Tottenham Hotspur played out a 2-2 draw with Wycombe Wanderers at Hotspur Way on Saturday morning in their first match of a rare pre-season double header.
Let’s take a look at the five things we learned from the game:
Three at the back in the build-up for Tottenham
We got another interesting glimpse into Thomas Frank’s new Tottenham system this morning against Wycombe Wanderers. Although, on paper, the formation is a 4-2-3-1, that is not always the case in the build-up. Particularly today, we saw Ben Davies tuck in off the left-hand side to create a back three when Tottenham were building attacks, shifting alongside Cristian Romero and Luka Vuskovic. This freed up Pedro Porro to roam further forward.
It all comes back to Frank’s old saying: “You need to take risks, otherwise you also take risks.” The change in shape during build-ups will certainly lead to overloads and goals for Tottenham Hotspur, but they may be caught on the break with such a narrow back three at times.
Pedro Porro post-Postecoglou
Pedro Porro’s role this morning was one of the most interesting on the pitch. With the back three in the build-up, you would assume that Porro would then push high and wide to create width and an overload at the back post. The Spaniard certainly did that at times, but he more often popped up in central roles in the final third. It was a real throwback to the early inverted days under Ange Postecoglou when Porro and Destiny Udogie almost played as number 10s.
I wonder whether Thomas Frank is fashioning a very specific role for Porro this season due to his immense creative ability. It was also interesting to see the fluid relationship between Porro and Wilson Odobert on the right side, with the duo constantly swapping between wide runner and inverted creator.
Luka Vuskovic looks ready for Tottenham
It can be easy to make wild and early conclusions from pre-season football. However, regardless of the goal against Reading or the performance against Wycombe, Luka Vuskovic looks ready for the set-up. Despite still being a teenager, he seems to have the calm head required for a Premier League club, and hasn’t looked out of place for a second alongside the likes of Cristian Romero and Micky Van de Ven. He looks comfortable in possession, positive with his passing, and reads the game really nicely for one so young.
Unfortunately, there is one major hurdle in his way – competition. Tottenham look unlikely to sell Radu Dragusin this summer, which means Vuskovic has Romero, Van de Ven, Kevin Danso, Dragusin, and Ben Davies to compete with for two spots. The simple truth is that he probably won’t get enough game time to elevate his development to the next level, which is why Spurs may opt for a loan instead.
Pape Sarr in the number 10 role
There wasn’t much to write home about regarding Pape Sarr’s performance itself, beyond scoring the tap-in rebound to make it 1-0 and producing a nice touch and finish to make it 2-2. So, how did he managed to score a brace without completely running the show? It was Sarr’s position that was extremely interesting today, rather than necessarily the man who occupied it.
Playing in the number 10 role, which you expect will eventually be occupied by the likes of James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Mohammed Kudus, or hopefully Morgan Gibbs-White, Sarr functioned more as a second forward than a midfielder. The Senegal star was seen right up alongside Richarlison more often than not, and even made runs past the Tottenham number nine to stretch the defence. Whoever occupies this role for Tottenham in the first team is going to need to be full of running and clinical in front of goal.
Wilson Odobert was Tottenham’s Man of the Match
One would have expected Wilson Odobert to look a little sloppy today. After all, this is his first pre-season match following his involvement in the U21 European Championships. However, the Frenchman was arguably Tottenham’s most dangerous player. He developed a fantastic understanding with Pedro Porro on the right side, dovetailing as both a wide winger and an inverted number ten to great effect.
Out wide, he latched onto multiple pinpoint passes behind the lines from Porro, before delivering some dangerous crosses. When cutting inside, he looked a creative outlet and a very real goal threat, as evidenced by his sharp turn and shot that led to Tottenham’s opening goal. Thomas Frank is known for developing inverted right-wingers into goalscoring machines, so Odobert could be a player to keep an eye on.
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