Chapter 87: Tottenham Hotspur

Because of the wedding, and the honeymoon trip with Park Ji-yeon, Deegan missed the preparation period before the start of the Tottenham season, and by the time Deegan returned to the team, Tottenham had already completed training in the United States and played at home, and there was only less than a week left before the start of the new season.

Although he returned in a hurry, Degan knows a lot about Tottenham, which was founded in 1882 and won the FA Cup for the first time in the club's history, in 1901, and is the only non-league team in English football history to win the title.

Tottenham joined the Football League in 1908 and after nearly half a century of hard work, they finally won their first league title in 1951.

As one of England's top five clubs, Tottenham have also had a stellar record in the club's 130-year history, winning the league title twice, the FA Cup eight times, the UEFA Cup twice and the European Cup Winners' Cup once.

This season, the team's owner Levy can be said to be ambitious, not only ahead of other teams, the introduction of Degan, a super strong reinforcement, but also the subsequent introduction of the US national team captain Dempsey, France's new international Lloris, Degan's teammate Dembele in the Belgian national team, the purchase of Togolese striker Adebayor, who played in the team last season, and Iceland's big sniper Sigurdsson, and also retained Croatian talent Modric.

At the same time, he also completed the team's slimming work, and the old captain Ridley. Kim announced his retirement at the end of last season and joined the team's coaching staff, defender Bassoon moved to Norwich City for £3 million, Croatian defender Kolluka moved to Lokomotiv Moscow for £5 million, midfielder Pienal was acquired by Everton for £4.5 million, Croatian midfielder Kranica moved to Dynamo Kyiv for £3 million, French striker Saha left for Sunderland when his contract expired, Dutch midfielder Van der Vaart moved to his old club Hamburg, Mexico's Rodos Jr., for £1,000. Santos transferred to Mallorca in La Liga for 8 million.

Through these big spends, Deegan can see that Tottenham Hotspur's owner Levy has never hesitated to invest in the club, often investing fifty or sixty million pounds, which seems to be very sparse and ordinary, and in recent seasons, with the stability of the team, Tottenham's investment in the transfer market has also become more rational.

In terms of the current team's squad, the goalkeeper position has reached four after the introduction of Lloris, and the current team's No. 1 goalkeeper is still the Brazilian Gomez, who transferred from Eredivisie champions PSV Eindhoven in the summer of 2008, and his initial performance at Tottenham Hotspur was sluggish, but then gradually gained a foothold and is still the team's main goalkeeper.

If the Brazilian international standard is required, Gomez's low-level mistakes are obviously too much, at least Degan has never seen the opponent's corner kick tactics, can have such a great impact on the goalkeeper's attack, in the game, in the face of the opponent's single ball, hesitation is an excellent reflection of Gomez's psychological quality, but he is still good in terms of second reaction and control area.

It was probably because Gomez made too many mistakes that Tottenham spent a lot of money to bring in French international Lloris this summer, and the deal was completed after the European Championship after repeated tug-of-war.

There is no doubt about Lloris's ability, having been named the best goalkeeper in Ligue 1 by the French press in 2009 and 2010, and this summer he was the main goalkeeper and captain of the national team at the Euros in Ukraine-Poland.

Initially, Arsenal took a fancy to Lloris first, and some media even couldn't wait to announce that he would replace young Polish goalkeeper Szczesny in the main team at the Emirates Stadium in the new season. In the end, however, the Gunners' north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur came first, with new manager Antienes successfully convincing Lloris to join him in the main position, for which Tottenham paid Lyon a transfer fee of nearly 20 million euros.

Some people may think that this deal is a bit expensive, but considering Tottenham's shortcomings in the goalkeeper position, this deal is also worth the money, Gomez continues to make mistakes, and the main goalkeeper Friedel in the second half of last season is in great shape, but after all, he is 41 years old, and the arrival of Lloris is expected to completely solve Tottenham's goalkeeper problem.

As Lloris's replacement, Friedel may be the most despised goalkeeper in the world, since his debut, his amazing reaction speed and save range have made him a super-first-class goalkeeper, but his three-year career at Liverpool was not satisfactory, and he played well after switching to Blackburn, creating a golden age in the late stage of his career, and now at Tottenham, it can be regarded as a residual heat.

