Villas-Boas is Fighting for his Job as his Spurs take on Manchester United

One match should never have to be the deciding factor. It can be blamed on a hiccup or a blip. The reason why the pressure is on AVB is NOT because of City lubricating them, but because of how they have played in the ENTIRE season so far. For the money he was given, Villas-Boas has not been able to replicate the kind of results and efficiency that they had under the Welsh dynamo.

If anyone was in doubt that Spurs were a one-man team last season, then I think how they have fared this season is confirmation of that. What everyone is now seeing is an AVB team WITHOUT Bale. They don't have a man that can suddenly score a goal from nothing, running the pitch or drilling in a free-kick. AVB now has to show his true coaching credentials without having that star to get him out of trouble. Unfortunately, the result is a very boring and stale system that leaves players rather static and uninventive. Bale covered up the limitations that AVB had with his incredible individual displays. With him gone, you are now seeing what was always there; a system that pays far too much attention to midfield and consolidation rather than attacking flair.

When AVB was heralded as the next big coaching star, it was because of his work with Porto at such a young age. What many seemed to overlook was the same situation that occurred with Bale and Spurs.
  If Falcao was not in that Porto team, they do NOT win the UEFA Cup and AVB is not seen as a young prodigy. The reliance that Porto had on Falcao was the same as Bale. Which has lead me to believe that AVB needs a great striker for his system to work. He operates in having a very strong and robust defence and midfield with the focus on providing for the striker. This is a similar philosophy to his other countryman Mourinho, with the only difference being that Jose is a great motivator and can get goldust from bricks and rocks. AVB does not have that same skill and will find it hard to now motivate his players with their backs against the wall.


I have been reading that a shortlist is already being drawn up for a replacement on the Spurs bench. AVB NEEDS to win this game. A draw won't cut it and I will happily book his flight for him back to Portugal if they were to lose. Somehow, he needs to put away the tactics and the philosophy he has had for all these years. It's now a case of sitting down with the players and having his GREATEST pre-match talk of his life. There needs to be a whole different Tottenham team out there and they need to play differently. Moyes will expect their one-striker system with the wingers. He will prepare for that and if AVB remains stubborn and sticks to his guns, then I have faith that Rooney and Kagawa (IF he bloody plays) will shoot down the Spurs.

AVB......make THAT change.


HH