3 Christmas Wishes for Tottenham Hotspur Fans
Tottenham Hotspur fans can head into the Christmas week in good spirits after their side's 2-0 defeat of Southampton.
The north Londoners' first Premier League win just under a month has sent them into fourth place with confidence renewed after some mixed recent displays.
Similarly positive results from the rest of their festive fixture list will ensure seasonal cheer remains high heading into the new year. But there are also some grander gifts Tottenham supporters will be hoping Santa Claus' football department can see to them receiving.
TOP NEWS
Madrid Fines Players $590K 😲
'Mbappé Out' Petition Gaining Steam 😳
Star-Studded World Cup Ad 🤩
What follows are three Christmas wishes Spurs fans hope will come true over the coming months—ones that will help them build on what has been a good campaign so far.
Realism is still at play here. So no Lionel Messi issuing a come-and-get-me plea to fellow Newell's Old Boys alumnus Mauricio Pochettino. Nor a separated-at-birth, equally but differently talented twin of Dele Alli's being discovered playing park football somewhere.
One wish granted upfront for those of you not so festively inclined; the football-at-Christmas cliches will be kept to a minimum for the remainder of the article.
Players to Stay Fit and Continue Playing with Determination
Alli's goal against Southampton was his fifth since arriving from Milton Keynes Dons in the summer. A regular starter since late August, that the 19-year-old has already made 22 appearances in all competitions shows how well he has handled the difference in quality between League One and the top tier.
As good as Alli's assured, invigorating performances have been, his handling of the increasing accolades coming his way has been just as impressive. New-found prominence—notably intensified by senior international recognition—has not seen him shy away or grow complacent in his work.
Alli has not been alone in coping and, give or take the odd disappointing display, thriving with such demands in recent months. The young squad has more than stood its ground against some experienced and more successful Premier League opponents.
Speaking to Tottenham's official website, Pochettino praised the "maturity" of his team in managing the contest at St. Mary's Stadium. After a slow start, the determination and effort which has been key to so many of Spurs' squad playing beyond their years this season came to the fore.
It's been shown in the alert battling of Alli and Erik Lamela in setting up Harry Kane's opener, and in the way others like Ben Davies (coming in for the ill Danny Rose) and Eric Dier denied Saints room to operate. All this has been well supported by strong contributions from the squad's more senior members, Mousa Dembele and Hugo Lloris particularly leading by example in their respective duties.
It was a welcome reaction after their resolve and work rate dimmed to costly effect against Newcastle United a week prior.
Pochettino afterwards dismissed a suggestion Spurs losing the lead was a consequence of youth. The team's response at St. Mary's suggested he was right.
Nonetheless, fans will hope their mostly young team can keep their heads and stay healthy through whatever is to come. With the potential of progressing in three competitions, there is a lot of football still to be played this season. Focus and fitness will need to be maintained as best as possible if last season is to be improved on.
January Reinforcement(s)
Another summer signing Clinton Njie was enjoying his best match yet for Tottenham prior to suffering the injury that is set to keep him out for an as yet undetermined amount of time.
Up against one of his former Ligue 1 opponents Monaco, he participated in Spurs’ relentless harrying of the visitors with the vigour of a man now fully bought in to his boss’ challenging but potentially rewarding demands.
The speed and precision of Njie’s subsequent combinations and interchanges with Lamela and Heung-Min Son enticingly hinted at how the team’s attack could work without first-choice forward Kane.
Reshaping his squad this past summer, Pochettino was content to stick with Njie and Son as back-up and alternatives. Trusting in their ability here rather than buy a striker in the more traditional mould to make up the numbers but who did not necessarily fit to his style.
The injuries suffered by them at different points already have highlighted the riskiness of the approach.
Kane received a scare late on against Southampton when he jarred his knee making a challenge. Had he been properly hurt, Njie’s absence would have left Spurs short of senior options to lead the line (Nacer Chadli and Lamela being capable but not-so-desirable solutions besides Son).
While keeping fingers cross Kane and Son stay fit heading into January (and beyond), Tottenham fans’ fears here would be considerably eased by the arrival of a reinforcement in the transfer window. Whether Pochettino feels bringing in a new attacker is imperative remains to be seen.
Eriksen to Shine in the New Year
The emergence of Alli and Kane, and the improvement of someone like Lamela, has meant Christian Eriksen is not having to carry the same creative burden as in his first two seasons at Tottenham.
Yet while he has performed decently enough in the first half of the season—seven assists already compared to five last year the notable contribution—there remains the feeling Eriksen has some gears still to reach.
A lack of goals (just three compared to 12 and 10 respectively in preceding seasons) is not so problematic when made up for in other areas of his game.
In games like the recent loss to Newcastle, though, there was little on offer from the Denmark international at a point in the game when Spurs needed direction going forward.
For a player who generally benefits from being involved, it is not easy being stationed on the left wing. Even with license to roam, Eriksen has found the responsibility of providing width sometimes results in him becoming little more than a peripheral figure.
If Tottenham are to push on and achieve their objectives in the remainder of the season, they could do with Eriksen finding a way to overcome such limitations. The influence fans have seen him wield on his best days is evidence enough he is capable of it.
Should the 23-year-old reach a more consistently satisfying level of play, Spurs will undoubtedly be all the better for it.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