In addition to the above three, Tottenham also have Italian goalkeeper Carlo in the goalkeeper position. Cudicini, before Cech came to Stamford Bridge, Cudicini was the best goalkeeper in the Premier League, after moving to Tottenham, he played very little, and now his ability is mediocre in all aspects, what should be lost will still be lost, and there are fewer and fewer surprises, but Cudicini is still a very dedicated and respected goalkeeper.

In the position of defenders, Tottenham's equipment can also be called talented, the composition of the three generations of the old, middle and young is very reasonable, the most eye-catching of which is undoubtedly the young player who has just represented Britain in the Olympic Games, Cork is Tottenham's academy product, has been on loan for several seasons in the past, and this time he doesn't need to be on loan again, the new coach, the new lineup, his ability makes Antienes, who only needs four central defenders, even want to give up the injury-ridden team vice-captain Dawson.

Unlike other rookies, the young Coulk has accumulated more than 100 professional games in the past three years, and although he is young, he has no shortage of experience, and he just wants an opportunity.

Kaulk represents the future, and the current team's main central defender is Caboul from France, the best central defender produced by the famous French academy Auxerre Academy after Mex, the former captain of the French U21 national youth team, and it was Martin Anderson, who was the manager of Tottenham Hotspur at that time. Joel hit the ground running and bought it in, a meaty defender who was loaned to Portsmouth and reused by Ray, and returned to Tottenham Hotspur last season.

Can play multiple positions in the midfield at the center of the wing, the physical confrontation is very good, there is an air advantage, the speed of turning and chasing back is not slow, but the defensive grab is sometimes very frizzy, and it will unnecessarily give the opponent a set-piece in a dangerous position, this weakness is similar to Degan's teammate Kompany in the national team, he has a certain foot technique and ball control ability, likes to break through the midfield with the ball from the backfield, when playing fullback, Caboul has a certain ability to cross, but the speed and ground coordination ability are shortcomings, Kabool was an important point of attack from Tottenham's set-pieces, but his control of his header was terrible.

Kaboul's central defender partner is Degan's teammate Vertonghen in the national team, although in the Belgian national team he can only be used as a substitute for Kompany and Vermaelen, but in Tottenham, he is a well-deserved defensive gate, after joining last season, the performance has been very stable, this summer, Real Madrid, AC Milan and other giants have rushed to recruit him, but after learning that Degan is about to join Tottenham, he immediately announced the decision to stay.

Michael. Dawson, the team's vice-captain and a tall centre-back from Nottingham Forest's academy, moved to Tottenham Hotspur for €700 in the winter of 2005 and quickly became the team's main centre-back.

Dawson's best game at Tottenham Hotspur was in the 11th round of the 06/07 Premier League season, Tottenham Hotspur sat in White Hart Lane to face the Blues Chelsea in the heyday of Mourinho's leadership. Kim wears the captain's armband when he's out.

Dawson's header dominance, especially from set-pieces, is evident and he has good technique at his feet, but he is slow to turn and chase back.

There is no problem with Dawson's ability, but injuries are an important reason why he has not been able to go further, Dawson's attendance in 2006 and 2007 was high, but from 2008 Dawson's playing time began to decline significantly, last season, Dawson only played three times for Tottenham, and then hung up the exemption card, and it is unknown when he will return.

William. Gallas, a versatile defender who can play in all positions at the back, from centre-back to right-back to left-back, has been outstanding at left-back during Chelsea's 04/05 Premier League title-winning campaign.

Gallas was once one of the top defenders in the Premier League and even in Europe, his greatest strength was mobility, his speed was not slow, and he was very good as a pillar centre-back to "check and fill the gaps" of the scavenger, and at Chelsea, he and John Terry have formed a similar combination, with a record of 16 consecutive clean sheets.

As a centre-back, Gallas's weakness is his ability to play high, he is not tall and large, and when he encounters high-altitude bombardment in the Premier League, without the assistance of a tall centre-back, he may expose vulnerabilities, but Gallas is very inspired when attacking from set-pieces, often scoring points in the box.

It's just that as he gets older, Gallas's level has dropped very significantly, the sprint speed and foot frequency are much slower than before, and the injuries are even more old, and the tendons in the knees, calves and hind thighs are extremely easy to strain.

His experience in the Champions League and numerous major tournaments is key to establishing himself at Tottenham, but a series of controversial issues surrounding him are also unavoidable.

Due to Tottenham's heinous injury group of central defenders, Gallas's starting role last season was also a last resort, and his performance in the Champions League last season was very poor, and Gallas did not show his previous peak level in the league, and it is possible that Gallas will never return at that time.

