Tottenham Hotspur vs. Manchester United

It's not all about individual ability. It's about who compliments who and I'd say Evans compliments Ferdinand more than Smalling does.

I know you're saying you rate Smalling the highest but he's not first choice. Rio is. Therefor it's about picking the right player to partner him.
 
Colin129 said:
I think Smalling will be next season's first choice alongside Vidic, Rio may not have another full season in him.
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I would probably agree. However whilst Vidic is injured Rio is first choice.
 
De Gea

Rafael----------Evans-----------Rio-------------Evra

Carrick--------------------Scholes

Nani---------------Rooney------------Giggs

Hernandez​
 
There is no way Valencia will start, 20 minute cameo at most.
 
Really not sure how we should approach this.

I don't think Scholes and Giggs should both start but can't really leave either out.

I think I'd go with:

De Gea
Rafael Ferdinand Evans Evra
Jones Carrick
Nani --- Rooney --- Giggs
Welbeck​
 
If Bale does his roaming act Nani, Valencia and/or Giggs will get a free run at Ekotto. Goals will come from that side.
 
cw1984 said:
De Gea
Rafael Ferdinand Evans Evra
Jones Carrick
Nani --- Rooney --- Giggs
Welbeck​
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I'd go with this as well.

With three players ready to change the game on the bench: Scholes, Young and Hernandez.
 
Ade, Saha, Lennon, Mordich and VDV are good enough to torment our defenders.
 
Hmm, guessing Spurs would line up something like this then?

Friedel
Walker Kaboul King Assou-Ekotto
Sandro Modrić
Lennon van der Vaart Kranjčar
Adebayor​

I can't remember if Walker is expect to be injured, but they have an alright selection of defenders really. Sandro will probably straight swap for Parker. Lennon could start to give them more attacking threat, but I can also see them playing it more narrow with Kranjčar and Modrić either side of Sandro and van der Vaart - with two strikers. Not sure if Defoe had a niggle either.. They could even stick van der Vaart out wide instead, or play some combination of Lennon / Adebayor / Saha / Defoe / van der Vaart as a front three with a three in midfield of Sandro / Modrić / Livermore / van der Vaart etc..

That's all if Bale really is injured, of course.
 
If Walker, VDV, Bale and Lennon are indeed injuired then I could see Livermore brought into the side and Kaboul shifted to right back.
 
There are rumours going about that on top of the guaranteed absentees of Parker, Gallas and Huddlestone, there is a chance that Friedel, Walker, King, Bale and VDV are out too.

Oh dear.
 
Sandro instead of Livermoor surely?
 
If that is true, it would probably be

Cudicini

Kaboul
Dawson
Nelsen
BAE

Lennon
Modric
Sandro
Kranjcar

Ade
Saha/Defoe

Or possibly put Livermore in at rb so we can keep Kaboul at cb.

I don't think we'll have quite all those injuries so I think it will be

Friedel

Walker
Dawson
Kaboul
BAE

Lennon
Sandro
Modric
Kranjcar

Ade
Saha
 
Should be a good game.

Unfortunately Arsenal have stole our thunder somewhat and nicked our usual trick of giving them a few goals lead before tonking them.

Both defences can be got at that's for sure.
 
Against the rest of the top 7 so far this season at home, we've beaten you, Liverpool and Newcastle and drawn with Chelsea while playing 4-4-2. We played 4-5-1/4-4-1-1 whatever you want to call it against Man City.

I don't think one away game is going to influence Redknapp's thinking about the formation at home. I'd rather we not go for 4-4-2 against Man utd as it happens but injuries may well force his hand.
 
africanspur said:
Against the rest of the top 7 so far this season at home, we've beaten you, Liverpool and Newcastle and drawn with Chelsea while playing 4-4-2. We played 4-5-1/4-4-1-1 whatever you want to call it against Man City.

I don't think one away game is going to influence Redknapp's thinking about the formation at home. I'd rather we not go for 4-4-2 against Man utd as it happens but injuries may well force his hand.
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No, you've used VdV as a hole player in a 4231 most of the time (see Modric & Parker deep, Bale narrow etc etc).
 
peterstorey said:
I don't think you're gonna play 2-up again any time soon.
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They will. This is 'arry don't forget. The man who, up until very recently, had a very unhealthy obsession with playing 442.
 
