Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/229731
23 Sport maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 18 DECEMBER 2013 OPINION Another vacancy beckons half and on the hour they clicked into shape. Grabbing a 1-0 lead we expected Spurs to bounce back, but frankly they bottled it. They were the one that rolled over and it ended 0-3 to the Irons. Strike One to Andre. Strike Two shocked us all. It was a sleepy Sunday on the 24 November and the Spurs were supposed to march to Manchester and stamp their authority on the league. They were supposed to battle and fight to perhaps steal a vital away win. Manchester City however are no pushovers and we all know what happened next. City's predatory attack were no match for Spurs and even the decent Hugo Lloris couldn't stop them from scoring six. A whopping 6-0 defeat left Spurs deflated and some serious questions needed answering. No one expected a top Premier League side to conceded as many as six, especially not the mighty Spurs. They needed to bounce back and to their credit scraped a decent two all draw against Manchester United, themselves reeling from a bad patch and in need of a quick fix. They beat the weak Fulham and Sunderland next and we all thought Spurs were up once more, all but with a small limp. Time for a real test next and a trip to Anfield was on the cards and with Liverpool's form we all knew this would be a tough one. 2-0 at half time, still not even a whimper from Spurs and they looked Mark Strijbosch TEN points for who guesses what the acronym is. That's right: AVB – Andre Villas Boas. Tottenham fans are fuming this weekend after yet another heavy defeat for their team, this time a 5-0 thumping in front of their own fans. That defeat has cost Andre his job, and just 16 games into the season we have yet another managerial sacking in the Premier League. Tottenham are a team which have confused many this season. On paper they look the part and have bagged some credible results to prove that. A team that boasts the likes of Sandro, Soldado, Lennon and Kaboul find themselves in seventh place, which is fine, but with a goal difference of minus six. They have conceded a total of 21 goals in 16 games and those who are any good in maths know that the average is unacceptable. Three results stand out this season which Spurs have failed to bounce back on and it all started on a weak afternoon in White Hart Lane. Lowly West Ham United were in town and everyone expected a roll over. The first half was fine with a boring possession game unfolding, but West Ham had other plans for the second Andre Villas Boas flattened. The full time score was not even flattering enough for Liverpool and that is the main worry for Spurs as it could have easily reached double figures. An away trip to St Mary's in the league follows a Capital one clash against West Ham and you just get the feeling the pressure is slowly creeping up on Andre Villas Boas. Since the Liverpool result was Strike Three, then the next games are crucial and Southampton, who have been impressive so far this season are certainly no pushovers. Spurs will have to be very good to beat them and recognise their tactical outplay. Pochettino has his men pressing high up the pitch and it is with that mentality that they claimed Liver- pool as their victims as well as Manchester United. Spurs currently do not move the ball quick enough from the defence and that is something they have to sort out in time for next Sunday. I'm not a fan of sacking the manager, as statistics which I will show you next week prove that results do not improve despite managerial changes. Andre Villas Boas is an intelligent man and his sacking will leave a gaping hole at the club, however we all know Chairman Levy and patience is not one of his strong points. It seems like Spurs are on the brink of a crisis and it is always about the next game for them. Their long term plan of a place in Europe might have to be pushed on the back burner for now as those three points against Southampton will be vital and that is the next short term goal. Progress will not be made by just focusing on the short term however at this point in time Spurs need to regroup and keep their chins up. It's now a time for the lads to be counted and for real leadership to step up and drag them through the mud. Times like these really can make or break a team and I feel Tottenham have enough about them to come out of this stronger in order for them to re-shift their focus to that long term season target of a top four finish, which at this point in time is still realistic as they are only four points off the mark. Pursuits Across 1. Pertaining to psychology (13) 8. Maintenance (7) 10. Soldier (7) 12. Small in amount (6) 13. Wool-clippers (8) 15. Unwavering (9) 18. Vacant (5) 21. Wrath (5) 22. Group of instruments (9) 27. Small spoon (8) 29. Elder (6) 30. Kind or sort (7) 31. Jailer (7) 33. An estimate that is too low (13) Sudoku Sudoku rules are extremely easy: Fill all empty squares so that the numbers 1 to 9 appear once in each row, column and 9x9 box. Answers to the MaltaToday crossword will be published next Wednesday Last week's solution Chess Today's Weather 8 8 WEATHER Partly cloudy becoming locally cloudy later on. VISIBILITY: Good WIND: Northeast force 3 locally force 4 at first. SEA: 7 Moderate to rough becoming moderate in the evening. SWELL: Low Easterly becoming low to moderate at times. 6 7 5 6 4 3 5 2 1 4 A 3 2 1 A B C D E F G H White to play and mate in four moves B C D E f8=Q+ Kc7 Kc4 (Qc5) Kb6 Qb8 Ka5 Qa7# F G H PARTLY CLOUDY 17ºC / 10ºC UV INDEX: 2 SEA TEMP: 19 °C Down 2. Self-destruction (7) 3. Dove sound (3) 4. Small stones (6) 5. Nimble (5) 6. Hesitates (6) 7. Covered with grass (6) 9. Inform (6) 11. Inquires (4) 14. Cuban dance (5) 16. Unit of weight (3) 17. 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