With the arrival of Degan, Gallas's position at Tottenham will become even more awkward, and people will remember the scene of Deegan and Gallas spraying on the pitch in the Champions League five years ago.

At right-back, Tottenham have double insurance, and the current main player in the team is Alan who was previously unliked by Redknapp and Villas-Boas. Hutton, also because he couldn't get the opportunity to play, was loaned to Sunderland for half a season last year, and in the new season, due to the transfer of the main right wing-back Joel Luka, he was naturally promoted to the main team.

During his time at Rangers, Hutton was the player with the most fouls and the most cards in the team, which is evident in his courageous style of play.

His best game for Tottenham was last season, when Spurs were 1-0 down at half-time to Wolves, Hutton came on in the second half, scoring a goal and providing an assist in the half, directing Tottenham's comeback, only to be mediocre and eventually sent out on loan during the winter break.

Overall, Hutton is better offensively than defensively, his stops are a bit terrible, his movements are not very bold, his crosses are of a certain quality, his left-footed shots after cutting inside on the right are of a certain level, and one-on-one defense is not reassuring, especially when facing opponents who are good at changing speed and direction.

Tottenham's other centre-back is Kyle. Walker, before joining Tottenham, had been a regular at Sheffield United's right-back, but at Tottenham, he didn't get many opportunities.

Walker's characteristics are that he is fast and has excellent one-on-one defensive ability, but he is not strong in wing assists, and he rarely inserts in the game, so to speak, he and Hutton are two extremes.

Tottenham have only one Cameroon international in the left-back position. Héctor came through the youth academy of French club Lens, and in the summer of 2006, Tottenham spent 5 million euros to buy the left-back, and after playing as a substitute for South Korean Lee Young-pyo for two seasons, he became a regular in the team.

After being criticised for too many low-level mistakes in his early days at Tottenham, the Cameroon international was a bit more consistent in his performances, scoring a world-class goal against the Reds Liverpool in the opening game of the Premier League last season.

Héctor's straight-line speed is his greatest strength, but he has the same problems as the average speed-oriented full-back, perhaps overconfident in his own speed, and he has obvious problems in the overall position of the other defenders, often making mistakes in offside positions, sometimes making up for it with the speed of the recall, and sometimes directly conceding the goal, or even worse.

Hector has good dribbling skills and crossing, and there are not many holes in one-on-one defense, but sometimes he loves to stick to the ball at the back and is not decisive enough to handle the ball, so he has made many low-level mistakes, and in addition, Hector is often at a disadvantage in the competition for headers.

Obviously, a left-back is not enough, and after Dugan came to the team, he discussed this problem with Antienes, and after discussing it, the two also found a solution, that is, to bring in reinforcements, the target is the current main left wing-back of the Belgian national team, Pokolinho, who plays for AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie.

There is a lot of talent in the backline, and in the midfield position, Tottenham's staffing is even more luxurious, and the biggest name is undoubtedly Degan's teammate Modric in the Fiorentina period, originally this summer, Modric has decided to join Real Madrid, but Degan's switch to Tottenham Hotspur made him immediately dismiss the idea of leaving.

Luka Modric can play many positions on the field, in addition to being a full-time playmaker midfielder, he can also play as an organizational forward, a wing-back, and even a forward position.

In addition to Modric, Digan is most important to the team's Brazilian defender Sandro, who was brought in by Tottenham at a high price in the winter of 2010, and his debut at Tottenham was the League Cup with Arsenal, although Tottenham Hotspur, who played with a large number of substitutes, finally lost 1:4 after extra time, but Sandro's debut performance after 96 minutes was remarkable.

Sandro's physical confrontation is an important capital for him to stand out in the new generation of Brazilian midfielders, and at present, Sandro is in Antienes's tactical system, mainly responsible for interception and simple combing in the midfield, which is similar to Jenas's task, and Sandro's interception action and sense of position are not too outstanding, and the coverage area is not very large, and even in the process of partnering with Modric, from the interception data, it is even inferior to the Croatians, This may be due to the fact that Villas-Boas did not give Sandro more freedom of movement last season, and the Brazilian has not yet adapted to the pace of the Premier League, and is far from showing his true quality, and it is obviously too early to draw conclusions about the need to give the promising young Brazilian more time and opportunities.

