overtly attacking than Rose, he provided solid support for Heung-Min Son ahead of him. Defensively, he mostly shut the flank down as a potential route for the Black Cats, winning 100 per cent of his aerial duels and tackles while effectively clearing his lines when required.

There was one exception which led to Sunderland's most significant chance of the first half.

That moment saw Vertonghen caught out, Toby Alderweireld lured out left and then played in behind with Adnan Januzaj beating the flat-footed Dier to set up a Steven Pienaar shot that right-back Kyle Walker was in position to clear off the line (see below).

If Alderweireld and Dier are going to be utilised as the centre-back pairing more regularly, this contest did not give the best idea of how formidable they may or may not be.

Sunderland frequently went long via goalkeeper Jordan Pickford's big punts forward. Jermain Defoe got behind one time, but the new Spurs duo otherwise dealt comfortably with these direct challenges, mopping up safely.

As it was, the midfield of Dembele and Wanyama provided sufficient cover and control so the central defenders were not called upon too often (up until the former went off injured late on anyway).

Previous wins over Crystal Palace and Stoke disproved the notion that Spurs cannot get by without Dembele, a player who became so integral last season. Nevertheless, after shaking off the rust of his absence with 45 minutes in the Champions League, Pochettino's side benefited from his presence.

His name being announced before kick-off got one of the loudest cheers of the afternoon from the White Hart Lane faithful. Virtually from the start, he took the lead in orchestrating things for his team.

High passing accuracy is common for Dembele. The 95 per cent completion rate against Sunderland lends itself to the kind of dominance he provided here, though.

Against relatively timid opposition, it was less about imposing himself physically as it was taking charge and directing play—though he was typically strong maintaining possession when required. That was something Dier and Wanyama together in previous games were less inclined to initiate, at least as naturally as their team-mate.

Playing with the Belgian for the first time in his fledgling Tottenham career, Wanyama offered good balance. He took on a little more of the dirty work and ably joined in, moving the ball about purposefully and mostly precisely, getting forward to try his luck at goal when Dembele's positioning allowed it.

Sunderland's standing off (barring a couple of periods late in both halves) and the quality of the midfielders' work gave Spurs the freedom to play as they wanted.

With Son out left and Moussa Sissoko out right, that meant making good use of width.

Here emerged one of the dilemmas Pochettino—and to an extent supporters too in potentially adapting to different faces and perhaps style elements to what they were used to in such a great 2015-16—faces moving forward.

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There was a pleasing and productive straightforwardness about Sissoko's charges in from the right and Son putting Sunderland right-back Jason Denayer on his heels slaloming one way and then the other.

Between them, they had 12 shots, the South Korean coming closest when he hit the post shortly before the interval. They repeatedly sent inviting and threatening crosses in, combining with and looking for targets Dele Alli and Kane.

The quality at times could have been better—Sissoko especially rushed some of his efforts, though that might have just been out of an over-eagerness to impress in his first start. Speaking with reporters after the match, Pochettino rued the team not scoring more than one, while the skipper Lloris expressed a similar need "to be more clinical."

Mostly, however, it forced Sunderland back while not completely getting away from the intricate, close-quarter combinations that can make Spurs so eye-pleasing.

Indeed, frontman Kane especially benefited from the mix of directness and movement that allowed him to get involved more naturally than at any point this season.

"When one player is missing, it gives an opportunity to another player to bring his skills, energy and quality," Lloris said after the match. "This is the story of the season and that's why we need all the players involved to be committed to the club because when the manager needs you, you need to respond well."

Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela were the two left out to facilitate the changes this time.

Now, not for a second should they be cast as out of favour all of a sudden. It was just over a week ago that Eriksen was so influential against Stoke, while Lamela injected freshness into the attack when he arrived late on against Sunderland.

But the impact of Son again after his brace last time, and the balance and strategical improvement Sissoko brought compared to the hesitancy against Monaco, has made things interesting in attacking midfield.

Spurs looked clearer in their thinking and definitely more aggressive.

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Previous norms can be changed.

As noted, Kane definitely looked a lot more content leading the line. He had extra zip running at Sunderland, timing his thrusts forward to good effect. Bar one misreading of Son's intent at a near-post cross, he looked sharp in the penalty box, finishing well.

At the time of writing, the extent of Kane's late injury suffered in a challenge with Papy Djilobodji had not been confirmed. If a lengthy lay-off is the result, it will be a shame for the striker after such a bright display.

It should, though, mean a chance for summer signing Vincent Janssen up front.

Now Kane is certainly too traditional an English centre-forward to be considered a finesse-based player, but in comparison to the Dutchman, he is more refined in his style.

With his combative inclinations and scrapper's build, Janssen coming in could persuade Pochettino to double down on urging and implementing this even more aggressive approach.

Already one of the toughest sides in the Premier League—if not the toughest side—third-place Tottenham could be looking to turn themselves into one of the most recognisable knockout artists around. What remains to be seen is if they are any better at that than they are at trying to out-box their opponents.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics via Squawka.