Tottenham 2 - 1 Manchester City Match Report

[funster]

Woo-hoo! A win for us, only a point for Everton and we take fifth place for the second year running and with it qualify for next season's UEFA Cup.

Let's start by saying this has been a very very good season. Not a great season - we didn't win anything after all, but a very very good season. We're fifth again and that in itself is an achievement to be proud of. What makes it an improvement on last season is our progress in the cups. Last year our runs in the League Cup and FA Cup were..... well, almost non-existent! This year we've reached the League Cup semi, and the quarter-finals of both the FA Cup and UEFA Cup and lost in both to the finalists. The result, 59 games this year versus 40 last year. How often have we seen teams on good cup runs (particularly in Europe) fail to re-capture the form of the previous season in the Premier League?

So we can, I think, feel confident about our progress under Martin Jol and although the second half performance yesterday suggested there are still areas of significant improvement, there is genunine optimism that we will push on.

Needing a draw to re-qualify for Europe I had hoped before the game that we'd go out to win and hope for Chelsea to maintain their unbeaten league record under Mourinho to let us sneak into fifth. I was a few minutes late to my seat as I had to dry myself off from the soaking I got on the ten minute walk to the ground from the car!

No matter. We started well and with Berbatov and Keane up front it was always likely that we'd create some decent chances. Just a couple of minutes in Lennon broke through but fired straight at the City keeper. It looked like we could be in for an early goal and only had to wait till the tenth minute for Keane to continue his great form and slam past Isaksson to give us the lead. The build-up was good. A nice exchange of passes that involved Berbatov and Zokora, before Jenas lofted the ball over the City centre-halves for Robbie to run through on and slot between the keeper's legs.

The replay suggested Keane may have been marginally offside but I've not seen any confirmation as I couldn't be bothered with Match of the Day!

We continued in similar fashion for much of the first half, but City did begin to get back into the game as the half wore on. No matter, half an hour in, another good move on the edge of the City box, Berbatov attempted to play the ball to Lennon only to play a lovely one-two with a City defender, slipped it to one side and bang! Two-nil. A really good finish with so many defenders around him.

Its almost embarrassing how many times I say this, Berbatov was having another great game. Pulling the ball down, shifting it between feet, holding it up well. He is an asset that probably can't have a value placed against it. He is that good. And to score his (I think) 23rd of the season goes to show how well he's adapted to English football. Fitting that he should be the scorer of our first and last goals of the season!

At two-nil we should've gone on to get a few more, but we relaxed and City - who even until then had been playing decent passes without any real production - became a lot more threatening. Our particular problem seemed to be a lack of ability on the wings. While our own production in the centre of the pitch was good (Jenas, Tainio and Zokora all having reasonable but not outstanding games), our balance on the wings seemed suspect. Probably not surprising when you have Gardner at left-back and Tainio adopting a wing position for part of the first half!

No surprise then that City's goal late in the first half came from a deep and very good cross which Mpenza rose to head back past Robbo. Unchallenged. It looked like he had all day to pick his spot. Shoddy defending.

It got City going and they could've been on level terms just before half-time had it not been for a poor header from one of the City players when the ball came back into play from a Robbo save.

A two-one half-time lead. What would the second half have in store? Unfortunately more of what we'd seen in the last ten minutes of the first! City exploiting our deficiencies on the wings. They were much the better team in the second half. I would have no qualms in admitting that. They could've easily got an equaliser - one particular header being tipped just over by Robbo at full stretch.

It was strange. I thought Gardner had his most assured game at left-back, but City still seemed to target - and quite successfully so - their attacking moves from the wings. Maybe its just that they have decent wingers and forwards who are good in the air? They certainly didn't create much through the central part of midfield where (as already stated) I thought Jenas, Zokora and Tainio all had reasonable games.

We were, of course, treated to more excellence from Berbatov, one particular time when he took possession and flat footed two City defenders by shifting the ball from one foot to the other not once, but twice(!) before being hacked down.

A penalty late on for a push on Zokora should've seen Defoe get on the scoresheet but his effort was poor and the renbound flew over the bar. The pen itself was probably a little harsh on Richard Dunne. Zokora did get in front of him but he went down easily - as he has a tendency to do in that position. He could've - my opinion alone, of course - stayed on his feet to shoot (probably would've hit it as high over the bar as Defoe did with the rebound!), or played somebody else in. No matter.

The victory was sealed and news from Stamford Bridge made our day! A victory on the last day of the season and fifth place. Tremendous. Even though City have some justification in feeling a little aggrieved at the final result.