Another acquaintance in the Tottenham Hotspur team is Dembele, he joined with Deegan this summer, when he played for Everton last season, although he did not score many goals, but Dembele has become the core of Everton's organization, from the beginning of the attacker, to the current organizational midfield, Dembele has also completed a big change.

Icelandic Sigurdsson, nicknamed Icelandic Sniper, landed in England for Reading, who signed a professional contract with Reading in the 07/08 season after three years in the youth team.

In the 2008/2009 season, Sigurdsson began his real career at Reading, but did not get many opportunities, and in the following season, in order to gain experience, Sigurdsson was loaned to Shrewsbury Town in League One and then to another League One team, Crewe, during which time he made a number of appearances and scored three goals, but even such a satisfactory performance could not prevent Crewe from being relegated to League Two.

In 2010, Sigurdsson, who had gradually established himself in Reading, unexpectedly joined Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga, and in his first season, he was voted the best season for Hoffenheim by fans.

However, the following season, due to tactical problems, Sigurdsson returned to the Premier League and joined Swansea City on loan.

His impressive performances at Swansea attracted the attention of Tottenham Hotspur and eventually settled in White Hart Lane this summer.

Jenas, a midfielder from Nottingham Forest's academy, moved to Newcastle United for €7.5 million in the winter of 2002 and was bought by Tottenham Hotspur for €15 million in the summer of 2005 due to his excellent performances and homegrown football.

So far at Tottenham, Jenas's performance can be described as high and low, with excellent performances in the early days, and he was also selected for the England national team, and is considered one of the key figures in solving the "coexistence problem of two Germans", but in recent seasons, with the rise of Huddlestone and Modric's core performance, Jenas's position in the team has also begun to become more delicate.

However, last season, Jenas performed well overall for Tottenham in the league and the Champions League, but it was obviously a big step back from the peak of his debut.

Jenas' most fatal weakness is that as an all-round midfielder, his ability in all aspects is too mediocre, and he sometimes makes the mistake of inattention, but when he plays normally, Jenas midfield's tandem and channeling the direction of attack are still very level.

Scott. Parker, who first made a name for himself at Charlton Athletic and then switched to Chelsea, proved to be a big mistake in Parker's choice, the old-fashioned Ranieri did not trust Parker, and the arrival of Mourinho did not change the fate of Parker's iron bench.

In the 04/05 season, Parker was crushed to the bench by Claude Makelele and made just four league appearances throughout the year, and the Premier League's best newcomer was gone.

Parker, who dreamed of playing in the 2006 World Cup, eventually decided to leave Chelsea and despite Mourinho's desire to stay as a substitute, Parker joined Newcastle United for £6.5 million.

After the fall of midfielders such as Robert, Bowyer and Dyer, Parker built a midfield barrier for Newcastle, and on the expansive stage of St James' Park, Parker gave a wonderful performance to the obsessed Magpies fans.

After the glory of Newcastle, Parker moved to West Ham United, and his performance was still very good, but there was no way to save West Ham from relegation, and in the summer transfer period last season, Parker left the relegated West Ham United to join Tottenham Hotspur for a transfer fee of 6 million pounds.

Parker is known as a central midfielder for his tough interceptions and penchant for pressing forward assists, not only fighting fiercely in defence, but also extremely talented in attack, known as the wonder boy of England's midfield, strong interception and possession of the ball and quick counter-attacking ability, and his game-reading passes create countless opportunities for his teammates.

Despite his age, Parker's experience remains an indispensable asset to Tottenham.

Huddlestone, the popular fried chicken in the Tottenham midfield from the Derby County Academy, was also loaned to Wolfhampton Wanderers in the Championship for training, at the age of 20, he was already in the Tottenham team, with stable playing time, the Europa League and other multi-front battles, but also made Huddlestone accumulate a lot of practical experience, and finally became the main back of Tottenham, excellent physique also made Huddlestone ensure a lot of playing time in a row.

Huddlestone's main position is a defensive midfielder, and he was also pulled back to the centre-back position when Tottenham was habitually short of central defenders, Huddlestone's physical confrontation ability is good, but his flexibility and starting speed are relatively poor, in terms of type, Huddlestone is a midfield dispatcher who likes to control the rhythm through passing, and his long and short passing ability is relatively good, in addition to he has a powerful mid-range shot.

Alang. Lennon, a wide horse from Leeds United's academy, played for the "White Rose" in the Premier League at the age of 16, and in the summer of 2005, with Leeds United relegated, Tottenham spent 1.2 million euros to bring him in, and soon Lennon formed an important force on the side of Tottenham with his trademark wide breakthrough.

