Cartilage Free Captain

Hoddler-in-chief’s note: Your hoddler-in-chief will be unable to hoddle from Wednesday through Friday this week. But fear not, for there will be a subsitute hoddler-in-chief to carry on the hoddles until my return.

Please be on your best behaviour for your susbstitute hoddler-in-chief.

———-

Welcome to another edition of Trending Up / Trending Down, where we at Hoddle Headquarters take a look at what around Tottenham Hotspur is trending up, and what is trending down.

It’s been a good month or so since the last edition, so now’s the perfect time to check back in on all things trending THFC.

Trending Up

Ben Davies appearances: That’s two off-the-bench appearances in two games for Ben Davies, and he performed admirably in both. First against City, and then a fine display against Aston Villa on Sunday.

And it was Davies’ crucial interception in the second half to set up Dominc Solanke for his brace.

You’ll never see your hoddler-in-chief complaining about seeing Ben Davies on the pitch. Thrilled we got to see him in consecutive games.

The Professional Footballers’ Association also announced yesterday that Davies was elected to the PFA Players’ Board. Nice!

Dejan Kulusevski: I feel like there are two players who are making huge leaps this season. The first is Dejan Kulusevski. I only have the most basic stats to share with you: two goals and five assists across all competitions this year. I’m really liking what I’m seeing from him aside from that though.

Took me a while to appreciate what he brings to the squad. I used to think he’s a bit predictable in the cutting in with his left foot, but his game seems much more varied this year (although he’s still very good also at the left-footed thing).

Pape Matar Sarr: The other player making a big leap this season - Pape Matar Sarr.

The stats don’t seem to do him that much justice. I find him such a creative, forward-thinking player who is very gifted at finding progressive passes to link the midfield and forwards. He was my Man of the Match on Sunday.

Trending Down

Available players: Micky Van de Ven earlier this week. Cristian Romero and Richarlison on Sunday. We’re still waiting for Wilson Odobert to get back to full fitness also. The VDV-Romero double is a huge blow.

Of course we don’t want to see our staring CB pairing out, especially with matches coming in waves during a very difficult month.

Consistent Premier League results: It’s been a good amount of time since we last had our Trending Up/ Trending Down installment. It was September 24 back then, and Spurs had just beaten Brentford 3-1.

Since then it’s been a bit of a roller-coaster in the Premier League. A 3-0 win at United, a 2-3 loss at Brighton, a 4-1 win against West Ham, a 0-1 loss at Palance and a 4-1 win against Villa.

That’s W-L-W-L-W.

Tough to generate upwards momentum in the table like that. Those two losses are so infuriating too. But hey, we’re scoring bags of goals when we win. Just gotta score more of them away.

Fitzie’s Track of the Day: Elected, by Alice Cooper

And now for your links:

Dan KP: Pedro Porro donating wages to aid search for Valencia flood survivors

Alasdair Gold’s talking points from Tottenham’s 4-1 win over Aston Villa

Jose Mourinho pans refereeing after Fenerbahce score dramatic late-game winner

I swear I’ve written this article three times over the past few months, but it’s news again so let’s just do it again, huh? According to Mike McGrath at the Telegraph, Tottenham Hotspur are planning to activate (or potentially already have activated) a clause in Son Heung-Min’s contract that will extend his deal for another year through the 2025-26 season.

As stated, this isn’t exactly new information. There have been suggestions that Spurs were planning to do this as far back as early last summer, since Sonny is technically in the last year of his contract. There were some discussions about a new contract for even longer and bigger wages, but talks kind of sputtered out. This is both a can-down-the-road-kicking and also a buffer so both Spurs and Sonny can decide the best thing for the Tottenham club captain’s long term future.

Like it or not (and no, I do not like it), Son’s career is starting to wind down. I have no doubt he’ll play football well into his 30s, but he will reach the point where he’s no longer able to play consistent football at the highest levels in the club game. It happens to all players. Even Lionel Messi is now in MLS, and it wouldn’t shock me if we see Sonny there eventually too. Or maybe he just decides to hang up his boots, marry some hot Korean model, and start making future Tottenham youth academy players, who knows.

