Southampton At Tottenham Hotspur The Preview Saturday, 4th Oct 2014 10:52 Saints head to North London and a reunion with their former manager Mauricio Pochettino, that means the focus must be clearly on the game itself and not issues from the past six months. It will be hard to mention this game without bringing up the Pochettino aspect of it, indeed for those Saints fans at White Hart Lane they have to focus on the team rather than hurling abuse at the Argentinian who a little over six months ago was seen as a hero at St Mary's and is now very much public enemy number 1. Yes on reflection Pochettino was never one of the warmest characters in the annals of Saints history and despite his protestations this week I always felt that he saw Saints as merely a stepping stone back into the game after his sacking at Espanyol. We should thank him for the work he did for the club, he moved us forward as did Alan Pardew & Nigel Adkins, but he had taken us as far as he probably could have and perhaps he knew that as well. Now we have Ronald Koeman and the feeling amidst Saints fans is that we now have a manager who truly can become a Saints legend, already he has shown that in signing players, bonding a full squad rather than a dozen or so players and having different tactics for different situations that he is a step forward as well, just as much as the previous three managers were, sometimes fate takes a hand and although it didn't feel like it at the time, fate was dealing us a better hand than the one that we already had. So the focus on this game should not be what our old manager might have done or abusing him, it should all be on Ronald Koeman and what he is going to do on Sunday. Going to White Hart Lane won't scare Koeman, both as a player and a manager he has taken his teams into far more daunting arenas, the only question is what he sees as his best team to combat Spurs and what tactics he will use. From this perspective it should be fairly easy to read,after all Pochettino is famous for setting up his teams in one way and one way only and having no plan B once plan A starts to fail,Koeman is famous for exactly the opposite, he knows that Spurs will come at us and press, but likewise he knows that if that doesnt work then Saints have the options to change the game. The only real question this week, assuming that there are no injuries that we are unaware of is how he sets up his midfield, wide it is hard to look beyond Mane and Tadic and they certainly can cause Spurs problems, but it is what he does in the centre that is up for debate. Morgan Schneiderlin seems to be a given, although that is perhaps because of his overall form and perhaps Koeman will feel he needs a rest, although I think the Dutchman will consider that Schneiderlin has a point to prove and will be key. But who will fill the other two spots, with JWP out it is a choice from Steven Davis, Wanyama & Jack Cork, will Koeman feel he has to win a battle in the centre of the park first and then impose himself on the game, or will he think that we can out pass them from the off. My feeling is that Wanyama will again get the nod and he will be partnered by Davis with Cork being held in reserve, if Saints can weather the early storm then the longer the game goes on the more pressure will be going on to Spurs, Pochettino is under pressure from Spurs fans who are not only not happy with their so so start, but also know that if it had not been fo a last minute winner at West Ham, they would now be 15th and even that position is only held up by slaughtering QPR at home when they scored half of their seasons goals in one game. Guessing Koeman's game plan is never easy and that is why he has already imposed himself on Saints, but you do feel he will know that this game is crucial to Pochettino and Spurs in that it could be a turning point in their season, if Spurs win then they will jump up the table and be handily placed to build on that start, but lose it and as previous Spurs managers have found out, it will be hard for the team to play as you get pressure from three areas, from the boardroom, from the fans and from a plethora of ex managers who are pundits in the media. So Koeman will realise this and try to use it for his benefit, he knows that his team go into the game full of confidence and at the top of their game, if they can replicate their form of recent weeks then there is absolutely no reason why we cannot take another big step forward. Unlike last season though there is a structured path for Saints and although it is inevitable that the Champions League will be mentioned if we do win, the fact is we will concentrate on continuing to focus on the same areas that we have done so far. I expect Saints to line up. Forster Clyne, Fonte, Alderweireld, Bertrand Tadic, Wanyama Schneiderlin Davis, Mane. Pelle Subs Davis, Cork,Gardos, Targett, Long, Reed, Mayuka That is as strong a team I have seen representing Saints for many a year and there is still Jay Rodriguez and James Ward Prowse to come back from injury, Im sure whatever the result at White Hart Lane it will continue to make Saints fans proud. Key Man Sadio Mane Photo: Action Images Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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