| S |
|
59% |
| P |
|
71% |
| U |
|
62% |
| R |
|
65% |
| S |
|
61% |
| = |
|
63.6% |
Form Guide February 2008
P W D L F-A GD Pts
5 3 2 0 9-4 5 4
3 Cup Matches
Pos:- 11th
· January 2008 figures
· Last year's figures
February 2007
February 2008 has been such a sweet, marvellous month for our beloved Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
It started and finished with dominating performances over two of England's top four sides.Until Tevez was allowed to nip in at the near post and score in the dying seconds, Spurs looked as if they would gain a deserved victory against Premier League Champions and contenders, Manchester United in our first game of February.
The focus for the month was always going to be on the Carling Cup Final, but with an ongoing UEFA cup campaign, Juande Ramos's skill and tactical judgement would be tested to the limit in every game. The ideal would be to win well in our first leg game in Prague and with that in mind, Ramos left Dimitar Berbatov on the bench at Derby until there were 57 minutes on the clock. At that stage it was 0-0, and Spurs had survived a couple of scares from the desperate home side in the first half. Berbatov made all the difference and once Robbie Keane gave us a 68th minute lead, we did not look back and ran out 3-0 winners. Thus we remained unbeaten in our only two league games of the month. Eleventh position was secure despite our Premier League inactivity on Carling Cup week-end.
In Prague, we could and should have been 4 or 5 up at half-time, and the mistake by Cerny led to a recall for Paul Robinson, but also meant we could not relax in our home leg, despite the real need to give breathers to as many of the Final side as possible. Ramos managed to semi-rest 6 of his key players, but despite Jamie O'Hara's first goal in Europe (he had also made his European debut in the first leg), Spurs made heavy weather of getting through to the last 16.
The master plan worked though, as Ledley King was unwrapped from his cotton wool, especially for the Final, where we saw a great team performance, coupled with tactical genius by Juande Ramos.
I don't know about you, but the smile is still engrained upon my face. I have watched the recording of the match time and time again, and there are moments that bring tears to my eyes, such as the Woodgate goal, the players celebrations at the end, especially Robbie Keane's dance of joy and embrace with Berbatov. This is not to mention that so precious moment when Ledley and Robbie lifted the cup before a loyal jubilant crowd that has been patient for success, which is so richly deserved by all concerned with the club.
So, my message is "Keep Smiling, Spurs fans!" February has featured just 5 games, but we have 8 to play in March, including that tough UEFA Cup tie against PSV Eindhoven, who top the Dutch League by 9 points, finished third in their Champions League group and currently have not been beaten in 12 games.
Spurs have played 43 games already this season, but although we are already in Europe next season, there is everything to play for in a potential 19 more games, if we can get all the way to the UEFA Cup Final. I am sure that despite our success on Sunday, Ramos will have the squad fired up to compete in every game they play. Spurs have certainly proved this month that they need fear no other team!
Don't forget to check out the cumulative appearances and grades for the squad below.
...if you want to remind yourself of the matches played during this month, then See the Fixtures page here. By working your way back through the previous month's figures, you can review the performances over the last 7 years!
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