After the game there was a short presentation ceremony with Huddlestone picking up Breakthrough Player of the Year, Lennon picking up Young Player of the Year, and, who'd have thought? Berbatov being named Player of the Year. Thoroughly deserved and the chants of "Dimitar Berbatov!" just go to show how much the Spurs fans love him and value him. I hope that goes some way towards convincing him that this is the right place for him right now.

An interview with Martin Jol followed and he was at his jovial best. His opening line was something like "A lot of people were very worried a few weeks ago. Not me!". A thinly veiled attempt to secure funds for a few transfers was also made and the promise is there that the team will attempt to improve again.

So, where do we go from here? Fifth place two years on the belt and three good Cup runs. I see two things as being targets for next year - a stronger challenge to the top four (we finished eight points behind Arsehole and Liverpool) and whopping 23 and 29 behind Chelsea and ManUre respectively. While I don't contemplate a challenge to the most elite of positions in the Premier League for some time, we have to make a better stab of cracking that top four. I've said before I think we're the best equipped of all the sides in the Premier League to do it. Next season we have to prove it. It starts by getting more results against those top four. Look at our record against them this season:

ManUre - lost at home, lost away
Chelsea - won at home, lost away
Liverpool - lost at home, lost away
Arsehole - drew at home, lost away

Four points from a possible twenty-four. Speaks for itself!

The other target for next year - actually winning something! Great as the cup runs (particularly in the UEFA Cup) have been, we need to go that next step. Not just quarter and semi-finalists, but finalists and winners. Based on the reception the players got at the end of the game yesterday the place would erupt if we ended our season next year by capturing a cup.

So there you have it boys and girls. Hope you've enjoyed the match reports. Hope you've enjoyed the matches more! Look forward to doing it all again starting in a couple of months time!

Come on you Spurs!

[spurslady]

Thankyou Funster for doing your match reports I for one have really enjoyed reading them . :11:

[RiverWire]

Thankyou Funster for doing your match reports I for one have really enjoyed reading them . :11:

Yup Funster has been great all of them have been brilliant, Hope you around for the summer and start the match reports again next season for us :10:

[funster]

No worries!

Look forward to a couple of months off and then back into the swing of things for next season. Hopefully a few more European trips to report on!

[RiverWire]

No worries!

Look forward to a couple of months off and then back into the swing of things for next season. Hopefully a few more European trips to report on!

Good good glad to hear it mate.

Did you get the email earlier about the competition , i think only half the forum get there emails ?

[funster]

.....Did you get the email earlier about the competition , i think only half the forum get there emails ?

I got it, but not had a chance to look at it in any detail. Nuts with work at the mo'. Bringing loads home with me and the other half ain't gonna be pleased when she gets in and finds me hard at it on the laptop..... errrr..... hang on, that didn't sound quite right! :6:

[RiverWire]

I got it, but not had a chance to look at it in any detail. Nuts with work at the mo'. Bringing loads home with me and the other half ain't gonna be pleased when she gets in and finds me hard at it on the laptop..... errrr..... hang on, that didn't sound quite right! :6:

:14: :32: :32:

Hmmm works that bad is it !!!! :6:

[Beats]

Another good report.

On Sunday morning I awoke in my hotel in near Hyde Park and decided I would go to WHL and try to get a ticket. I had thought it would be a waste of time but as soon as I woke up I thought how disappointed I would be if I didn't even try.

So after getting soaked a couple of times I got to WHl about 2:30 and wasn't too hopeful as I saw several people trying to buy tickets but no-one selling :3: Just as I was about to give up I spotted someone but they only had 1 ticket so none for my girlfriend but at least I could go (I'll not tell you what I paid...)

Got to my seat just before kick-off and after not long (about 10mins) was glad I'd come, great goal from Keane, only problem was that it was at the wrong end of the stadium! Not long after there was another great goal (still the wrong end of the stadium!).

As funster said City were attacking well and it was far from a comfortable lead but we got the result in the end.

I don't think it was a penalty at all but Defo should have done better anyway (then I would have seen a goal at the near end!!)

Gardner was ok but 2 throws in a row he send straight to the opposition, not good...

I think we really need to address the left wing position, maybe a left back but we have 2 ok players for there, just unlucky their both injured...

So in conclusion I got a ticket and it was worth every penny, 2 games in 4 days, got home yesterday and leaving tomorrow for UEFA cup final to cheer on Espanyol and try to find the refs from our Sevilla matches to have a word about the 10 or 20 decisions they got wrong...