Nuno Espirito Santo has explained that Tottenham Hotspur are using their matches to trial new systems as they do not have enough time in training, via quotes by football.london.
Spurs started the Premier League season as the early form side with three wins, albeit each being 1-0 affairs. But have struggled since the international break with back-to-back 3-0 defeats, plus a 2-2 draw at Stade Rennes to start the Europa League Group Stage.
Nuno admits Tottenham must make changes to find their form again, starting with Wolves in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday. The Portuguese will use the north Londoners’ trip to Molineux as another chance to experiment in search of a solution.
Tottenham have lacked an attacking edge all season and have now lost the defensive shape Nuno’s tenure began with. But with Spurs competing in multiple competitions and fixtures mounting, the former Wolves boss has fewer opportunities to implement change.
“We have to change,” Nuno stated. “The pre-season started with a lot of players out [after international duty or injuries]. But what we had, we built on. We had a lot of hours training on the pitch, creating movements and lots of things.
“This has gone, that has gone, so now we don’t have time to train. We have to use the games to do it, and this is what we are doing. Tomorrow is another chance to try things, to improve and play good. Playing good is always the balance between the two boxes.”
Will Nuno find a solution to rediscover Tottenham’s form?
Tottenham have already tackled games with four different formations over Nuno’s eight fixtures at the helm to date. The Portuguese has favoured a 4-3-3 shape most frequently and won all four encounters using the system across all competitions.
Spurs have lost whenever they have lined up in a 3-4-2-1, 4-3-1-2 or 4-3-2-1, and drawn in a 4-2-3-1, however. They used a 4-3-2-1 shape against Chelsea on Sunday in the hopes of a return to form. Harry Kane also featured on the left of Heung-Min Son in the forward three.
But the experiment did not work, as Kane struggled to imprint his presence on the Blues’ backline. Thomas Tuchel’s Stamford Bridge side also took control of the engine room once N’Golo Kane entered the action at half-time. Nuno will now use Wolves as another chance to trial new systems in the hopes of unlocking Tottenham’s full potential.
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