I am suffering an unfamiliar emotion this afternoon – I feel rather sorry for Sam Allardyce and certainly am not in a mood to blame the man for today’s result at White Hart Lane.
Nor do I blame Harry Kane for grabbing a soft penalty at the end although I hold Alex Song fully responsible for today’s debacle.
This man surely has to know at this stage of his career that laying hands on the back of a striker moving AWAY FROM GOAL inside the penalty area in the last seconds is dangerous bordering on stupid.
Today’s game, however, cannot and shouldn’t be taken in isolation. We have now managed one victory in eight games and for every decent performance we get a less than average display.
Sam himself in assessing the game today said: “We were in front against West Brom and drew 1-1, we were in front against Manchester United and drew 1-1, and we were in front at Swansea and drew 1-1.”
Don’t ask me what the problem is because the manager himself doesn’t seem to know how to solve it.
But a team throwing games away at the death is not good and whether the pro-Sam lobby like it or not, in the end it becomes his issue simply because he’s the boss.
He is the man charged with getting results and to see a senior pro make a colossal error of judgement in helping Kane to go down needs some addressing.
I would like to have been a fly on the wall of the dressing room after the game but fair play he refused to blame the bloke publicly.
The bottom line is simple! The longer this win-less run continues the more the pressure builds because the hard luck stories from individual games disappear within a couple of days as has been seen with the Manchester United match for example.
An overall picture is emerging of a team that has forgotten how to win and frets even when it looks as though it might. The first text I received after the game read: “See you threw it away again – that team has a problem,”
At the end of the day ( as they love to say ) I am afraid, love him or hate him, it really is a managerial problem!
Don’t be ridiculous He’s paid three million pounds to make the right sub’s and have a bench with seven fit players,which Nolan clearly wasn’t.He then gifts the spuds the draw by bringing on Cole for a midfielder.Absolute rubbish and he’s stitched us again.
How many of these games which include everton in the cup away have been winning positions turned into a draw when we have still been playing positive football.I suspect many of them have happened after Allardyce has made his sophisticated substitutions when trying to hold on to what he have.Taking off players to accomadate more defensive players.Its fine if it works,but time & again it hasnt.How many times do you have to repeat the same thing before you realize it aint working & if we are going to keep conceding when inviting teams onto us later in the game we are setting ourselves up for disappointment.But Sam gets paid 3.5m so im sure he knows what he is doing.
“Fully responsible”! Are you sure about that, Hugh? I know fans have their favourites, but you can’t ignore the part that Adrian played in gifting Spurs their lucky first goal, which was always going to make it backs-to-the-wall stuff for the remaining 10-15 mins.
Sam’s substitution was absolutely crazy, Mark Noble is intelligent enough to know after the warning he has to watch it, but along comes Sam and brings on Carlton Cole, perhaps he is playing to be sacked! which won’t happen with a few months to go! Annoys me that the official club tweet has been using Sir Geoff Hurst tweets to defend Sam, if the press picp up on this we will look a Joke!
Any of the guys on the bench apart from Cole & Jussy would have made more sense to bring on as a replacement for Noble.But Cole,i really just dont get it.Where is there any logic to be found in it.
Absolutely shocking decisions yet again by Allardyce – ffs owners please get rid of him before the players stop playing. Absolute shocking decisions. I can’t believe why the owners are putting up with this game after game…
SACK SACK SACK SACK SACK now – its time to move on. I actually cannot believe what he did today…
He is taking the **** surely.That is the only explanation for bringing Cole on for Noble.We were pretty comfortable,still having chances & ok Noble was on a yellow.But if you take off Noble then you dont replace him with Cole.Ive seen him this season when we have been chasing games bring on Demel or OBrien before a forward has been replaced.He must be taking the rise today surely.Did he not replace Noble with Nolan just to stick his fingers up again.Its as if he is saying fine,you dont want Nolan in the team ok.He is the ovbious replacement for Noble amongst the subs but you dont want him then ok you can have Cole to replace Noble instead.I dont care if it f*cks the system.
Joe7211 – Hugh does not approve of the F word and certainly not the C word!
I have removed your posts for Hugh to see.
Thanks Jeff…will have to go back to moderating I think.
Why do we need to make any changes when we were still going forward and in control of the game,they had to come forward to win and Enner is the one with speed and skill when left one on one,
All he had to do was keep his ample backside on his seat keep his large gob shut and watch us pick up a win,
And then we would have not got on his back and he had a chance to win us over but no that would have ment he would have had to agree that the team we all pick week in week out is the team for us.
The point is he gets well paid and couldn’t care less. Simples.
Before the game id have taken a draw,but how many times is Sam going to make unnecessary subs.Song is not the player i thought he was,several times each game he either passes the ball to the other team,and has this tendency to tackle from behind.This is not his first terrible performance either.I have been a big Sam man but i am beginning to doubt his ability to steer a side home.The subs were a hopeless attempt to defend so deep there was no out ball to be played.Why take Nobes off etc.Oh one more thing i noticed Song came out as captain a few weeks ago,great for someone like Tomkins to have had the arm band instead of a loanee.Not all Sams fault but if he thinks Alex Song is a good player we are miles apart. C.O.Y.I. ps you watch song will score hat-trick next game.
Song is overated bad errows in most games people are just starting to see it I was starting to think I was the only one funny I am an oap on about £100 quid a week you think bfs would would see it, oh well maybe he can