But a future Tottenham Hotspur without Son Heung-Min is coming, and this would give Spurs a little extra time to figure out what’s best for both the player and the club. At minimum we know (or we think we know) that we’ll have at least one more year with Sonny, so we can bank and treasure those memories while we can.

A woman with ruby-red hair is covering Bananarama’s Venus in front of a pillar of flames. There’s a mashup of Miley Cyrus and Oingo Boingo. Fred Armisen is interviewing a lobster in front of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Is this hell?

No! It’s The B-52s - LIVE!

Fitzie’s track of the day, part one: Lava, by The B-52s

Most Halloweens I like to stay home and watch Kill Bill, Vol 1 but this year I decided to do something different. Donning my Grateful Dead t-shirt, I disguised myself best as I could among a throng of people in lobster costumes, discotechque outfits and other ghoulish creatures.

We were all there to see the self-proclaimed “Greatest Party Band in the World” - the B52’s.

I love The B-52’s. Their self-titled album is one of my favourite new-wave records. 6060842, Dance This Mess Around and Rock Lobster are just three absolute bangers on the 1972 album.

Thursday’s nights dance party at The Anthem was a veritable display of the weirdness adoped by The B-52s and their fans. I mean, the giant screen on stage beckoned people to dance unburdened by humility or shame.

How, I say, can anyone have shame enjoying a band whose most iconic tune is titled Rock Lobster, the red-shelled crustacean that has become a de facto symbol of the Georgian troupe.

All this is to say, for all the partying and merriment, the remaining touring members of the band don’t have it anymore. It would be fair to partly blame this on the sound at The Anthem (it’s never been great).

Cindy Wilson sounded more loud than anything, and Fred Schneider seemed behind during at least a couple of songs (most notably during Private Idaho). Kate Pierson is still incredible, though, and she absolutely carried her two original bandmates that night.

This band’s been around forever. Forty-five years! So, of course, you can’t expect them to keep up to Pump or Party Out Of Bounds like they used to. And the sooner you recognised that, the better the concert became.

It was, by far, the strangest concert I’ve ever attended. And I quite enjoyed it. I enjoyed a band and audience that didn’t take themselves too seriously. It was quite fun seeing Pierson wear the lobster claws during the encore.

The B-52s will always be remembered as one of the great acts to come out of the new wave era. And I can’t find a serious challenger to the “Greatest Party Band in the World” claim.

So, of course, The B-52s can dance and dance and Dance This Mess Around. Whilst their quick-stepping foxtrotting days might be behind them, they’re welcome to dance at any speed they like til the lights go off.

Fitzie’s track of the day, part two: Roam, by The B-52s

And now for your links:

Dan KP: Spurs’ depth shines as Tottenham deliver ‘one of best wins’ under Big Ange

The Athletic’s talking points ($$) from Tottenham’s 4-1 win over Villa

Mansfield defeat sixth-tier Curzon Ashton to reach second round of FA Cup

Tottenham Hotspur put together one of their better overall performances of the season on Sunday, roaring back from a 1-0 halftime deficit with four second half goals to defeat Aston Villa 4-1 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. But that win may have come at a significant cost. Spurs were forced to substitute central defender and team vice captain Cristian Romero with what looked like a foot injury midway through the second half, and impact substitute Richarlison appeared to pull his hamstring after assisting Dominic Solanke’s second goal and had to be likewise pulled.

Utility defender Ben Davies was a capable replacement in central defense for Romero, but Richarlison’s injury felt particularly cruel as he had only recently returned from a separate injury and now potentially faces another spell on the sidelines.

Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou was asked about his team’s injuries in the post match press conference, and while he didn’t have a whole lot of information to share, he did acknowledge that it could put Spurs into a tricky situation heading into next week’s matches against Galatasaray in the Europa League and next weekend’s Premier League fixture against Ipswich Town.

