Tottenham managed to snatch a point after scoring first and then going 1-2 down, but it was yet another worrying performance.
Spurs failed to follow up on their Champions League win midweek against Borussia Dortmund. The result made fans believe that it could be a turning point in their season, only to watch their side struggle against 19th-placed Burnley.
Overall it was a fair result. Martin Dubravka put in a man of the match performance, which goes to show that Tottenham actually generated good chances. But they didn’t prevent the Clarets from doing the same.
What were the main tactical trends in Burnley 2-2 Tottenham?
Thomas Frank’s Spurs in a nutshell
If someone asks how Tottenham play under Thomas Frank, this game is the perfect example. A lack of attacking ideas, with centre-backs, crosses and set pieces carrying most of the load going forward.
At the same time, defensive disorganisation and a backline that allows itself to be manipulated and stretched out way too easily.
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Spurs did show a different approach than the one we grew used to seeing since the start of the season. There was more emphasis on occupying the attacking half and having territorial dominance near the opposition goal.
But they are still hugely dependant on long balls and parallel through passes. Whenever they spend too much time passing the ball around, it feels like they start playing ‘hot potato’. The tendency is always to go wide and finish the play off as soon as possible, a strong habit from which it’s hard to let go.
Xavi Simons didn’t have his best game, but still managed to put himself in dangerous positions in central areas. But the ball never got there because all the players were looking to play down the wings.
And despite clearly dominating the first half, Tottenham still had a defensive breakdown that led to Burnley’s opening goal. Cristian Romero dropped deep a couple of steps to defend Kyle Walker’s incoming cross but nobody behind him followed suit. Axel Tuanzebe stepped forward and found himself completely free in the six-yard box to score.
How Burnley manipulated Tottenham’s backline
Speaking of how the Clarets scored, their second goal was a masterpiece of movement and manipulation. And credit to Scott Parker who recognised the amount of space there was to work with and introduced Lyle Foster into the fray. Though he could have done that after the first of three fast breaks that Armando Broja would waste.
Foster took Romero out of the play with a clever ‘dummy’ and forced Micky van de Ven to go one-on-one with Jaidon Anthony and Kevin Danso to tuck inside and cover. This created a 3v1 in favour of the hosts inside the guest’s box, with the Austrian centre-back left alone.
The South-African striker even had two chances to put it away and there were two other teammates completely unmarked with him. It’s worth mentioning, though, that Romero’s lack of urgence to get back in the play and Djed Spence’s lack of awareness to close the gap and ‘redo’ the defensive line were huge components in the goal actually happening.
But that wasn’t Burnley’s only chance in the game. In fact, they had four clear-cut goalscoring opportunities – more than Spurs’ three.
| Stats | Burnley | Tottenham |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 37% | 63% |
| Shots (on target) | 9 (4) | 18 (11) |
| Big chances | 4 | 3 |
As we mentioned before, Broja had three great fast breaks. Tottenham can’t seem to charge forward without maintaining the least of a defensive structure and plan to protect themselves from counter-attacks.
Right side leads the way
Thomas Frank’s men usually show very few attacking ideas and often depend on individual brilliance to create. Wilson Odobert and Djed Spence certainly provided that.
They were probably their two best players in the game and caused a lot of chaos down the right-hand side in the second half.
It was Odobert’s solo run and cross that served Romero for the late equaliser. Meanwhile, Spence pitched in with four successful take-ons, three crosses completed and two chances created. He was the main force driving them forward whenever they didn’t go long.
Simons also had lapses of creativity, despite not having his best performance. He placed a beautiful cross that Dominc Solanke failed to convert with a header worth over 0.60 xG. Martin Dubravka prevented many dangerous shots from going in and is certainly the main reason why Burnley were ever alive in the game.
And despite that, it feels like Tottenham didn’t really deserve to win. The amount – and the kind – of chances they conceded to Burnley was not what you should see from a team that is dominating possession.
But based on what they generated in the attacking half, a loss would have been undeserved as well. A 2-2 score seems a fair one.
Looks like it’s going to be more of the same for Spurs fans going forward. At least what seemed like an unsustainable formula is still working wonders for them, with Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero as their most threatening strikers.