Lennon's height disadvantage, when dribbling through, has become his biggest advantage, forcing outside crosses is his main attacking option, and the opponent is difficult to stop, which is also Tottenham's main attacking routine.

Gareth. Bale, the Saints Southampton's academy boutique, debuted at left-back, and was considered a broom star by the outside world in the early days of Redknapp's rule.

Bale has a very high success rate in one-on-one breaks, has a very good rhythm when sprinting, has a fairly high quality of crosses, and has a certain skill but not a lot of consistency in his left-footed curling free-kick.

Attacking with open sprints from behind opponents is Bale's main threat in attack, and his left-footed shots from the rib space between the opponent's right-back and right centre-back are of high quality.

Degan is well aware of Bale's future trajectory, and if everything goes according to the original development, next season, he will break the transfer record of the Golden Mauro and join Real Madrid, forming the most terrifying attacking combination with the Golden Mauro.

In the forward position, Tottenham Hotspur can also be called star-studded after the introduction of Degan, in addition to Degan, the most famous is a number of strikers Adebayo.

Bam Adebayor landed in the Premier League in 2006 when he joined the Gunners Arsenal for £5 million, then moved to Manchester City, during which time he also played for Real Madrid on loan, and after being loaned to Tottenham Hotspur last season, he was officially bought out by Levy this summer.

Adebayo's strong centre-forward figure is like a heavy armoured car, and he has been completely transformed through Arsenal's tempering, he may not be as fast as Henry, but he has good foot work, his heading ability is not weak, and he has a good sense of cooperation with teammates in the front court.

It's just that after Digan joined, Adebayo could only accept the fate of the substitute, but Digan can play many positions on the court, and Adebayo's playing opportunities will not be limited.

Clint. Dempsey, a U.S. international, was voted the U.S. Soccer of the Year three times during his time in Major League Soccer, won the CONCACAF Gold Cup twice with the U.S. national team in 2005 and 2007, and also participated in two World Cups in 2006 and 2010, and scored in both consecutive World Cups.

Dempsey is a versatile midfielder, who can play as an attacking striker, wing-back or striker, and his style of play is that he runs aggressively, scrambles hard, and although he is an attacker, he helps the whole team defensively, sometimes not hesitating to foul, and has a rather aggressive style.

In attack, Dempsey has a lot of aura, his movement is a must, he often appears in dangerous places, complete the lethal blow, and he has a certain ability to grab points in the penalty area, and he has a lot of kung fu with headers and left-footed shots.

Jermaine. Defoe, a famous striker in England, in terms of personal style, Defoe's impact, especially the sprint speed, is very lacking in the Tottenham striker.

Defoe's back-to-back skills are excellent, he is able to control the ball up front and create space for his team-mates, as well as his ability to grab points and take chances, as well as his defensive ability, especially in front of the court, and then anti-offside and one-on-one handling, is indispensable for Tottenham both offside and defence.

Kalidou Koulibaly, if Degan, Bam Adebayo, Defoe, Dempsey and others represent Tottenham's present, then Koulibaly represents the future of Tottenham, as an Ivory Coast Under-17 international, Koulibaly made a name for himself at the 2011 Under-17 World Championships, where he scored nine goals in four games, including a three-goal hat-trick against Brazil and four goals in a single game against Denmark.

This stocky teenager has excellent physical strength, as well as speed and delicate handling of the ball, he has been regarded by many media as the new Drogba, Drogba's power, speed and scoring ability, and these are also Koulibaly have, and judging from his game, he is more than that, Koulibaly has super dexterity, if it is not for his extraordinary scoring ability, he can even be pulled to play a pure winger position.

In 2011, Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League confirmed the signing of the 16-year-old from Siena under Kalidou Koulibaly's excellent performances, after receiving offers from Manchester United and Real Madrid, Mourinho also praised him, but he eventually chose to join Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

From the perspective of the lineup, Tottenham only needs to add a left wing-back at present, which can basically be said to be perfect, although the players in some positions may not be very strong, but with Degan, it is definitely possible to achieve a leap from quantitative change to qualitative change.

The new season of the Premier League is about to start, and in the face of a new environment, Deegan is also ready to meet new challenges, Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, and defending champions Manchester City, now have Degan's Tottenham, and also have the strength to compete with them.