Beef Bagel

The fun ended, last night, the minute the League Cup was taken back inside. We can have no real complaints on the result, we were bested. PSV were more professional, more comfortable, more in control, even their fans were better despite that “We only sing when we’re winning” chant with which they seem to slightly miss the point. Loved their rendition of the A-Team theme tune though. No idea what that’s all about. Were we supposed to reply with Battlestar Galactica or Cagney & Lacey?

We were hardly at our best - players and fans, but how much of that was due to an experienced team with an effective plan. Don’t get me wrong, there was nothing sophisticated about them or what they did. They turned up, packed the midfield and played flawless football. They took their chance when it came, they broke whenever they could and they defended very well in down the centre of the pitch. They seemed to have an impenetrable arc about their penalty box. You could see Adel Taarabt, or Jimmy Tarbuck as he’s known to the fans, trace about its edge as he dribbled and pushed and searched for a weakness in this invisible wall. The fact our moves were so exquisite the two or three times we did make it through just goes to show what a good job they were doing. Even when we did crack them there was that strange keeper with his kicking phobia. He seemed to know what he was doing but chose to thrown the ball over the half way line each time. They weren’t very good throws either but who cares when you can shot-stop that well.

PSV made us look ordinary. We never really got a chance to show what we could do. We never got to play football and that was perhaps the most annoying part of the evening, but that’s what they do - away from home at least, unless they just stiflers in Eredivisie as well, which I doubt. The goalscorer, Jeffers Farfan was as good as the press are making out. No one is saying he’s any kind of marvel but he was everywhere; setting them up, chasing us down and deadley when he had his chance. PSV didn’t offer much but neither did we and what they did do, they did very well.

It wasn’t the best of night’s for the first Brazilian to play for Tottenham who looked rubbish long before he gave away the ball right in front of goal. There’s no need to be judging the guy just yet but it wasn’t the best of starts. He shot high with his wrong foot. That’s probably the best thing you can say about Gilberto’s night. His passes were mostly backwards, his crossing weak and his feet and legs both slow. “There were we expecting a flair player and we end with the Brazilian version of Safety First,” so said my mate Charlie, a Yiddo through and through. Luckily for the full-back the case has barely started, let alone the jury being out.

A bad day was made worse when JJ hit the deck to be stretchered off with a “twisted uncle” as Gus “There’s only one” Poyet put it. It looked pretty bad from where I was sitting. I was convinced it was ligaments or tendons at the least and I’ll be surprised if he’s back for a couple of months myself. Worse still, there was an announcement on the official website earlier today that Spurs youngster Terry Dixon has left the club for good. The Irish creative midfielder was supposed to be a very special player. He was picked to play for the Republic at the age of 16 but had to withdraw through injury. That was a year ago after he recovered from a first injury. He’s had two others since on the same knee. It looks like he’s called it quits, or we have with him.

Almost as horrific in a very different way were the reports coming in of Bayern Munich’s utter mauling of Anderlecht at their first leg in Belgium. Where we scraped a draw, they gave the Jupiler League side a 5-0 pummelling. Is there really any point on playing the second? Munich could play their fans, let along their kids, and still make it through. It doesn’t leave you feeling too clever when you think you’ve met a team that could see the end of you but even if you don’t there’s a bigger one still just waiting to shatter your dreams. It’s a long road and if last night was a barometer of how we are, then the forecast isn’t good.

But if the weather in this country is one thing, it’s changeable. One goal isn’t much of a deficit and all we have to do to take it to extra time at the least is win. We’d have been looking to do that anyway. PSV will be pleased with their performance but they’ll not be sleeping that comfortably. They know about us, what we do. We can score goals against anyone, anywhere and I’ve every confidence of us doing just that in the Philips back yard.

In the mean time, we’ve the Hammers on Sunday and some much needed confidence to take into the second leg next week. Neither us nor the Irons are in that good a shape and it’ll be scrappy and passionate if nothing else. I’ll let you know.

But until then, cheer up you lot. Look, a cat.

Put a little bagel on my upper lip. Ok, remove bagel.

The Bagel.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 7th, 2008 at 7:06 am and is filed under Match Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.