Not unlike each team’s respective 0-0 draws with Everton, elegant short-pass aesthetics will dominate Sunday afternoon's encounter that is likely to produce more hipster tactical intrigue than riveting end-to-end football.
However, Swansea’s creative rut and potential defensive frailties in central midfield could be exposed if Tottenham Hotspur counter-attack with the same venom they displayed against Manchester City last time out.
Son Heung-Min has added much needed directness to a Spurs attack that often felt rigid and conservative last season, while Dele Alli’s bursts forward have added a box-to-box dynamism that has created new passing lines for Mauricio Pochettino’s team. Against Man City, Tottenham’s typical overloading of central zones (both Erik Lamela and Christian Eriksen drift infield at every opportunity) was highly effective; Son in particular consistently found space in between Fernando and Fernandinho to receive passes through the middle, and Harry Kane dropped off the frontline to offer additional support.
Note Spurs’ narrowness (left) and the positions in which Son received the ball (right).
It is here that a tightly congested game can be won. Swansea’s Jack Cork is an exceptionally gifted defensive midfielder (2.8 tackles, 4.1 interceptions per match) but his supporting team-mates have shown lapses in this area. Jonjo Shelvey’s overall discipline has greatly improved, but a lack of speed makes him an easy target for the 180° twists of Son and Kane and the short-passing interplay that occurs in this zone between all four of Tottenham’s primary attackers. Similarly, Ki Sung-yueng is vulnerable to missing tackles and interceptions.
Both Ki (vs Southampton, left) and Shelvey (vs Watford, right) have struggled defensively this season.
Garry Monk is an excellent defensive organiser, but if Spurs can retain the form that dismantled Manchester City at White Hart Lane, then Swansea’s midfield may find themselves overrun in South Wales.
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