‘Ripped to shreds’ – Paul Merson now sends warning to Spurs ahead of City encounter
In a recent column for Sportskeeda, Paul Merson urged Antonio Conte not to repeat a mistake he made at Tottenham Hotspur earlier this season.
Spurs are preparing for what will likely be one of their most difficult games of the season on Saturday evening when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to play unbeaten Manchester City.
Merson has encouraged Conte not to make the same error he did when Spurs played Chelsea away and, in his words, “was ripped to bits,” which was primarily due to Spurs giving up possession and sitting off Chelsea, as evidenced by the majority of Tottenham players staying in their own half on average.
Merson believes Conte cannot employ the same formation against Manchester City, especially with Erling Halland close by.
“Antonio Conte and co got ripped to shreds at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea, but they somehow fought back to secure a 2-2 draw. If he gets it wrong at the Etihad Stadium, though, they won’t be able to recover.”
As pointed out by WhoScored, Spurs gave up a great deal of possession when they traveled to Stamford Bridge, but still managed to get a point in an exciting 2-2 draw; but, given the caliber of attacking options available to Man City, it is unlikely that they will be as charitable.
In that game against Chelsea, the Blues dominated the ball with 65% of possession, but Tottenham still earned a draw; however, Man City presently averages 72.6% possession each game, which demonstrates how much pressure they put on opponents.
Spurs have the attacking options to hurt Man City, including Harry Kane, Dejan Kulusevski, Son Heung-min, and Richarlison, so Conte may be better off setting Spurs up to attack Man City and try to upset their system, similar to how Newcastle United did in their 3-3 draw, because Spurs have Harry Kane, Dejan Kulusevski, Son Heung-min, and Richarlison.
‘Ripped to shreds’ – Paul Merson now sends warning to Spurs ahead of City encounter
