Tottenham's Season to Get Kick Start This Weekend after UEFA Cup Victory

Brandon Evans by Correspondent Written on October 02, 2008
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Tottenham Hotspur's 1-1 draw was enough to see them uneasily progress to the group stages of the UEFA Cup after a narrow victory over Wilsa Krakow winning 3-2 on aggregate.

A goal from Krakow defender Arkadiusz Glowaki turned out to be enough for Tottenham, who managed to hold off persistent Krakow attacks as they pushed to try and send the game into extra time.

Krakow started on top with good passages of play, creating chances and nearly taking the lead through Radoslaw Sobolewski just before half time.  A diving Heurelho Gomes got in the way of the shot to keep the game tied.

In the second half, Spurs came out on top controlling possession and utilizing the pace of Aaron Lennon and Gareth Bale on the flanks to penetrate a disciplined Krakow back four and began to gain some control.

It was a low cross from Gareth Bale initially intended for Fraizer Campbell that was headed in by the perplexed Glowacki to give Spurs the lead.

After they went behind, Krakow came out fighting. With the support of the energetic home crowd, Tottenham buckled under the pressure. Their defence looked flimsy and vulnerable and with every attack looked more likely to fall behind.

Within minutes, it became apparent that their problems this season haven't been caused by "Berbatov's poisonous presence" as idiotically suggested by Terry Venables, but by Tottenham's incapacity to defend the most simple of attacks.

A lack of communication between Ledley King and Jonathan Woodgate and a simple ball over the top between them was Brozek's cue to lob the on rushing Gomes for a comical equalizer at the 84-minute mark.

Tottenham's defensive efforts to hold off Krakow would best be described as mediocre.

They could have gone behind on numerous occasions in the last 10 minutes of the game if it hadn't been for some good defending from Gomes and Michael Dawson. Juande Ramos won't be resting comfortably tonight even after qualification since he should be aware their defending still leaves a lot to be desired.

Tottenham was fairly unconvincing going forward, and although Jenas and Lennon did their best to provide the spark in midfield, they were unable to support Darren Bent and Campbell when they did get into promising attacking positions.

It would be easy for Spurs to dwell on the negatives of the game, but there were still a lot of positives they could build on ahead of Hull City's visit to White Hart Lane this weekend.

Although Tottenham wasn't exceptional, they managed to show glints of their more self-assured selves when they did get forward. As long as they build on this performance, Tottenham fans can expect a home win when they face Hull City on Sunday afternoon.

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written on October 02, 2008 Game Recap

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