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Ange Postecoglou says he would not want his Tottenham players to dabble in the darker arts of stage play as Ben White did for Arsenal in The North London derby on Sunday. White was tasked with distracting Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario by taking up a starting position behind him at corners and, just before the shot was taken, moved around, cut back and blocked him from getting to the ball.
The Arsenal defender did the trick with both of his team’s first-half corners – no Spurs player came close to him – and each resulted in a goal: the first by Pierre-Emile Høiberg’s own goal to make it 1-0, the second by Kai Havertz with header for a 3-0 halftime lead. Before the first turn, White had grabbed the cuff of one of Vicario’s gloves. None of his actions prompted a signal from referee Michael Oliver.
Spurs’ problems in defending standard positions are becoming increasingly clear. They have conceded 14 of them in the Premier League this season (not including penalties) – the fifth-worst overall record in the division – and have conceded six goals from corners in their last nine games.
It was notable that Postecoglou, who leads his side to Chelsea for another London derby on Thursday night, gave fly-half substitute Pape Sarr to deal with White at each of Arsenal’s four second-half corners. Sarr followed White step by step, leveled him physically and did not allow him to get to Vicario.
Arsenal won no more, although Postecoglou’s intervention seemed too little, too late. Arsenal won 3-2. The Spurs manager has his principles and he pointed out that they do not include White-style blocking in set pieces.
A quick guide Spurs’ two-time winner Terry Medwin dies at 91
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Former Tottenham and Wales winger Terry Medwin has died aged 91. Medwin won 30 caps and was part of the Spurs side that won the double in 1960-61 and won the FA Cup in 1962.
“The club is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former player, Terry Medwin,” Tottenham told X. “Terry was part of our double-winning side in 1961 and made 215 appearances in all competitions, scoring 72 goals. thoughts are with Terry’s family and friends at this incredibly sad time.”
Swansea-born Medwin began his career at his hometown club and made his debut for Wales in 1953. He scored 57 goals in 147 games for Swansea before joining Spurs for £25,000 in May 1956.
He played at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden when Wales reached the quarter-finals before losing to eventual winners Brazil. Medwin’s winner in a 2-1 win over Hungary was Wales’ last World Cup goal until 2022.
He managed Cheshunt and coached at Cardiff, Fulham and Norwich before returning to Swansea as John Toshack’s assistant, where he helped them rise up the league in the late 1970s and 1980s. PA Media
“It’s a strategy,” Postecoglou said when asked if the moves were a scam or black arts. “You can label it, but it’s a strategy. I don’t judge. If people think it’s going to give them an advantage or whatever… I don’t worry about those things. I just try to focus on building teams that win things.
“If it’s not going to be this, then it’s going to be something else. I know it’s a great theater. Did he [White] trying to unbutton his glove or tickle his armpit or whatever… I don’t care. I try to get my players to not focus on those things.
“If you want to go down that boulevard… what is it [Vicario] must do? Throw a punch and knock him out? Or say, “Please don’t touch me?” What does that do? Seriously, we’re not in the schoolyard. Honestly, if I saw one of my players doing it, I’d be like, ‘Dude, seriously? Pick up the ball and play football.”
There was an irony in Vicario’s actions in the last minute of added time when Spurs won a corner. He went forward and stood next to Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, bumping into him. Pedro Porro’s pass was poor and Arsenal cleared.
Postecoglou admitted he was confused about what constitutes a goalkeeper foul and revealed Spurs have contacted the refereeing body in England to seek clarity.
“I watched the Champions League match between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid [on Tuesday] and there were a few times when they went into the goalkeeper and it was immediately a foul,” Postecoglou said. “This is strange to me.
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“You are allowed to reach out [to the referees’ body]. We just wanted some clarity on what the actual position is on goalie interference. I’m an ancient and I’ve always thought of a guardian as a bit of a protected species. Maybe that has changed now and I missed the memo. Did I get clarity? Not really.”
Postecoglou, who reported Ben Davies and Timo Werner picked up muscle injuries against Arsenal to end their seasons, is adamant his side are on the right track. They have 60 points with a difficult run of five games – after Chelsea, they go to Liverpool on Sunday and have to play Manchester City at home. The club finished last season with 60 points.
“Absolutely yes, absolutely,” Postecoglou said. “Clear, clear. As clear as you want it to be: 20-20. Definitely; 100% What gives me optimism? what i see Let’s play our football, compete with the best. The players really believe in what we do. That’s all I need to see.
Postecoglou has sorted out defensive set-ups at his previous clubs, most notably Celtic, and has no qualms about Spurs in that area, reaching for a famous song lyric to make his case.
“To quote Billy Joel: ‘You might be right, I might be crazy, but you might be looking for a lunatic,'” Postecoglou said. “Enough of you have done enough research on me to know this isn’t the first time I’ve been questioned about set pieces in my coaching career. In the end, I will create a team that will be successful and it will not be because of the decoration work.”
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