A Progress Report on Tottenham's Squad Entering March International Break
Tottenham Hotspur supporters—if not their club's numerous players, who are now with their respective countries—can take a breather now.
March's resumption of international competition presents only the second weekend since the last such break in November in which Tottenham have not been in action.
Even those fans not enthralled by the Premier League interruption should welcome the opportunity for head coach Mauricio Pochettino and his staff to take stock. A pause in play allows them to try and reconfigure, or at least tweak, aspects of their game plan ahead of the final eight matches.
This halt in proceedings prior to the final run-in is an ideal time for a progress report on the squad, a position-by-position, phase-of-play look at the north Londoners' recent performances and where this leaves them as the 2014-15 campaign winds down.
We start with the more-eventful-than-normal past weekend experienced by goalkeepers Hugo Lloris and Michel Vorm.
Lloris' Rare (Unwanted) Break from the Norm
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Lloris made it 30-for-30 in the Premier League last Saturday when he started at home to Leicester City. The ever-present statistic was only marginally maintained, though—he went off injured after just a couple of minutes.
Pochettino confirmed a gashed knee post-match to Tottenham's official website. The London Evening Standard's Tom Collomosse has since reported the club hope Lloris will be available to face Aston Villa on April 11.
A Spurs side without Lloris has become even more of a rarity in the last couple of months.
The first choice in the league and European competition was picked over previous Capital One Cup starter Michel Vorm for the final loss to Chelsea. With all extracurricular activity for the season done with, the Dutchman was facing a low-key conclusion to his first season at White Hart Lane.
Lloris' injury has presented Vorm with his chance to show his credentials in the league. But if the aforementioned prognosis is correct, it is likely to be a brief one.
Although present for seven of the nine goals conceded since Wembley, there has been little more Lloris could have done about Spurs' leaky defence. Whatever Vorm might do in his absence, Lloris will again be the main man when he returns.
Disconnect in Defence
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The performance of the Tottenham defence against Leicester was something of a microcosm of their general recent efforts.
Strong and watchful in places—Danny Rose holding his own in the face of the Foxes' physicality, Jan Vertonghen with some masterful tackles—it was all too often undermined by poor focus and a disconnect between defenders.
The porousness is not solely on the back four (rounded out of late by Eric Dier and Kyle Walker). It was central midfielder Nabil Bentaleb who looked to have let Wes Morgan go for Leicester's second, while against Manchester United two weekends ago their protection was minimal.
Nevertheless, the lack of responsibility being taken by Spurs' defenders is a cause for concern for Pochettino. "I think we had some very good moments, but we conceded three goals, and that’s too much at home, so we need to improve defensively," he told the club's official website.
The head coach also pinpointed "experience" as a factor. Indeed, the partnership between 21-year-old Premier League rookie Dier and the older Vertonghen has not yet achieved quite the same cohesion the latter had with Federico Fazio had at the turn of the year.
The head coach's perseverance with the pair through inconsistent displays appears to be evidence of his hope in their long-term viability. In the meantime, some work on simple but neglected basics like organisation and marking at set plays would do wonders for their hopes of remaining the first-choice pair in central defence.
Rose has been one of the brighter spots of Spurs' defensive work. The left-back has never looked so engaged, perhaps testament to the knowledge that Ben Davies is there to replace him if his form substantially dips.
In contrast, Walker's work has lacked such requisite urgency (see his negligent marking of Jamie Vardy prior to Leicester's opener). Since recovering from last year's long-term injury he has been solid in places but not as dominant on his flank as would have been hoped for a defender with such enviable athletic attributes.
Maybe complacency is the cause. He knows he is firmly in control at right-back with Kyle Naughton gone, his deputy Vlad Chiriches a natural centre-back and new arrival DeAndre Yedlin still settling into English football.
Whatever the reason for Walker's subpar outings (the nadir of which was his torture at the hands of Manchester United's left-siders Daley Blind and Ashley Young), Pochettino needs to find a way to light a fire under him. Perhaps his return to the England fold this week will do the trick.
Time to Mix It Up in Midfield?
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Like with Dier and Vertonghen, Pochettino appears to trust in the notion that pairing Nabil Bentaleb and Ryan Mason right now will also stand them in good stead down the line.
On song, their combined heart and assertiveness have underpinned their ability to drive the team on in the manner their boss desires, with positive passing enabled by concentrated pressing winning the ball back and plenty of energy defending in their own half.
Still young and relatively new to this level, it stands to reason more playing time will only aid their development, both individually and as a unit.
Unlike in defence, where consistency can be so crucial to cohesiveness (though as seen right now at Spurs, it's not the only factor), the involvement of midfield in shaping games means flexibility is required for different situations.
It has become increasingly evident in the last couple of months that Bentaleb and Mason are not the right pair for all occasions—or rather, they should not always be alone in their duties.
Against Manchester United they were torn between maintaining their base positions as the two in Pochettino's predominantly used 4-2-3-1 and addressing the weakness on the flanks the Red Devils were exposing.
United were on fire that day and would have troubled Spurs regardless, but in hindsight an extra body in midfield from the start would have helped stop the flow.
Even if he is loath to drop either Bentaleb or Mason, Pochettino's unwillingness to occasionally move to a three-man midfield has been surprising given the options at his disposal.
Benjamin Stambouli does sometimes slacken off later in games, but the tough-tackling Frenchman is by far Spurs' best defensive midfielder. Either in place of one or certainly alongside the aforementioned first-choice guys, he would have provided welcome protection when it was needed on tougher trips to Anfield and Old Trafford. His presence would have acted as a license to be more adventurous for the others, too.
Alternatively, placing a Mousa Dembele or Christian Eriksen in a more fixed midfield position (as opposed to a freer role further forward) might have been smart in lessening the creative burden on them.
Against Leicester in the first half, Eriksen was dropping back anyway. Stationing him there in the first place for games where the midfield battle is not expected to be so exacting might work as a precaution against the kind of stagnation which sometimes takes hold when facing teams less inclined to attack.
Kane Is Covering for an Otherwise Inconsistent Attack
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After a rare quiet game at Manchester United, Harry Kane was back on the goal trail at Leicester. A hat-trick took his season's tally to 29 in all competitions and nicely capped off a week in which he received his first England call-up.
A poor couple of weeks from those around him (bar Eriksen who played well in the Leicester win) might see Pochettino otherwise vary things up for the first time since the Capital One Cup final.
Nacer Chadli has yet to recover the form which preceded his personal leave in January.
Two missed sitters last Saturday and a yellow card for diving were in keeping with a largely uninspired run for the Belgian. His superb volley to help beat Swansea City was just about the exception; same too for Andros Townsend, who scored a terrific solo goal that night.
The winger played well enough at former loan club Queens Park Rangers but has been just about nonexistent in the two games which have followed (though he was substituted early on at Man United).
In their different ways, both players' failures to make an impact on a consistent basis should at least necessitate one making way against Burnley next time out.
Erik Lamela would be the obvious choice to come in. The Argentine has mostly been confined to the bench in 2015. Altogether, though, he has made progress this season.
While yet to develop into the kind of comprehensively effective attacker Spurs paid substantially for, an opportunity for a healthy run late on this campaign may enhance that progress.
If the perseverance with young players like Dier, Bentaleb and Mason has been with one eye on the future, seeing how the occasionally maverick 23-year-old attacking midfielder's skill set slots in right now has to be worth a little of the same faith.
Lamela's mazy dribbling and eye for a defence-splitting pass could again add something a little different to Spurs' final-third efforts. Anything that makes them less dependent on Kane has to be worth a try.
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