Don't talk crap Pete. Against you, the front 2 was Defoe and Adebayor. VDV played ahead of Walker on the right. Against Liverpool, the front 2 were Defoe and Adebayor. VDV didn't even start. Newcastle were Adebayor and Saha. I'll give you the Chelsea one actually. My memory failed me on that one, seems we started with Adebayor and VDV.
 
cw1984 said:
They will. This is 'arry don't forget. The man who, up until very recently, had a very unhealthy obsession with playing 442.
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I love when Man utd fans say this, as if Ferguson is a proven hater of 4-4-2 and has never and will never use it. Ferguson loves the traditional 4-4-2, with the wingers bombing down the flanks. Indeed, correct me if I'm wrong but did Ferguson not start with 2 strikers in the last game at whl, the 3-3 with Chelsea this season, the 1-0 against them in the CL last season, both games against Arsenal this season, the 6-1 against Man City and the 3-2 FA cup tie? Amongst other games?
 
africanspur said:
I love when Man utd fans say this, as if Ferguson is a proven hater of 4-4-2 and has never and will never use it. Ferguson loves the traditional 4-4-2, with the wingers bombing down the flanks. Indeed, correct me if I'm wrong but did Ferguson not start with 2 strikers in the last game at whl, the 3-3 with Chelsea this season, the 1-0 against them in the CL last season, both games against Arsenal this season, the 6-1 against Man City and the 3-2 FA cup tie? Amongst other games?
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Fergie very very rarely plays a traditional 442. Even when 2 strikers play it's a 4231. That's not the case when it's any 2 of your strikers and it wasn't the case when he was obsessed with playing Crouch and Defoe.... regardless which club he was in charge of.

The VDV signing almost forced him to move to a more modern 4231.
 
cw1984 said:
Fergie very very rarely plays a traditional 442. Even when 2 strikers play it's a 4231. That's not the case when it's any 2 of your strikers and it wasn't the case when he was obsessed with playing Crouch and Defoe.... regardless which club he was in charge of.

The VDV signing almost forced him to move to a more modern 4231.
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Really? So what is a traditional 4-4-2? Because 2 relatively traditional wingers (Nani and Valencia) and two strikers (Rooney and Welbeck/Hernandez/Berbatov) seems like quite a 4-4-2 to me. Just because Rooney occasionally drops deep and picks the ball up from the rb, doesn't mean that its not a 4-4-2. Its picked up this hilarious stigma, as if only an idiot would ever play anything approaching a 4-4-2.

Funnily enough, we finished 4th in the season we played the 'rigid' 4-4-2 (which wasn't rigid at all because, if the armchair managers had watched the games, they'd have realised we had one winger (Lennon) and one playmaker (Modric, who would drift in from the left), as well as an attacking leftback (first BAE, then Bale). Then we finished 5th in the season we played the 4-2-3-1, which, if all the armchair managers are to be believed, should have seen a significant upturn in our performances and results. Hard to believe really.
 
I'm not here to say which one is better than the other, I was pointing out Harry's unhealthy obsession with it.

Although if you want to get into armchair management... the reason your 4231 didn't really work last season is because you were trying to do it with Defoe up front. It was a simple flaw in the tactic and that's why when you signed Adebayor I was in the thread saying it would be a brilliant signing for you. He was just what you needed to make it work.
 
peterstorey said:
The game at WHL was another one where you lost the CM (Arsenal had 62% possession) and only got the win by cheating (nice dive on Sunday but no cigar). Go ahead start Saha and Adebayor and get another pasting.
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You did not have that much possession and possession is a meaningless stat. What did matter was that we beat you 2-1. As we did when we beat both you and Chelsea within 5 days playing 4-4-2. Went 2-0 down to you playing 4-2-3-1, win 3-2 when we switch to 4-4-2. Even the game last week (which we deservedly and comprehensively lost and it really should have been more) we at least managed to score 2 goals and maintain even the slightest threat with the 4-4-2. We actually conceded the next 3 goals, while providing zero threat whatsoever, having changed to some formation involving just one striker, all the rage on the Cafe.

I'm actually a proponent of using some variant of 4-2-3-1 against the other good teams, especially away from home but some of you on here talk as if 4-4-2 is like lining up in a 2-3-5 formation. Its rubbish.
 
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