“Richy obviously felt something in the action of setting the goal up, his hamstring, so we’ll see. Romero yeah, it was in that challenge again. He felt his foot was sore. I don’t have any sort of further information. obviously, he’s a pretty tough cookie for him to come off, it must be sore, but yeah, look it’s not ideal. But again it’s another game where we’ve had to reshuffle our back line.

“Radu [Dragusin] has played left centre-back, right centre-back, left centre-back, right-centre-back, Ben Davies has had to come in at different times and Destiny midweek and the boys are handling it really well. As I said it’s not ideal but, hopefully both are not too serious.”

With Micky van de Ven also out with a hamstring strain until after the upcoming international break, Spurs face the prospects of a makeshift back line for the next two matches. It’s ironic as well that a similar string of injuries and suspensions hobbled Tottenham around this time last season. This time, however, Spurs have at least nominal depth, with Radu Dragusin playing well in relief of Van de Ven and Davies showing he can be a serviceable central defender. Archie Gray has also played central defense this season and could slot into the lineup in a pinch, though it’s more likely he’ll be needed at right back in Istanbul this coming Wednesday.

Fans were also edgy after Tottenham’s captain Son Heung-Min, himself back for his first match after missing a couple of weeks with another muscle injury, was subbed off by Postecoglou at the hour mark. The decision turned some heads, but Ange clarified that pulling Sonny early was always the plan as he wanted to manage his minutes upon his return from injury.

“He was never going to play more than that today because,, obviously he had an injury, came back and last time it was around the 60 minute mark where he kind of got fatigued last time. So he was never going to play more than sort of 55/60 minutes irrespective of how the game was going.

“The great thing was that he made a pretty important contribution, before that, the great ball in for our first goal and we got our equaliser. So, you know, again, we got more battles ahead and we’re going to need him. So he was never going to play more than that.

“I didn’t see any difference in Sonny. I’d be surprised if any player likes coming off and they’re feeling all right. But no, no, I didn’t need to discuss it with him. And you know, like I said, for us, what’s more important is the overall picture.”

Tottenham’s players received perhaps a little extra motivation ahead of this match as they played on the birthday of Ugo Ehiogu, the former Tottenham academy coach who passed away after a heart attack in 2017. Ehiogu was a huge influence on that generation of Spurs academy players, some of which are still at the club, and commemorating his life with a win on his birthday was obviously meaningful. Postecoglou noted that assistant coach Matt Wells, who coached the academy alongside Ehiogu, gave a meaningful team talk about Ehiogu’s life and legacy this week.

“I’m really proud of the lads. It was an important day for us today. Because it’s also the birthday of the late Ugo Ehiogu and he had a big influence on Matty Wells here at the club, I know he played for Villa but he was obviously a coach at our football club. Matty spoke really strongly about him. When you hear things like that, and how people affect your life, it helps give clarity to the players about what we’re trying to do here. Obviously for his wife and his son probably a tough day, but hopefully they get a little bit cheer from the fact Wellsy made it a really important point, that he may be gone but he’s not forgotten.”

Spurs will need to wait for more info before they learn how long Richarlison and Romero will remain sidelined, but with the international break coming after this coming week’s fixtures, it’s a timely break that could give both players a chance to rest and heal. Spurs’ next match is Wednesday evening in the Europa League against Galatasaray in Istanbul.

Well, I certainly didn’t expect THAT result! Tottenham Hotspur hosted a dangerous and resurgent Aston Villa side today and started the match a bit flat, conceding a corner kick goal to Morgan Rogers and taking a 1-0 deficit into halftime. But they roared back in the second half — Brennan Johnson leveled the match 4 minutes into the second half, Dominic Solanke added a brace, and James Maddison put the cherry on top of this Tottenham sundae in what turned into a dominant 4-1 win.

But it wasn’t all good news. Spurs got bit by the injury bug after Cuti Romero limped off the pitch in the second half, while substitute Richarlison appeared to pull his hamstring moments after assisting Solanke for his second goal.

Some really impressive performances in this one. It’s time to rate the players.

