| S |
|
67.42% |
| P |
|
69.42% |
| U |
|
63.14% |
| R |
|
67.14% |
| S |
|
57.28% |
| = |
|
64.88% |
Form Guide Dec 2012
P W D L F-A GD Pts
7 5 1 1 14-4 10 13
One Cup match
Pos:- 4th
· November 2012 figures
· Last year's figures
December 2011
Improvement all round for Spurs in December
There was improvement in all areas for Spurs in December, when we played seven games, and lost just one of them. That was at Goodison Park, where we suffered those two late goals in quick succession, when we had taken a lead that we should have held. Overall though, we scored more goals, conceded less, won more games and won more points than in any previous month so far this season. Andre Villas-Boas must be in contention for manager of the month, but then things are so tight in the quest for Champions League football, and good results have been obtained elsewhere. (AVB did indeed win the Barclays Premier League manager of the month award)
Virtually every player in the squad improved their cumulative grades this month. Those few that lost marks saw their overall grade drop a mere fraction. Performance levels in all skill areas increased, and not just a little either! Even the score ratio has improved, which is not suprising, bearing in mind we saw three goals at Fulham, three at home to Panathinaikos, and four at Aston Villa. The fact that most goals were scored in these three games goes a long way to explaining why many home fans are yet to be fully satisfied by Andre Villas-Boas and his team.However, if they choose not to bother attending for Europa League games, and don't manage to get away tickets, maybe some of them need to look at themselves, rather than the team.
The fact is, we have qualified for the knock-out phase of the Europa League, and in that sense, AVB has improved upon Harry Redknapp's efforts last season. The Portuguese coach is also on track for at least emulating his predecessor in qualifying for the Champions League. Indeed, looking at the latest quotes from "The Beast" Sandro, Spurs might be setting their sights a little higher, but that might be a little too ambitious.
Gareth Bale and Jermain Defoe have scored well this month. Defoe has got four more to his name and leads Bale by one goal in the Premier League list. Bale scored a great hat-trick at Villa Park, and got a massive 9.1 score from the voters, which means that despite missing three of our games, Gareth has been voted Player of the Month for December
If you are looking for consistency this month, look no further than that man Sandro, who scored highly in each game this month. Lloris too scores consistently high marks from the fans, and in fact marginally leads the way in the chase for Spurs Odyssey player of the season. Also in the reckoning for that accolade at this stage are Sandro, Bale, Vertonghen and Mousa Dembele.
The transfer window beckons, and as I write, we have heard that Carlo Cudicini will leave us for Major League football with LA Galaxy. We wait with bated breath to see whether Spurs do strengthen their squad, or whether the publicity from AVB to suggest there will be little such action is true.
Assuming success in the FA Cup Third Round against Coventry, then a potential six games await us in January, before the onset of European football again in February. Already Scott Parker is back. Mousa Dembele has been going strong this month, and we hope for the return of Assou-Ekotto. Things will hopefully just keep getting better!
A word here for Kyle Naughton who has played in five games this month, and generally shown great improvement. We've even seen a couple of "Iniesta-like" passes from this Kyle. I'd also like to mention Steven Caulker, who, whilst he has suffered a couple of mis-understandings with Lloris, continues to play consistently in his first full season in the Spurs first team. He's made 18 starts now, with one game as substitute, and he is the only outfield regular who has not even been booked yet. Does that remind you of anybody. Caulker is strong, confident and cultured. He gets on with his job without dissent, and without resorting to foul play. Isn't that refreshing?
Let's all have a fantastic 2013!
...if you want to read reports of the matches played during this month, then links are on the Spurs Odyssey Fixtures page here. By working your way back through the previous month's figures, you can review the performances since November 2000!
|
Key:
S Skill levels
P Pluck (ie effort)
U Unforced errors*
R Resolve (defensive ability)
S Score ratio (goals to shots)
= Overall mark Total Percentage
Percentages given for each category.
* less errors equals a higher mark
The Spursometer was brought to you by Spurs Odyssey in association with My Eyes Have Seen The Glory.
· All the Spurs Stats you could hope for here! THFC6061 Sports Stats
|
