Next up: Derby County

Posted by Stevio in Tottenham H. on August 18th, 2007

Tomorrow at 3pm, we take on Derby County at White Hart Lane. As mentioned previously, Dimitar Berbatov will be missing due to his groin problem, and Younes Kaboul will be out with his hamstring injury.

Michael Dawson looks likely to be out, so I’m expecting Rocha and Gardner to start in the centre of defence, with Chimbonda at right-back and Stalteri at left-back.

I’m guessing that three out of four positions in midfield will remain the same, with Malbranque, Zokora and Jenas retaining their places. Robbie Keane should vacate the right-wing position and either move upfront or become a substitute, leaving Wayne Routledge to replace him. An alternative would be for Jenas to move to the right-wing and Huddlestone come into the centre of midfield.

Darren Bent should continue in his striking role with either Keane or Jermain Defoe.

Derby have drawn 2-2 at home against Portsmouth and lost 1-0 at Manchester City so far this season.

Their line-up consists mainly of Championship experienced players, however, they have some decent players like Welsh striker Robert Earnshaw and ex-Luton striker Steve Howard.

I’m expecting they’ll come and defend, with the aging Darren Moore leading from the heart of their defence.

I don’t expect them to roll over easily, but we must be creative, get crosses into the box and work at them until they break down.

We should get a win, but on the performances of the last few games it’s vital that we play as a team and defend as a team, as with that as a solid base we should finally gain our first points of the season.

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Van der Vaart and Davies linked with Spurs

Posted by Stevio in Rumours on August 16th, 2007

Rafael van der VaartToday, The Sun newspaper are reporting our interest in Hamburg midfielder Rafael van der Vaart. It’s reported that the German club are not too keen on selling and would want more than £10m for the Dutchman!

We’re also said to have had an £8m bid for Curtis Davies rejected by West Bromwich Albion, who reportedly want a staggering £10m!

I think van vaart would be a great signing, however, I’d rather see a left-sided midfielder, and perhaps even a defensive central midfielder signed.

Davies would be a good signing too, but the price is ridiculous. We already have six central defenders at the club, and unless we offload one, I don’t see the point in spending money when we need to improve midfield.

Anyways, here’s a video to drool over the skills over van der Vaart.

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Berbatov and Kaboul injured

Posted by Stevio in Tottenham H. on August 16th, 2007

Darren BentThere’s been some really bad news with both Dimitar Berbatov and Younes Kaboul now out injured. There is some good news however, with Gareth Bale and Lee Young-Pyo close to returning.

Manager Martin Jol told our club’s official website: “We’ve had a couple more blows. Younes Kaboul will be out for the next three or four weeks with the hamstring injury he suffered against Everton, that’s a real kick in the teeth and Dimitar Berbatov has a groin problem. It’s an old problem and he will now visit a specialist in Germany. He will be out for a couple of weeks.”

He added: “Gareth Bale is looking better. Our medical team have also told me that Young-Pyo Lee is up to 85 per cent fitness and that will soon be 100 per cent.”

I can’t wait to see Gareth Bale in a Spurs shirt. He was so influential at Southampton, and I’m hoping he’ll make the same impact at Spurs.

With Berbatov out, this is the opportunity for Bent to shine. He’s the man we’re looking for goals from and we seriously need him to deliver. Who will be his partner? I’m not sure. Keane doesn’t seem on form, so that leaves Jermain Defoe. On paper, Bent and Defoe could be an explosive strike partnership.

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