Rate the players from 1⁄2 to 5 stars. If the player doesn’t deserve a rating due to minutes played, DO NOT RANK. I will round the stars up/down to the nearest half-star for the player ratings later this week.

A second-half surge by Tottenham Hotspur saw the home side collect all three points in a 4-1 win over Aston Villa on Sunday.

The first half between Villa and Spurs was not a fun watch as the away side fought off Spurs early press and won more of the 50/50 balls to be on the front foot early on.

Dealing with Ollie Watkins and needing to fix the back post defense, Spurs fans were riddled with fear in the first 30 minutes as the away side missed their chances to get that first goal.

But, an annoyance that has stayed with Spurs is their set-piece defending as Aston Villa got the first goal from a corner. Guglielmo Vicario tussled with Morgan Rogers for positioning inside his six-yard box. Still, a corner ball left the goalkeeper having to make a save from a potential own goal on Rodrigo Bentancur that allowed Rogers to get the second ball and finish for a 1-0 lead.

Still not having answers for defending the near post or getting the ball out to have a breath of relief, Spurs kept the game at a 1-0 deficit into the break.

From then on, it was all Spurs.

Tottenham tied the game three minutes into the second half as Son Heung-min was alone on the far touchline. Getting the ball and carrying it down his left side, Son made a few moves to open space for a Sonsational left-footed cross to the back post for Brennan Johnson to run on it and tap it past Emi Martinez.

Ange Postecoglou made the change a few minutes after the tying goal by taking Son off for precautionary reasons to save his star man. Although Son was frustrated by the decision, others stepped up.

One player in particular who made it his game was Pape Sarr, who helped the side get the lead with two vital bits of play.

Spurs grabbed the lead on a strong challenge from Ben Davies — who came on for the injured Cristian Romero — to break a potential Villa counter-attack. With the ball meeting Sarr’s feet, the midfield slotted a ball around Johnson in the 18-yard box. Johnson took one touch for Kulusevski to lay a weighted pass away from Diego Carlos for Dominic Solanke to get a one-on-one chance with Martinez and chip him for the lead.

Spurs added another goal, up 2-1, with Sarr leading the break again. Picking off a loose pass from Pau Torres, Sarr led the short counter in Villa’s half with Solanke and Richarlison on either side of him. Driving the ball and setting up Richarlison on his left, the Brazilian squared a pass in the box for a run-on from Solanke to get his brace.

Richarlison was subbed off after the moment. The second he laid the pass off for Solanke’s goal, he pulled up, holding his hamstring.

Spurs added one more goal for good measure as James Maddison curled his free kick around the Villa wall and left Martinez frozen for a fishing touch to a stellar 4-1 second-half comeback.

Notes:

An awful loss against cellar-dwellers Crystal Palace, following by an impressive victory against Premier League defending champions Manchester City in the League Cup.

It’s hard to know what to expect from Tottenham Hotspur these days, and Sunday’s match against Aston Villa poses an interesting challenge.

Calling Spurs inconsistent is probably an unfair assertion, though. Spurs’ home form has been excellent, and they have taken 8 wins from their last 10 fixtures. While you wouldn’t quite call Tottenham Hotspur Stadium a fortress, the atmosphere there has been building all season and Spurs have been generally excellent - even though the Premier League points table doesn’t quite reflect that.

Aston Villa is a tricky opponent though, and the Lilywhites will go into the match missing some key players. Though the hope is that captain Son Heung-min could make his return, a hamstring injury to Micky van de Ven ensures Spurs will be playing a rotated backline, at least in part, and Cristian Romero and Timo Werner both left the field in midweek with what looked like niggles. Villa, who have had a bit of a topsy-turvy season of their own, will be keen to prove a point against a strong opponent, and Spurs will need to make sure they embrace the fullness of Ange-ball to ensure the points stay where they belong.

COYS!

