Last season, Tottenham were my second favourite club to watch, number one being Chelsea. The reason I enjoyed Tottenham so much was simple: They played a very direct and attacking 4-4-2 system. Redknapp didn't do anything strange or unexpected.
Wings were used with pace and moved up and down the line, tracking back to defend and expected to cross as they got forward. They were also used to tuck into midfield to make up numbers when against a team with three in central midfield. Fullbacks did little overlapping but allowed midfield to get a little further forward by doing more 'defending'.
The two central midfielders were actually rather attacking, and with Modric and possibly Kranjcar pairing up with Huddlestone or Palacios the team had a good balance of hard tackling helping defence and a playmaker able to thread passes together and dribble with the ball. The strikers did what you would expect and stayed as far up as possible, prowling the box and waiting for service from midfield and far more often, the wings. With Defoe, Crouch, Keane and the Russian (Pavlyuchenko) there was plenty of versatility and technical ability up front.
There has been much discussion of a possible change for the club away from the orthodox 4-4-2 played last season because most seem to think that it isn't possible for a club like Tottenham to survive in the Champion's League playing the way they do. While this is possibly true I can't see how Crouch or Defoe would be able to operate alone in the same way that a player like Drogba or Torres do. With four strikers and such an emphasis on orthodox wingers it doesn't seem likely that 'Ol Harry would choose change the system to a narrow 4-3-3 with central strikers up front (the system Chelsea and Inter Milan favour and I love to see).
Keane could operate as a lone striker up front, though I suspect that he would need support coming from midfield, and possibly the wings too which is likely to result in a 4-2-3-1 being favoured though I suspect only in Europe.
If Keane were to be deployed up front alone, I would expect to see Modric playing behind him with wingers like Lennon and Bale on either side because they are fast and don't mind moving centrally to get into the box. The fullbacks will probably stay quite far back, meaning that one of the wings or a midfielder will have to get outside to deliver crosses.
As for central midfield, Huddlestone, Jenas and Palacios will have to be disciplined and patient. The fact that only three central midfielders are able to play in this setup means that the club were always likely to bring another body in, in this case the new Brazilian Sandro.
Before we continue, let's look at the current squad.
Gomes (GK)
*Hutton (DF)
Bale (MF)
Kaboul (DF)
Bentley (MF)
Huddlestone (MF)
Lennon (MF)
Jenas (MF)
Pavlyuchenko (MF)
Keane (FW)
Sandro (MF)
Palacios (MF)
Modric (MF)
Crouch (FW)
*Naughton (DF)
dos Santos (FW)
Defoe (FW)
Bassong (DF)
Dawson (DF)
Kranjcar (MF)
Corluka (DF)
Cudicini (GK)
*O'Hara (MF)
Rose (MF)
King (DF)
Alnwick (GK)
*Walker (DF)
*Livermore (MF)
Assou-Ekotto (DF)
Woodgate (DF)
I'm sure you all noticed that I marked some players with an asterix. These are players who I don't expect to feature this season because they will either be sold, loaned or not be old enough to feature in a squad trying to perform in the Champion's League and the domestic league.
A name that stands out to me is dos Santos. He has been used during the pre-season but I'm not convinced of his performances. I think the idea was that he could be used as a link between midfield and attack, with the idea of providing cover for Modric. I'm not sure it will work out but I guess we will have to see. Having looked at the squad, there are two positions that I do think need to be addressed.
The first is left back. Gareth Bale is wonderful on the left wing, and far from wonderful at left back. Assou-Ekotto on the other hand is great at left back and quite useful going forward into midfield, but cover does need to be provided. The second problem for me is the right wing. Lennon is wonderful, and Kranjcar can play there very well, but Bently is not up to standard. That means that, excluding Bentley, there are three wingers and I just don't think that's enough.
There is the possibility that dos Santos could slot in there, and he could work well with the 4-2-3-1 system, but I don't think that he would offer the defensive backup for the right back, and I also don't think his crossing is really up to the standard required by Harry. What sounds more realistic to me is that Bellamy will be brought in from City because he is very similar to Lennon but could also be played as a withdrawn striker and drop into midfield when required. I have no idea who they could bring in at left back though.
Some have also said that the club require an additional right back because the only established right back is Corluka, but I disagree. Kaboul was played there last season and he did an exceptional job. He also provides you with an additional center half, and with King, Dawson, Bassong, Kaboul and Woodgate in the center things look strong.
The concern though is that with King's injuries and Woodgate still out perhaps someone is required. I can see the argument for that but I would rather play Hutton there than bring someone else in. And if push comes to shove, Naughton could deputise in the right back role while Corluka or Kaboul play centrally.
In my opinion Spurs have a fantastic squad, and their only problem is their limited youth involvement but that is to be expected for a team who are still establishing themselves in the top four of the league. I do think that Spurs can make the top four once again, though I doubt they'll make it past the group stages, maybe first round of knock outs in the Champion's League.
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