Match Report: Spurs 1 Newcastle 2: are we now fighting relegation? & our Cup match against Liverpool

 

Match Report: Spurs 1 Newcastle 2: are we now fighting relegation? & our Cup match against Liverpool

The talk for this game wasn’t about how much we would win by or even get a draw, but how much damage the Magpies would do to us. Some predicted we would get thumped by at least four goals, while others went as high as six.

Near the end of the game, I had moved seats to nearer the halfway line and overhead this couple:

Man: “Well, it looks like it will be a good result for us.”

Woman: “What do you mean?”

Man: “I and everybody predicted we would be smashed 7 or 10 nil. Instead, we got a pretty decent result considering…”

Woman: “Yes, and we’ve had a good day out… seeing two great gladiatorial teams battle… one challenging for a top-four place, while the other [Spurs] are fighting relegation.”

Man: “The good news is that I can see us winning a trophy…”

Woman: “Really?”

Man: “I can see us getting relegated. We are 12th in the league, but more significantly, we are nine points away from the relegation zone. Relegation would mean we possibly have a good chance of winning the Championship. Anyway, we’ve had a good hospitality day. At least we can mark this off from our bucket list.”

As they were leaving, the man turned to the woman as fans chanted, “Levy Out”.

Man: “I can’t see what all the fuss is about Levy… he has achieved miracles from what he had inherited… a shit hole… now we’ve got an entertaining hub that gives us so many choices… some people are just ungrateful.”

The woman nodded in agreement, as by this time, I moved away from the chants and boos and made my way to the food dispensary and got my three chocolate biscuits for Janette.

It wouldn’t have been that long ago that any suggestion of relegation would have been a sign of madness. Now, it has become very close to reality. If United win today, we will drop further down. We have so many injuries and a poor squad, I can’t see what we can do next other than sit the storm out.

Next up will be Liverpool in the Cup, which I can’t see us winning. Then a FA Cup match against Tamworth FC will follow. One wag suggested that if we win this game, the team should go on an open-top bus victory tour around Tottenham to celebrate getting us into the next round.

The Europa Cup looks like a fading dream, and as for European football next season… well, that looks like a pipe dream. What is more predominant is whether Ange will still be in his position for next season or Levy puts his hands in his pockets.

After the Tamworth game, Arsenal away (there's not much to cheer about here), followed by Everton, where we are also away, and they must be up for it. Then, we'll have a trip abroad to continue our Europa quest.

Back to the Newcastle game…

… We were adamant that Joelinton should have been penalised for a handball in the build-up to Gordon's goal. Still, the officials deemed that the contact with Lucas Bergvall's pass was accidental and that his arm was in a natural position.

We’ve been reduced to… crying over decisions rather than fighting for something we can change. Whatever we think of that decision, it is out of our hands…

Two one down, we improved after the break and almost equalised 10 minutes into the second half; Brennan Johnson struck the woodwork from the tightest of angles after Martin Dubravka had kept out Pape Sarr's effort from outside the box. We brought James Maddison on, who curled an effort narrowly wide of the far post, and Sergio Reguilon lashed a shot off target late on, but there was no way realistically back for us. We have now slumped to our fifth home league defeat of this campaign. A relegation battle isn’t that far away for us. It isn’t looking good.

We all went home feeling dejected… except those who came to the stadium for an experience and didn’t mind who won, so long as they had an entertaining and full day… Daniel Levy certainly offers that…

Match preview: Spurs v Liverpool - prediction, team news, lineup

We reached this point in the League Cup with a triumphant 4-3 spectacular with Manchester United before Christmas, while the league-leading Reds were 2-1 victors at Southampton to keep their quadruple hopes alive.

Only two of Liverpool's last 23 Premier League battles with us have seen the Reds lose. However, one of those came at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last season, where the infamous "significant human error" and late Joel Matip own goal triggered their downfall.

 

Spurs Premier League form:

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Spurs form (all competitions):

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Liverpool Premier League form:

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Liverpool form (all competitions):

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Team News

We continue to deal with a decimated defence, as none of Ben Davies (hamstring), Cristian Romero (thigh), Micky van de Ven (hamstring), or Guglielmo Vicario (ankle) will be available for this encounter. Neither will Mikey Moore (illness), Wilson Odobert (hamstring), and Richarlison (and no one knows what the fuck is wrong with him).

What is left will have to be cobbled together in the hope that we can salvage something from our season. The Bin Dippers will sense blood.

My possible Spurs starting lineup:

Austin; Porro, Gray, Dragusin, Spence; Sarr, Bissouma; Kulusevski, Maddison, Son; Solanke

Prediction: Well, that could depend on what Liverpool puts out. However, I think they will manage to win 3-5, and if that is the case, there will be no way back for us (in the second leg at Anfield).

Both teams have scored in each of our last seven contests at our Stadium, and that tendency should not change, as Liverpool are looking more defensively fragile on the road than it has been. However, the Reds are working with an extra day's rest, were able to leave out some of their players in midweek, and faced a side still missing some of our key shielding players.

Up the Spurs!

Glenn