Man, I thought dissecting footie matches was a piece of cake til I sat down for the Tottenham versus City clash. Grabbed my notebook and settled on the couch like a proper scout.
Starting with the Lineups
Tore through Twitter first thing. Tottenhammers lineup made me scratch my head – saw Richarlison leading the attack, thought “mate where’s Sonny?” Then it clicked he must’ve been knackered after internationals. City? Same old scary stuff with Haaland up top and Rodri holding it down. Scribbled this mess:
- Spurs XI: Vicario, Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie, Sarr, Bissouma, Kulusevski, Maddison, Richarlison
- City XI: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Gvardiol, Akanji, Rodri, Silva, Foden, Alvarez, Doku, Haaland
Spotting the Game-Changers
Zeroed in on Maddison straight away. Watched him drifting left to link up with Udogie against Walker – gutsy tactic! For City, Rodri had me muttering “don’t let him breathe!” because everything flows through that bloke. Funny how City looked shaky when he got closed down quick.
Sussing the Tactics
Spent first half seeing Spurs try mad high presses. Vicario kept booting long balls over Haaland’s head – clever that! But City’s wingers made me sweat bullets. Whenever Doku cut inside, our defense scrambled like headless chickens. Scribbled furiously about how City overloaded midfield when Foden tucked inside.
Bloody Obvious Flaws
Nearly threw my pen when Spurs kept losing possession cheaply. Kulusevski held the ball too long, Sarr looked gassed after 60 minutes. City? Alvarez was trying way too many Hollywood passes. Ticked notes like “why’s Pep not subbing earlier?” when Spurs counterattacks got dangerous.
Final Takeaways
My scribbles turned into a novel! Biggest lesson? Teams ain’t robots – Richarlison’s work rate stunned me, but City’s control without De Bruyne proves they’re machines. Gotta remember next time to track how subs change the game flow. Proper chuffed with this analysis lark though!
