EFL Cup Match with Liverpool Highlights Hard Choices Ahead for Tottenham
Sometimes there is nothing like playing lower-league opposition to cure or appease Premier League neuroses and concerns.
Tottenham Hotspur's need for a win over Gillingham in their third-round EFL Cup match last month was not as vital as, say, then-underperforming West Ham United's 1-0 defeat of Accrington Stanley on the same night. But the 5-0 victory at White Hart Lane served up a welcome feel-good factor all the same.
Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela had been dropped/rested for the preceding league win over Sunderland. Both relished the opportunity allowed by inferior opposition to remind them of their creative capabilities, scoring three between them. Midfielder Tom Carroll and defender Kevin Wimmer looked to make the most of what was their first 2016-17 bow.
He took a little while getting there on the night, but Vincent Janssen netted his first goal for Tottenham from the penalty spot. Midfielder Joshua Onomah also opened his senior tally, while fellow academy men Cameron Carter-Vickers and Harry Winks made their first starts. They were later joined off the bench by other youth-team prospects Marcus Edwards and Anton Walkes and new signing Georges-Kevin Nkoudou, all making their respective debuts.
The home fans went home content, having witnessed a jolly, relaxed couple hours of entertainment. Manager Mauricio Pochettino and his players could reflect on a job well done and signs of a promising future for and via several talented young individuals.
Impinging on this reverie came the draw and confirmation of their opponents for the next round: Liverpool, away.
With due respect to Gillingham, managed by ex-Spur Justin Edinburgh, it was a long shot that the League One side would ask any serious questions of a strong Tottenham squad.
The prospect of facing the Reds for the second time in just a couple of months, though, has brought up more than just the difficult task of progressing into the tournament beyond Anfield. It has also highlighted issues of personnel and how Pochettino prioritises different competitions in a year he hopes will bring long-awaited success.
Speaking about the youngsters specifically after the last round, Pochettino celebrated "a fantastic night to give the opportunity to play." His belief in their readiness for the first team was such he intended to play them in the next stage too:
"It will be a very great experience to play in Anfield. It’s true that they are not involved in European competition, and maybe they will take the game in a different way than us. But for us it’s important to build up our confidence, our squad for the future. We are in a different process than Liverpool, I think [it] will be a great experience for our younger players to play in Anfield.
"
That statement warranted a followup. Would he really field some of his less experienced squad members against one of the competition favourites and a fellow Premier League title hopeful?
"Why not? Why not?"
In the heady aftermath of a night when they had shone, the idea certainly appealed. Sticking with it now that the fixture is imminent should at least give the Argentinian pause for thought.
It is not that any of those academy products are undeserving; far from it.
Prior to the recent game with West Bromwich Albion, Pochettino himself brought up Winks in going through some of his central-midfield options. The 20-year-old has done solid work in Premier League and Champions League cameos this season, and his performance against Gillingham reiterated his capacity as an energetic and diligent midfield conductor, as seen in pre-season auditions.
Onomah was a regular backup option in 2015-16, and in his few appearances so far he has looked an even more confident performer. It is credit to his development that against Gillingham he was as dynamic and positive as Eriksen and Lamela. His goal was well-taken, too.
Carroll proved himself a reliable contributor throughout last season and will be eager to prove that again. Carter-Vickers is an unknown at this level but impressed over the summer, and you would think that the fact that Pochettino—himself a former defender—is keeping him around the squad would suggest he is sufficiently prepared.
If anything, Onomah and Winks could have been used more by Tottenham lately.
The 19-year-old came on late in the draw against Bayer Leverkusen, but his inclination to run at opponents could surely have been beneficial in buying his team a breather during the early-second-half onslaught. As Spurs struggled to generate potential routes to goal in another scoreless tie versus Bournemouth, Winks might have offered a different perspective.
Nkoudou is not one of the homegrown crop, but it has been a surprise to see that the tantalising glimpses of the winger's work against Gillingham, Middlesbrough and particularly CSKA Moscow have not been followed up on, either.
Still, in terms of the match specifically, it will be considered a risk to go with potential over the proven at Liverpool (especially if an Edwards or a Walkes are involved again, too).
Jurgen Klopp has also dipped into his squad in previous rounds. However, with internationals Philippe Coutinho, Jordan Henderson, Joel Matip and Daniel Sturridge also playing, there has been a greater first-team tint to his selections.
As Pochettino noted, Liverpool are not competing in European football this season. Unlike Klopp, he is having to consider how to deploy his resources to what is currently a three-front campaign, given injuries suffered by first-teamers like Mousa Dembele, Eric Dier, Harry Kane and Danny Rose in the opening months.
But going to Anfield and losing via an experience deficit could see Spurs' young players potentially demoralised, gutted at not being able to do their part in getting one over a league rival, not to mention forsaking a competition that may be their best chance of a trophy.
It is all a bit convoluted.
Maximising and developing his squad while looking to establish Spurs (currently fifth in the table) as serious title contenders again requires some hard choices for Pochettino. Perception and realities of his side are clashing, and something may have to give.
The League Cup has been a competition the north Londoners have approached seriously in his two years in charge. They lost to Chelsea in the final in 2014-15, and last season might have gone further again had they progressed beyond a tough defeat to Arsenal in their first game.
Now there are grander ambitions of a championship tilt and, having finally returned, serious progression in the Champions League.
During last season's title challenge, Pochettino attempted to compromise in the last 16 of the Europa League against Borussia Dortmund, which ultimately did not pay off. Treat the EFL Cup (and perhaps in the New Year, the FA Cup) as lesser priorities, and Spurs may regret their choices later.
Even victory against Liverpool, if it is achieved by some of the youngsters, brings consequences.
Can Pochettino continue to keep Onomah out of the team in favour of a currently inconsistent mainstay like Eriksen or Lamela, if the former excels? How are Carter-Vickers, Nkoudou or Winks going to progress if he does not back them beyond the occasional cup outing?
Beyond the less utilised players, there could also be repercussions for the immediate role of Janssen (likely to start after being dropped for Bournemouth), as well as the competition for places in defence and midfield. Perhaps, after all this, Pochettino will actually decide on a different approach to secure immediate satisfaction but open up different questions.
As was the case with Gillingham, the result going either way is not necessarily a big deal.
Despite the frustrating recent draws, Pochettino's team is in a relatively healthy state. Spurs do not need to stop a worrying slide like West Ham did in the last round, nor do they quite need the public pick-me-up Manchester City and Man United do from their meeting this week.
Nevertheless, as Tottenham enter a tough run of fixtures that will shape the first half of their season, this away trip is a significant one. The performance and the outcome will point the way forward, and there may be little room for deviation for Pochettino and his players for months to come.
Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
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