Are these Spurs defenders better at attacking than defending?
While no one covered themselves in glory against Brighton earlier this month, Destiny Udogie had a particularly bad game, and looked set for another difficult day at the office on Saturday when Jarrod Bowen eased past him for West Ham’s goal.
In attack, however, Udogie connected well with players around him – especially Son Heung-min – and even had a shot on goal. In particular, his movement off and then on the ball with the assist for Bissouma’s goal was excellent.
In addition, Pape Sarr – technically a defensive midfielder replacing an attacking midfielder in James Maddison – was instrumental in driving Spurs up the pitch and made a wonderful, defence-splitting pass to Son for the final goal of the game.
On the other flank, Pedro Porro has shown he is not afraid to shoot, scoring some satisfyingly spectacular goals. Maybe memories of these flashed through his mind and impaired his decision-making when he chose to shoot later in the game, instead of crossing into the box – much to Ange Postecoglou’s frustration on the touchline.
Meanwhile, Micky van de Ven is known for his blistering pace and brilliant recovery runs but has also demonstrated his ability to use his speed to devastating effect on opposition defences – as evidenced in his marauding run against Manchester United last month.
I am not saying these players are bad at defending, but I definitely feel more confident when they are attacking – and maybe that is OK? Our style of play means we are an attacking team who takes risks, so perhaps it stands to reason that it is going to feel a bit nervy at the back sometimes.
Maybe, with Angeball, attack is the best form of defence, and if we are going to come along for the ride, us fans will just have to make our peace with that.
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