Tottenham vs Barcelona: Spurs struck down by yet more injuries in penalty shootout defeat to Spanish champions
Barcelona 2-2 Tottenham: Son and Nkoudou scored for Spurs as Barca played a number of their new signings
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Your support makes all the difference.Due to his Espanyol affiliations, Mauricio Pochettino has always made it abundantly clear that he will never take the reins of city rivals Barcelona.
What Pochettino would give for the strength in depth of the La Liga champions though, especially as the clock anxiously ticks down in the final fortnight of the transfer window.
Already short on bodies due to the nine World Cup semi-final absentees, the personnel situation isn’t getting any easier for the Spurs manager. Victor Wanyama has suffered a repeat of the knee injury which kept him out for four months last season, Moussa Sissoko was struck down with a hamstring problem in Saturday’s 5-3 penalty shoot-out defeat to Barca after a 2-2 draw in normal time and Erik Lamela was forced to train by himself in the build-up to the game.
Oh, and as supporters need no reminding, Spurs still haven’t signed a single player this summer.
Of course, Barcelona - like the majority of Europe’s heavyweight clubs - are also missing their big hitters. There is no Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba etc for their participation in the International Champions Cup - a tournament which has farcically become a showcase for B teams this summer, due to the high number of World Cup absentees.
But Barcelona’s fringe players were head and shoulders above Spurs during the first half in Pasadena, California, before Pochettino’s side pulled level in the final 20 minutes after the Catalans introduced a raft of teenagers from the bench.
Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde remains on the lookout for reinforcements, yet the three new players who have arrived at the Nou Camp already this summer - Malcom, Clement Lenglet and Artur all stood-out on their first outings for the club. All have been initially signed as squad players, but Artur, in particular, shone.
It’s uncomfortable to make comparisons with Xavi at this tender stage of the 21-year-old’s career, but the Brazilian is of that ilk; an ice-cool midfield playmaker who constantly finds space and effortlessly dictates the tempo. His first half goal was a beauty too; collecting Rafinha’s pass on the edge of the area before sweeping the ball effortlessly into the top corner.
In tandem with the likes of Rafinha, Andre Gomes (two players who have been linked with Spurs) and Munir, Barcelona were able to monopolise possession in characteristic fashion. Pochettino’s side barely created a thing before the break. They didn’t have the ball long enough to do so. Other than a routine Christian Eriksen free-kick, Jasper Cillessen’s goal was a safe haven.
Sissoko and Lucas Moura struggled to deal with the passing triangles taking place around them in midfield, while Son Heung-min and Fernando Llorente were largely limited to chasing down defenders.
At the other end, Munir and Denis Suarez produced a pair of appalling finishes from the edge of the box in the opening 10 minutes before the opener arrived. It was Munir who made amends by cushioning the ball into the unguarded net at the end of a simple move which ripped the Spurs defence to pieces. Gomes curled the ball in from the left, Rafinha got away at the back post to head back into the six-yard box and Munir profited from the sleeping Cameron Carter-Vickers.
Valverde didn’t even hurry when Barcelona were momentarily reduced to 10 men and even nine men due to injuries. Their possession football was so good that they continued to dominate.
Seven youngsters, along with Malcom were introduced from the Barca bench at the interval and while the Catalans continued to catch the eye going forwards, Spurs began to exert themselves against a rookie defence.
Two goals arrived in as many minutes, both of which stemmed from the Barcelona back-line’s inability to deal with low crosses. First, Ben Davies’ left-wing delivery found Eriksen, whose shot was blocked, before Son sent a shot into the bottom corner.
Then, Aurier’s cross resulted in Eriksen’s effort being cleared off the line, before academy product Georges-Kevin Nkoudou sent his volley into the unguarded net.
Of course, giving youngsters such as Nkoudou, Ben Amos and Oliver Skipp the experience of combating such possession masters as Barcelona can only benefit them, if they do ever make the grade at Spurs. It was a shame that another of the homegrown players, Anthony Georgiou, was the one player who missed from the spot in the penalty shootout.
But even if Spurs’ long-term future is rosey, it is the short term that is such a concern for Pochettino and so many Premier League managers, given the World Cup’s effect on the summer’s preparations. With injuries piled on top of the absentees, it only makes the transfer market ever more pressing.
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