Lineups

Live Blog

How to Watch

Tottenham Hotspur vs. Aston Villa

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Sunday, November 3, 2024

Time: 9:00 a.m. ET, 2:00 p.m. UK

TV: USA Network, Sky Sports Premier League (UK). Check international listings at livesoccertv.com

Streaming: nbcsports.com

Match thread rules

The match thread rules are the same as always. To any visitors coming here for the first time, welcome! We’re glad you’re here! Wipe your feet, mind the gap, and be sure to check out the other pages at this outstanding site. While you’re here, though, we have a few rules and regulations:

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Along those lines, outright abuse of players or match officials is also not allowed. It’s fine to say “wow, that was a really bad call,” but it’s NOT okay to direct copious amounts of abuse in the direction of said official over a call you did not like.

Treat other people in the match thread the way you would want someone else to treat your grandmother. Be nice. This is a community of fans, not an un-moderated message board.

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Have fun, and COYS!

Time marches inextricably onward, or at least as we perceive it as three-dimensional beings who perceive time as a linear phenomenon. Sometimes I wish that were not the case, as it’d be so tempting to just skip ahead to when Tottenham Hotspur inevitably win a trophy.

Alas this is not to be, so we must content ourselves with injury news as it comes in. And it has come in. Ange Postecoglou held a press conference ahead of Sunday’s home match against Aston Villa, and while there is good news about Son Heung-Min, the news is a little less good for Micky van de Ven.

But let’s start with the good news — Sonny is back! After being held out as a precaution in Tottenham’s midweek League Cup victory over Manchester City, Big Ange has confirmed that he should be ready to return from a hamstring injury vs. Villa, a pernicious little soft tissue injury that’s kept him out of the lineup for a couple of weeks. Van de Ven’s news isn’t good, but it falls squarely in the “could be a lot worse” category — he picked up a minor hamstring injury that Ange says “is not too serious” but will likely keep him sidelined through the upcoming international break.

“Main one is Micky, he has sort of strained his hamstring. its not too serious, but probably after the international break for him. [Cuti] Romero, [Timo] Werner - at the moment, still a chance for the weekend. Sonny has trained today, so if he gets through training tomorrow he should be okay.”

Postecoglou also had a brief update on Wilson Odobert, who sustained an injury setback in training this past week; Ange implied that we won’t be seeing him on the pitch for a while yet, likely at least another month.

“It’s a re-occurrence, we’re going to have to be conservative. I’d say a similar time to his last one.”

Sonny coming back is huge, as Spurs are suddenly thin at the left wide forward position assuming Timo Werner isn’t fit enough to play or start. Speaking of Timo, that’s also unexpectedly good news for him — he left the City match limping and holding his groin, and that’s never a good sign. But if he’s in line to potentially play this weekend even as a reserve, it’s a better outcome than I had anticipated in the moment. Romero’s substitution always had the feel of something planned as opposed to something reactive, so it’s also good that he got a bit of a rest in that match with Ben Davies putting in a very good shift.

I think we can probably pencil Sonny into the starting lineup, along with Radu Dragusin, who will replace Micky in the back line. That might result in some minor defensive tactical tweaks; Radu is a solid on-the-ball defender but doesn’t have Micky’s recovery pace in the high line.

There was no word on Djed Spence’s recovery either — Destiny Udogie has put in some significant minutes lately and could probably use a breather, and Djed has more than earned the opportunity to play Premier League football if he’s healthy. We’ll see about that.

Wednesday’s success over Manchester City kept Tottenham Hotspur perfect in tournament competitions this season, which has an argument for being the club’s biggest priority. However, last weekend’s stinker against Palace means Spurs have won just four of nine Premier League contests, which is frankly unacceptable for a team of this quality, regardless of where its ambitions lie.

Now Tottenham welcomes in an Aston Villa side that should again contend for a top-four spot by the end of the year. The biggest story for Villa this campaign is not domestic though, as three wins through three Champions League matchweeks is equaled on the continent only by Liverpool. Spurs need a big bounce back after last weekend; this one is not straightforward by any means, but at least it is at home.

