I’m worried… Spurs remind me of Wenger’s Arsenal!

I’m worried… Spurs remind me of Wenger’s Arsenal!

TOTTENHAM’s transformation under Ange Postecoglou looks familiar. It takes me back to 1996, when Arsène Wenger arrived at Arsenal.

Almost overnight he instilled confidence in us.Under George Graham I was told my job was to win the ball and give it to someone who knew how to play. But Wenger told me and others that he trusted us and that we should all play with the freedom to express ourselves.Suddenly I felt like a footballer, completely fulfilled, and the rest, as they say, is history. As worrying as this may be for me as an Arsenal fan, I see Postecoglou conveying the same belief to the Tottenham players. Even after selling Harry Kane, they seem to be a better and completely united team.They have a manager who believes in them in a way that Antonio Conte didn’t and Postecoglou’s style of play is impressive. Starting with the summer signing of Guglielmo Vicario in goal, solid, confident and good with his feet. Over 66% of his passes were short – one of the highest in the Premier League – while Postecoglou requires his attacks from the back. Central defenders Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven form a strong duo.They are never afraid to receive the ball from Vicario and are aggressive, mobile and fast; essential qualities when playing attacking football, due to the large gaps in the defense that are inevitably left behind.

Complete defenders Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie are flexible. They arrive on the wings, but also regularly partner Yves Bissouma – the defender who crashes into midfield challenges – allowing Pape Matar Sarr to come onto the pitch alongside James Maddison. Sarr and Maddison fly forward to join the front three led by Son Heung-min, the new club captain who is back to his best.This creates a 2-3-5 when Tottenham are in full attacking mode. Maddison is the star, their creative conductor. As the graph (pictured) shows, he ranks first for Tottenham in all attacking categories, excluding goals. Maddison has the freedom to move. He sometimes drops deep enough to receive the ball from the goalkeeper, although he escaped embarrassment last weekend when he lost the ball in the face of intense Arsenal pressing. But Maddison was not impressed. He immediately claimed the ball again and continued to dominate the match.It’s still early but, like Wenger in 1996, Postecoglou is making his presence known. Now Spurs hope he can turn them into trophy winners.