Feisty Tottenham Hotspur Are a Team out of Time in Soft Modern Premier League
The worst foul in Tottenham Hotspur's 1-1 draw with West Bromwich Albion last weekend came from Baggies winger James McClean. The high, lunging challenge on Mousa Dembele would have tested acceptable tackling boundaries even in more lenient years gone by.
McClean was booked then, but overall Tottenham had suffered more negatively at the sound of referee Jonathan Moss' whistle that afternoon. They committed less fouls than West Brom—10 to the home side's 13, per BBC Sport—yet Moss' strict interpretation of their own hounding of the opponents felt more disruptive to their already stuttering attempts to establish rhythm to their play.
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Treading that fine line between aggressive and sloppy is the risk of the hunter mentality being practiced so earnestly by Mauricio Pochettino's side right now. Their relentless approach has been a significant reason behind their solid form, but also left this feisty group looking somewhat like a team out of time in an English top flight that has never been softer.
Players being able to express themselves as safely as possible in the Premier League is no bad thing.
Tottenham are as reliant as anyone on trusting their guys to get on the ball without fear of being met by challenges targeting the man as much as winning possession, from the sideline dashes of left-back Danny Rose to the forward charges of front man Harry Kane.
Yet at a time when officials have never been so quick to intervene at the sight of a player theatrically reacting to non-existent or minimal-but-fair contact, Spurs have chosen to combine their more creative-minded leanings with a tough, physical streak.
For the most part it has been a positive stylistic advancement, one gradually implemented by Pochettino over the course of his first season with Spurs to the point it now feels like second nature to most of his players.
It has been seen in the sheer combativeness with which they have engaged opponents ranging from title-hopefuls Manchester City to struggling Aston Villa, as well as in more focused strategical planning—notably the pressing that unsettled Arsenal for a time last month and the relentless closing down that informed Spurs so comprehensively battering West Ham United into shell-shocked submission.
Tony Pulis' harder-edged West Brom were one of the few to match Spurs for work rate and unsurprisingly made it tougher for the north Londoners to impose their will. Nevertheless, the ingrained instinct to compete and battle are likely to remain significant elements to Pochettino's team so long as they can continue to muster such effort.
The flipside to being a team in modern football who like to make things as uncomfortable as possible for their opponents is there is little room for error.
Tottenham have already seen Eric Dier, Erik Lamela and Dele Alli all suspended after each accumulated a punishable five yellow cards (though the latter's fifth was for an unnecessary off-ball altercation with West Ham's Mark Noble). Jan Vertonghen and Kyle Walker are each a booking away from being banned, per the Football Association website.
Fifth in the FA's disciplinary table, the Lilywhites are the only club in the top half not to have a player sent off, yet their 35 cautions are the most received by any team.
There is no denying Spurs have deserved to be penalised at times for misplaced and calculated fouls that are part of almost any match. However, craftier opponents have also used their aggressiveness against them.
In November's 1-1 north London derby, Arsenal players increasingly resorted to going down at the slightest bit of contact. The successfully oppressive nature of Spurs' earlier pressing consequently took on a more reckless characterisation, helping change the direction of the game in the Gunners' favour.
Having been booked for a foul on Francis Coquelin earlier, Lamela was reluctantly replaced on the 75th minute. One of Spurs' hardest workers that day, he had continued to hassle and challenge despite the threat of a second booking.
Pochettino eventually decided he had to act. Lamela's enforced withdrawal cost the team a motivated presence and led to the tactical tweakings that partly facilitated the space allowed for Kieran Gibbs to equalise (admittedly a tiring Spurs were already showing signs of buckling).
Spurs players themselves are not immune to practicing these darker theatrical arts. Against Chelsea, Jan Vertonghen took a tumble after almost overrunning the ball, and against West Brom, Danny Rose went down far too easily on one occasion.
So far as the good side of their competitive spirit is concerned, Pochettino is not going to shy away from continuing to encourage the tackling, chasing and harrying that is so intrinsic to Tottenham' style, rightly so given its success so far.
If they are not careful, though, it could begin to have more negative consequences.
They have comfortably navigated the suspensions they have suffered so far, but losing more players could prove more problematic as the season begins to take its toll on tiring legs. The issue of Spurs starting to be viewed as a dirty side is also one Pochettino must look to avoid, if only to ensure notions of them being targeted by officials do not infiltrate the more paranoid part of their collective consciousness.
As things stand, this young, mostly entertaining Tottenham team is establishing the right sort of reputation. Pochettino's pups will not want to see it tarnished, unfairly or not, by accusations they are embracing the wrong side of the law.
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