How Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou abandoned principles in Anfield rout as Mathys Tel plays in baffling position

JAMIE REDKNAPP enactment it best: "I cannot retrieve a squad successful my beingness spell down with little of a combat than Spurs did today."

Yes indeed, Tottenham were brutally dismembered by a rampant Liverpool successful Thursday night's Carabao Cup semi-final humiliation.

Holding a daze 1-0 pb from the archetypal leg, Spurs were ne'er genuinely successful the tie astatine Anfield.

And erstwhile Cody Gakpo poked location the Reds' opener to level the scoreline connected aggregate, everyone conscionable seemed to cognize the penning was connected the wall.

Mohamed Salah converted a punishment aboriginal successful the 2nd fractional to instrumentality the aggregate lead, earlier Dominik Szoboszlai and Virgil van Dijk made it 4-0 to shovel brackish successful Spurs' seeping wound.

Liverpool were astatine their scintillating best: winning the shot backmost connected the precocious press, pinging pinpoint passes and breaking with terrifying pace. They made Spurs look non-league astatine times.

Arne Slot inherited a squad galore believed would conflict to ace the top-four.

Yet the Reds won the 36-team Champions League group, are six points wide astatine the apical of the Premier League with a crippled successful hand, are into the Carabao Cup last and are preparing for their FA Cup 4th circular necktie with Plymouth.

But for arsenic bully arsenic Liverpool were connected the night, my goodness Tottenham allowed them to look similar 2010-11 Barcelona with a dash of dense metallic Gegenpress.

In fact, Spurs looked similar a squad with nary tactics, nary structure, nary clue...

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When Ange Postecoglou took implicit astatine Tottenham, helium was speedy to instrumentality his ain benignant and did bask archetypal success.

The Australian brag had a program and wouldn't crook his backmost connected that for instant success.

However, against Liverpool astatine Anfield, Spurs were each implicit the spot - rather literally.

Ange lined up his XI successful his accustomed 4-3-3, with a decent magnitude of width with 2 afloat backs and 2 wingers.

Despite that, the mean positions of each 11 players were desperately central.

Son Heung-min was the widest subordinate connected the nighttime - averaging conscionable near of the centre-circle.

But 'full-backs' Djed Spence and Archie Gray ended up playing bafflingly central.

That was, successful part, caused by Spence playing - arsenic Redknapp enactment it - "14 antithetic positions" connected the night.

But Gray is simply a cardinal midfielder played perpetually retired of presumption owed to injuries. Credit to the 18 twelvemonth aged for his adaptability, versatility... and wide ability!

Son was besides the subordinate who ventured the furthest forward... averaging a fraction implicit the halfway line.

Liverpool, of course, don't let teams clip to respire and are seldom out-possessed, portion their counter-attacking velocity and prowess tin pb to immoderate deficiency of shape.

But the mean presumption representation makes for embarrassing reading.

And past there's the Mathys Tel problem...

The January indebtedness signing from Bayern Munich, 19, hasn't scored a azygous extremity this season.

Yet the striker was successful demand, with Spurs battling the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal for his signing.

Spurs fans disquieted astir paying £10MILLION for a three-and-a-half-month indebtedness deal, but Postecoglou adamantly claimed the French teen was going to beryllium at the nine for years to come.

Tel climbed disconnected the seat precocious successful the archetypal fractional pursuing an wounded - yes different Spurs wounded - to Richarlison.

Tel was expected to pb the line, arsenic the Brazilian had done, centrally.

And yet, according to his vigor representation and interaction map, spent the bulk of the nighttime successful the left-wing-back position... and a tiny chunk connected the close wing.

In all, Tel - the centre-forward Ange truthful desperately wanted - had conscionable ONE touch of the shot successful the box, successful a not-so-dangerous presumption wide connected the close and hardly made it into the centre of the pitch.

Again, Liverpool's stellar play led to immoderate backs-against-the-wall worldly from Tottenham - arsenic proved by their "inexcusable" effort of ZERO shots connected target.

But chasing the game, with a cupful last connected the line, aft astir 3 decades without a trophy, with millions of radical watching...

To conscionable seemingly springiness up? It's inexcusable... and it volition surely pb to a large debrief successful North London successful the coming days.