Sorry about the length of this, I'm not very good at summarising!
I think the assertion that we were downright awful today (not a common view here but some of the pundits seem to think so) is lunacy- the reality, objectively, is we were too restricted and inviting of pressure in the first half, posed no attacking threat and looked off the pace in comparison to Spurs, who pressed and pushed relentlessly- but we improved and started to dictate play in the second half as they (inevitably) tired and probably had the most clear cut chance of the half with SWP.
To say City were rubbish... "except Hart, the back four and two of the midfielders" (again, not quoting anyone specifically) is a bit of a contradiction in terms, no? We weren't ambitious enough in attack, clearly, and could have paid the price, but defensively (bar Micah) and in midfield I think we looked alright. I just find it hard to criticise the midfield today, Touré and Barry had their heads up but the options weren't there because Tevez and Silva, most of the time, were standing beside them in midfield with nothing other than a big field of grass to aim at, which demonstrates just how much:
We need a true striker- not caveman tactics- just someone who's willing to stay up front and leave the dropping off to others. It's one thing playing with fluidity but if everyone's doing it at the same time, uncoordinated, it becomes the opposite- a trainwreck. Whether that's Adebayor (could be if he wasn't so intent on drifting out wide) or possibly Balotelli, we just desperately need a focal point. Look at Drogba as the obvious, but perfect example. Leaving the goalscoring aside, it's everything he offers- their midfield know that if the intricate ball isn't happening, he's there to hold it and lay off or if they drop it up and over he'll chase down the middle and create a chance. We didn't have those options because Tevez, Silva and SWP, for all their endeavours, don't have the physicality to deal with burly centre halves, and they never will. Perhaps that kind of a system would work well at home, where we're constantly attacking and dictating, but we so badly needed a physical presence today, and will do in most of our away trips.
Basically, though, I'm taking more positives from this game than negatives, partly on the basis that we're clearly not at full fitness yet, partly because Spurs are a fucking good side, well drilled and familiar with one another, who lest we forget are one of the current 'top four' and partly because last season our defence never looked like a cohesive unit; The central trio of Hart, Touré and Kompany were fantastic today, there was understanding and determination in abundance and I see no reason to believe it was a fluke.
If we have a solid base of a defence in place, it'll make putting the attacking pieces together an awful lot easier. We can experiment with players and systems going forward to see what works best but that's really not something you can do with a back four (a lesson fatally learnt by Hughes). With increased fitness, the players we saw will get better, add to that the fact that we won't be facing sides like Spurs on their turf on a weekly basis- that was one of the toughest games of the season, in a place we traditionally get nothing from, and we've come out with a respectable point and clean sheet.
Not salivating, but optimistic.
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