The high profile clash between Tottenham Hotspurs and Newcastle United was the perfect beginning to the Premier League campaign.18 Yard Box has a look at the performances of the two teams involved.
Tottenham and Newcastle, both, showed last
year that they were no pushovers. Both teams missed the Champions League spot
by a whisker. For Newcastle it was a happy campaign and for Tottenham it was a
heart breaking one.
With Lukas Modric priced away from the club,
Tottenham would have had to come up with something special to beat the Toons
who possessed arguably the Premier League’s two best strikers. We have a look
at what we learnt from Newcastle's 2-1 win over Tottenham.
Gylfi Sigurdsson might prove to be
Modric’s replacement
The former Swansea midfielder was taken
into the team by the new manager Andre Villas Boas. Sigurdsson looked to be a
part of the Spurs midfield as he controlled the ball well. His dead balls
looked menacing and so did his corners. With Modric’s move to Real Madrid all
but sealed, Sigurdsson has big boots to fill. But he certainly looks to be
heading into the right direction in doing that. Considering that he is new to
the team, Sigurdsson gelled brilliantly with the forward line of Gareth Bale,
Jermain Defoe and Aaron Lennon and could provide telling crosses to Emmanuel
Adebayor.
 |
| Sigurdsson could prove to be the signing of the season for Tottenham |
Key Stats: Gylfi Sigurdsson
Games started
|
1
|
Assists
|
0
|
Shots at goal
| 3 |
Shots on target
|
1
|
Tottenham should play Van der Vaart
and Lennon more often
Although Lennon had a poor season with the
Spurs last year, he looked impressive with his pace and trickery. He is some
player which makes something happen from nothing. He was instrumental in
setting up Defoe’s equalizing goal. Tottenham will be relying heavily on the
winger to provide the forward line with telling crosses. Alongwith Lennon
another man that should get more game time is Rafael Van der Vaart. The Dutch
striker’s quality in the midfield may prove threatening for the teams. Although
he did very little to impress against Newcastle, Van der Vaart, alongwith
Sigurdsson could solve Tottenham’s midfield problems.
 |
| Lennon impressed with his pace and trickery against Newcastle |
Newcastle not a single season miracle
Newcastle United proved on Saturday that
their last season’s achievements were not a mere fluke. Their performance
against Tottenham, especially in the second half showed that they will
certainly be competing for the honors this season. Jonas looked sharp, Ben Arfa
looked good, Ba and Cisse looked exquisite. The unsung hero for Newcastle
United has been Tiote and he showed his class by patrolling the midfield.
Newcastle looked sharp enough considering that they came out of pre season.
Ba and Cisse- A match made in heaven
The Senegalese pair Demba Ba and Papis
Cisse have lit the Premier League on fire ever since their arrival. Last
season’s first half was dominated by Ba and the second by Cisse. In these two
strikers, Newcastle have one of the best striker force of the Premier League. Moreover,
playing for the same country also helped as they combined well upfront. To add
to that Newcastle also have Hatem Ben Arfa and Yohan Cabaye to round off a
perfect attacking force.
 |
| Ba and Cisse make up Newcastle's attack |
These teams are still to watch out
for
Although Tottenham have been weakened by
Modric’s departure they are still in contention for the top 4. With AVB's managerial qualities witnessed at Porto, Totttenham fans can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that they have a good replacement for Harry Redknapp. Even Newcastle
are a team to be reckoned with. Ben Arfa will the man to to watch out for as he will look to make this campaign his. Both, with their free flowing attacking game can
be a hurdle in the so called ‘Big 4’s ‘ title amibitons.
Comment: Although Tottenham and Newcastle have a decent squad, they fall behind when it comes to the quality that City, United, Chelsea and Arsenal possess. It will be a tough fight for the 4th spot again this season and an upset may be on the cards.
Written By,
Rishabh Ghai
Rishabh Ghai is a writer who writes for Goal.com India and also is an Editor and writer for 18 Yard Box
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