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On a weekend where City, Liverpool and Chelsea all avoided potential slip-ups and Manchester United exploded back in to form, Spurs couldn’t afford a loss on Sunday afternoon at Vicarage Road.
Unfortunately for Mauricio Pochettino and his team’s title aspirations, they were overrun by a far more passionate and energetic Watford team who surprisingly remain one of the undefeated teams at the international break.
A week ago, Tottenham were beating the brakes off United at Old Trafford, displaying a defensive rigidity coupled with a swift and powerful attack that Mourinho and company couldn’t deal with.
So how does a team go from one of their most famous victories to a dour loss on the road to the Hornets?
Pochettino’s overwhelming desire to include all three of his centrebacks in the lineup is a good place to start.
Pochettino opted for a back four at Old Trafford, pairing Belgian international teammates Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen at centre back. He opted for Eric Dier and Moussa Dembele in front of the back four to screen and anchor the midfield so Cristian Eriksen and Dele Alli could operate further forward and provide service for Kane.
Inserting Davinson Sanchez into a back three at the expense of Eric Dier ruins the balance and offensive thrust of a side so exciting when they’re on the attack.
Without this balance, Spurs are a predictable and mundane team.
On Sunday, Mousa Dembele was far too exposed in the second half, as Etienne Capoue, Will Hughes and Roberto Peyrera exploited the defensive frailties of Eriksen and Alli. Asking him to anchor the midfield by himself also leashes his outstanding ability to drive through midfield with the ball at his feet and allow Eriksen to punish space left by defenders caught in two minds.
Tottenham look far more dangerous when Alli is making darting runs in behind and stretching defences. His run and headed chance midway through the first half was too few and far between against Watford, as in this 3-5-2 shape, he is tasked with tracking back and defending far too often.
Alli’s ability to threaten in behind forces opposing centrebacks to drop off, creating space for Harry Kane and Eriksen to operate and cause havoc in the final third. Without this, both the England captain and Danish star were deprived of space against Watford and remained anonymous for the majority of the game.
The problem Pochettino has is that Sanchez, as an accomplished Colombian international, wants and expects to play. He also cost the club a record £42 million. Another problem is that Alderweireld already agitated for a move last season when his playing time dried up.
A possible solution for Spurs is to shift Vertonghen to left-back, and partner Alderweireld and Sanchez at centre back to keep their far more effective 4-2-3-1 shape intact. However, this would mean dropping the fantastic Ben Davies and further alienating an already disinterested Danny Rose.
After the international break, Tottenham hosts a rampant Liverpool side and there’s more than a fair chance that Pochettino will opt again for Sanchez in a back three.
Eventually, he will have to decide on which one of his star defenders misses out to accommodate a back four, though these are the decisions that world class managers are paid to make.
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