Danny Rose, Mousa Dembele Reward Pochettino's Faith in Tottenham's Derby Win
Tottenham Hotspur's 2-1 Premier League win over Arsenal will rightly see two-goal hero Harry Kane lauded.
The striker can do little wrong right now. Kane has scored four goals in three matches since being given the nod to lead the Tottenham attack again. Observers far and wide were praising him during and after Saturday's north London derby, including former Spur Jermaine Jenas:
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Kane was the difference-maker in the end, but Tottenham's victory was founded on an impressive team effort that saw them decidedly outwork Arsenal.
Within that, head coach Mauricio Pochettino might well take some satisfaction in the performances of Mousa Dembele and Danny Rose. The two rewarded their boss' recent backing of them with showings that also reinforced their chances of remaining first-team regulars (or as close as possible under a manager who is not afraid of rotating his side).
Rose was Spurs' first-choice left-back up until November, before a decent if unremarkable start to the campaign fell away with particularly lax outings at Aston Villa and in the home loss to Stoke City. Sidelined by an injury in the latter, good performances by the more diligent Ben Davies looked to have moved the Welshman ahead in the pecking order.
Pochettino's selection of Rose for the New Year's Day game with Chelsea emphasised the coach's open-mindedness, though. He clearly rated the 24-year-old and was prepared to let him prove his worth.
After a slow start, Rose did so against Chelsea. He gave his side the lead and helped them maintain it as Spurs held on to win 5-3. Since then, he has reclaimed his spot as the team's main Premier League left-back.
Saturday might just have been Rose's best 90 minutes of the season.
The 2010 north London derby at White Hart Lane was the scene of his first notable public statement in a Spurs shirt. His spectacular volley opened the scoring in a 2-1 win that edged the Lilywhites towards Champions League qualification.
Five years on, Rose's more thorough display was not marked by such a significant individual moment, but it set the tone for a victory that could prove just as important down the line.
Almost from the off he sought to get down his flank, with Danny Welbeck often left in his wake (resulting in some cross words between them around half-time after the latter fouled Rose).
None of his six crosses reached their targets, but his reliability as an outlet allowed Spurs to consistently stretch the Gunners as they passed from side to side. He also tested David Ospina with a couple of good shots of his own.
A brilliantly timed sliding tackle saw Rose dispossess Welbeck in the 11th minute, only for the defender to be put on the back foot and beaten by the pacey Arsenal wide-man when Spurs lost it straightaway. He crossed, and Mesut Ozil converted a scuffed shot from the damagingly ignored Olivier Giroud to give Arsenal the lead.
Just like the team did not drop their heads, Rose quickly got back to work. A 70th-minute back-post clearing header was the highlight, and while the back four were forced to scramble at times, he played like a defender who has generally learned the benefits of maintaining his concentration.
Dembele's path from an eye-catching attacker in Holland and at Fulham to underwhelming Spurs contributor—via a partly forced refashioning as a defensive midfielder—is a complicated story we do not have time to recount here in full. But it needs referencing as background to his selection as Pochettino's central attacking midfielder in recent weeks.
The Belgium international has not been denied the chance to get forward. But not since early 2013 (when defensive midfielder Sandro suffered a season-ending injury) has attacking been Dembele's primary responsibility over a run of games.
Given more freedom to operate, he revelled in the comparatively looser defending of League One side Sheffield United in the Capital One Cup semi-final, hypnotising them with his deceptively languid tricks and turns. At West Bromwich Albion, he turned his more advanced positioning into contributions to the first two goals of Tottenham's 3-0 win.
Against Arsenal, Spurs played with an intensity and creativity underpinned by sustained pressing, which was possibly the best demonstration yet of Pochettino's desired style.
Dembele's contribution to this was not especially showy—he had one shot saved and wrongly pivoted back inside when another first-half opportunity arose. But it was functional in a way that highlighted how his recent revitalisation might yield greater moments to come.
He connected well with Christian Eriksen and Erik Lamela either side of him, skillfully maneuvering into positions from where he also created four of Spurs' chances. The team's near-relentless pressure that eventually battered Arsenal into submission was helped considerably by Dembele's role in keeping the ball.
Competition is fierce in the Spurs attacking midfield so the 27-year-old will need to produce more to keep his place long-term. For now he has something to work with in achieving this aim.
There were plenty others besides Dembele and Rose to play well, and in some cases better. Kyle Walker had his best match since returning from injury, Hugo Lloris made some great saves and Eric Dier did not look out of his depth in such a big game. Several, too, embraced the derby-day spirit with gritty, determined efforts.
Dembele and Rose are players who have been written off, or at least severely questioned. Here they showed the new lease of life that can be provided by a coach willing to think about players in more than linear terms. Something we would all do well to do more often.
All statistics via Squawka.
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