Tottenham Hotspur (t-8th, 13pts) vs. Aston Villa (t-3rd, 18pts)

Date: Sunday, November 3

Time: 9:00 am ET, 2:00 pm UK

Location: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London

TV: USA Network (USA), TNT Sports 1 (UK)

Villa is actually slumping a bit in the league, having drawn three of the past four after four wins in the first five. That hot start has kept the side near the top of the table, but it will be difficult to juggle two demanding competitions. The 1-0 win over Bayern Munich last month was certainly the biggest result thus far, while none of the domestic wins have come against the big six.

The home-road narrative for Tottenham is worth discussing, making last season’s results all the more confusing. Spurs squandered a Giovani Lo Celso opener to fall 1-2 in North London last November, but then had maybe their best performance under Ange Postecoglou to date in the reverse fixture, with an emphatic four-goal rout at Villa Park with James Maddison, Brennan Johnson, Heung-Min Son, and Timo Werner all finding the net in the second half.

Assessing the inventory

The premise of what looks like the deepest Spurs squad on paper in some time continues to be tested. Son is rarely 100 percent, and the win over City saw multiple players pick up a knock, including Micky van de Ven, who is unfortunately acquiring that dreaded injury-prone label. While rotation is a necessity given the modern schedule, it is frustrating to seemingly never have the best XI all available at once.

With multiple competitions still in scope, this depth is really going to be tested. The issue is how stark the drop-off seems to be when reserves come in, as seen with last week’s front three without Son. Now, the back line loses van de Ven with Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran charging forward, boasting 13 total goals between them already. For a defense that continues to make fatal mistakes, having to reshuffle the components is the last thing anyone wants to see, and slip-ups against Villa will be punished.

Tempered aggression

Though it was not full-strength City, Tottenham’s victory Wednesday was still a notable conquest. Spurs had just 32 percent possession but showed tons of energy pressing and charging forward on the counter. This is obviously a change from how Postecoglou typically sets up, and while Sunday is unlikely to follow this exact pattern, there are some relevant takeaways.

The last two goals Villa conceded were from a keeper longball to Raul Jimenez down the length of the entire pitch and a late equalizer off a Bournemouth free kick that came from a foul on the break. Tottenham continues to struggle breaking down low blocks, but fluid play certainly yielded chances against City and should be available again this weekend. Giving up some possession to stay aggressive defensively and pounce in transition is something I would welcome, especially in this sort of fixture.

good morning and happy November -

Today marks the beginning of the month, and you all know what that means: It’s time to take a look at the month ahead.

Yes welcome back to your montly edition of A Look at the Month Ahead, where we at Hoddle Headquarters take a look at what’s to come in the coming month for Tottenham Hotspur football. It’s all in the name baby!

Tottenham Hotspur men’s squad:

Tottenham’s reward for beating City at home on Wednesday? Well, a trip to City later this month. It’ll be the second of two huge matches for Spurs if they want to make a serious push for the top 4-6 this year.

But before then comes a home game agaisnt Aston Villa on Sunday. The clubs split the matches last year, with each winning the away fixture. Let’s hope Spurs put an end to that.

Plus, Spurs will be continuing their unbeaten run in the Europa League with matches against Galatasaray (hello Davinson Sanchez) and a Thanksgiving Day game against Roma.

Tottenham Hotspur men’s schedule: Aston Villa (3 Nov), at Galatasaray (7 Nov, Europa League), Ipswich Town (10 Nov), at City (23 Nov), Roma (28 Nov, Europa League)

Tottenham Hotspur women’s squad:

Speaking of City, they feature again. Only this time in the women’s competition.

It’ll be a tough month for the women, who lost against United, Chelsea and Liverpool recently. All three clubs are above them. This month they face both City and Arsenal. Very tough.

Maybe a home fixture against West Ham this weekend will do some good to boost their confidence.

Tottenham Hotspur women’s schedule: West Ham (3 Nov), at City (8 Nov), Arsenal (16 Nov), Aston Villa (23 Nov, WSL Cup)

Fitzie’s track of the day: Una Vez Mas, by Juanpalitoschinos

And now for your links:

Are there links here? Or have the links been inside you this whole time?