Manchester United’s shock loss at Old Trafford to Crystal Palace wasn’t the only slipup in the Premier League this past weekend.
Newcastle United was looking to not lose its third straight match in the Premier League as the Magpies traveled to Tottenham on Sunday.Steve Bruce’s side was set up in a back three, set up to counter Spurs’ possession-based system and it worked. Joelinton scored in the first half and Newcastle held Tottenham at bay for the rest of the match.
For Spurs, three points would have meant jumping up to third place — keeping pace with City and Liverpool. But it wasn’t to be.
Tottenham struggled to provide anything going forward. Lucas Moura, Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Erik Lamela especially were average. New signing Tanguy Ndombele and Dele Alli were out with injuries, leaving Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko to hold down midfield. Christian Eriksen started on the bench.
Overall, Tottenham had way more of the ball, shot more and created 13 chances — but did very little.
Tottenham has only won four of its last 15 games in the Premier League. Eight of those matches were losses and three draws. Only Brighton and Watford have worse records.
Spurs currently sit in seventh after three matches, which is a cause for concern. For one: Why is Pochettino starting Lamela over Eriksen? Spurs are a much better team with Eriksen in the team. Another concern is why Jan Vertonghen isn’t playing; he’s clearly one of Spurs’ best center backs and without him in the side, Tottenham isn’t very solid defensively. These choices by Pochettino proved how shaky Tottenham is without key players.
Three matches into a season isn’t necessarily telling, but this inconsistent form has been carried over from last season into this one. In the final five matches of the season, Tottenham lost to Manchester City, West Ham, Bournemouth and drew Everton. Spurs’ form during this summer's preseason was better but still inconsistent: winning two, drawing two and losing one.
Now, Tottenham’s Premier League form this season is still showing this inconsistency.
Is there a crisis at Tottenham at the moment? Well, no. Is improvement desperately needed to get Spurs back in the title race? Absolutely.
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