Tottenham’s pre-season preparations are quietly ratcheting up on their Asian tour.
A 3-2 victory over Japanese side Vissel Kobe in Tokyo made it three wins out of three for Ange Postecoglou’s squad after previous outings against Hearts and Queens Park Rangers.
But what did we learn from today’s game? We analyse the major talking points.
Two homegrown talents combine to put us ahead 🤍
2-3 // #SpursInJapan pic.twitter.com/zHPl878UcJ
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 27, 2024
Can Bergvall handle himself in the Premier League?
Old news first: Lucas Bergvall looks as advertised — a highly gifted technical player who glides with the ball and changes speeds and direction with real grace. He came on as a second-half substitute in Tokyo and the crowd was quickly cooing its appreciation.
But he is physical, too. Both in the sense of his stature and his mentality. Sometimes, young players of his profile are quite meek — apologetic for their ability, even. He is not one of them and he thundered into a few tackles after coming on, skittling a few opponents in the process.
When his move to Spurs was announced, it triggered a response among players he faced in domestic Swedish football, who dialled up the rough treatment in matches. By his own telling — and based on how he carried himself here — that might have been a good thing, as it forced him toughen up, preparing well for the attritional nature of the Premier League in the months before he arrived.
Yes, it’s his skill that will make him popular and, most likely, turn him into one of those Spurs players who draws people to White Hart Lane during the opening nights of the Europa League. But he will not be bullied. He now seems as likely to leave an imprint on his opponents as they are on him.
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Where is Gray’s best position?
Archie Gray has made quite an impression in pre-season since his move from Leeds. Asked about playing centre-back in the two games prior to this evening, he did what humble young players do and cheerfully said he would gladly play anywhere for his new team.
So far, so smart — and it’s not an act, because Gray really is a delight in person.
Currently, he believes midfield to be his best position and this was a first chance to play that role. After another half spent in central defence, he briefly moved to the base of Spurs’ midfield after the break (before being substituted).
It was not really the game in which to evaluate his full range of abilities — his one-on-one defending, for instance, or positioning — but it is Gray’s ease on the ball and faith in his first touch that currently makes him so compelling.
In defence, that showed in the way that he moved possession forward. In midfield, it was how he received the ball with his back to goal and under pressure, playing with the kind of one-touch confidence that makes it easy to imagine him becoming a real asset within a team that relies on the quality of its ball movement.
There will doubtless be a hurry to know where his future lies and that is understandable given how much Tottenham have spent to sign him, but for now it’s just fun to gaze upon his talent.
How does Kulusevski fit into the front line?
What Tottenham’s forward line looks like at the beginning of the season will depend on the business they are able to do between now and the end of the transfer window.
Dejan Kulusevski played a withdrawn No 9 role in Tokyo, as he occasionally did towards the end of last season, and that was a prompt to consider his role in the future.
Kulusevski prefers the middle of the pitch and relishes the involvement that comes with it. The signature moment of his performance this evening was the languid backheel that sprung Pedro Porro for the equaliser. He has had a few similarly decadent, but effective, touches this pre-season and his ability to read and react to that sort of run — vertical, penetrative — is a known strength within his game.
Brilliant from Deki and Pedro to find the leveller in Tokyo 🔥
1-1 // #SpursInJapan
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) July 27, 2024
Kulusevski enjoys pre-season. He admits to enjoying the heat (temperatures were still nudging 30C despite the evening kick-off in Tokyo) and the physical challenge of preparing in this kind of climate. No wonder, then, that he was a menace on the counter-attack — even against opponents who are midway through their domestic season.
But there was subtlety and instinct to his work. Kulusevski is not a natural forward and that showed occasionally here, in the looseness of some of his back-to-goal play, but he does move across defenders smartly in the penalty box and that suits Spurs’ cut-back heavy style of attacking.
Tottenham probably need to invest in that area, but with James Maddison available again and Kulusevski sometimes marginalised by playing wide, this was a reminder of some of the utility — and range — he’s able to bring when there are gaps to fill in attack.
What next for Tottenham?
Wednesday, July 31: K-League XI (Seoul, South Korea), noon BST, 7am ET
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(Top photo: Xxxxxxxx/Getty Images)
