After Tottenham’s narrow win over Luton Town over the weekend, Ange Postecoglou made several changes to his XI for Tuesday night’s trip to West Ham United.
Spurs haven’t been used to it this season, because they haven’t been in Europe, but this was a rare midweek game for them.
Postecoglou made three changes for the 1-1 draw at West Ham, with eventual goalscorer Brennan Johnson, fan favourite Micky van de Ven and all-round midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur coming into the XI.
The return of van de Ven, in particular, was needed and most welcomed because he is such a pivotal part of how Spurs play.
That high line and open space isn’t easy to deal with, especially against forward lines with pace and power.
Given that this was van de Ven’s first start since the win over Aston Villa, Darren Bent named him as his Man of the Match, as he told talkSPORT.
The former striker stated that the 22-year-old was being ’exposed’ at the back because his Tottenham teammates were flooding forward.
Yet despite that, he ‘did everything that was asked of him’ and produced a solid defensive display for his team, even though it was dropped points in the race for Champions League football.
Micky van de Ven v West Ham United
“I am going to go for Micky van de Ven,” said Bent on his Man of the Match. “His first game back, I thought he defended really, really well.
“Considering he has had hamstring injuries, there were times when he was being exposed one-on-one. He got his body in. He was quick on the recovery. I thought he defended in areas really, really well.
“So, considering it’s his first game back, I am going for Micky van de Ven. He did everything that was asked of him.”
Tottenham’s performances since 4-0 win at Aston Villa
When Spurs rocked up to Villa Park and won 4-0, many fans thought that was the sign that they were going to make fourth spot theirs.
But the performances since that win have gone backwards, including losing to Fulham the following week.
Yes, the team managed to beat Luton over the weekend, but it just wasn’t convincing.
Next up, it’s going to be the return of their former manager – Nuno Espírito Santo – and his Nottingham Forest side.
Postecoglou has watched his players struggle with those who sit back, and are a huge threat on the counter, such as Wolves, and you feel Forest are going to cause those same issues on Sunday.
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