Tromso / Cardiff

Same formation again on Thursday for me, can change some of the players about though possibly. Plenty of new midfielders to intergrate and want it done ASAP so I'd have something like:

Sandro, holtby
Lamela, eriksen, chadli

Didn't Chadli get injured in training?

I don't think Cardiff away is the game to throw Lamela in personally. He hasn't done anything of note in his brief appearances so far, knows no English, and a fiery away game with a hostile crowd isn't the best place for him to start his league career.

I'd start him v Tromso, then give him (a probably weakened) Villa on Tuesday. Ease the boy in. In fact he'd be on Europa/CC duty for Sept/Oct until fully settled.




The team for Cardiff for me is the one that started v Norwich. Easily our best performance of the season. Nobody deserves to lose their place.

Tromso and Villa (2 days after Cardiff)

Friedel

Rose
Chiriches
Kabs
Naughton

Holtby
Sandro

Lennon
Lamela
Chadli

Defoe

posted 5 minutes ago
Didn't Chadli get injured in training?
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I don't know, if he is then my bad. Play siggy again then, hope he carries on where he left off from Saturday

I agree with the Sunday team, definitely. Harsh dropping Townsend though.

Harsh dropping Townsend though.
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Might be harsh but i think it's necessary. Townsend will get plenty of games this season but we can't leave Lamela out.

He played in a couple of Roma derbies which a far more hostile than Cardiff, so he should be fine.

Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaameeeeeeeeellllllllllaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

3 games in 6 days so rotation is the key.

He played in a couple of Roma derbies which a far more hostile than Cardiff, so he should be fine.

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Nothing I've seen of him so far makes me think he is ready for a blood-and-thunder away game. At a side who demolished City the other week too, with their new boys out playing.

Whether he played in Rome derbies or not has no bearing on if he is good to go for us right now, unless one of them was his first league start just weeks after joining Roma.

I know it's just two sub appearances so far but he looks nowhere near being our first choice in the league, AVB said as much the other day when he pointed out it will take time for him to settle (oh, and he hasn't trained with us pre-Norwich either):


Friday 13 September 2013
Andre Villas-Boas has warned Tottenham fans not to expect too much too soon from club record signing Erik Lamela.
The Argentine, who could eventually cost Spurs £30million, is expected to start on the bench against Norwich tomorrow after only returning from international duty in South America yesterday.

Despite arriving from Roma amid a swell of excitement, Villas-Boas admits it might take time for the 21-year-old to adapt to the Premier League.

Lamela does not speak English but the Spurs manager hopes natural ability will help overcome language problems as he becomes familiar with the rigours of the game here.

“He has tremendous potential, which we have to work on,” said Villas-Boas. “He has to adapt to a completely different culture and mentality. For somebody so gifted, adapting should not be a problem but we are unsure of how much time it will take.”

Lamela is happiest playing as a No10 but, like Gareth Bale, he is versatile enough to be used in different positions in Villas-Boas’s preferred 4-2-3-1 system. Very much left-footed, he is comfortable on either flank but has the ability to drift inside where he can have a greater influence on the game.

When he was at Roma, Francesco Totti stated Lamela could become his heir at the Stadio Olimpico but it is now Gareth Bale he must emulate.

Replacing the Welshman’s goals from the wing is crucial for Tottenham, who have not scored from open play in their opening three Premier League games and lacked any real creative threat in the 1-0 defeat against Arsenal. Lamela made a 15-minute substitute appearance in the derby, which came just two days after he signed.

Villas-Boas said: “He is a wonderful, gifted footballer. A natural talent. The qualities he brings are his creativeness and his ability to find the last pass that leads to a goal. He is not a pure winger, he is creative and likes to come inside to find different spaces.”

Lamela, who scored 15 goals in Serie A last season, made a 12,000-mile round trip to South America but was an unused substitute in Argentina’s World Cup qualifier against Paraguay in Asuncion on Tuesday night.

“The fact he is yet to train with the team puts him in a very difficult position to start against Norwich,” he said. “But it is not impossible.”

Tbf I think another reason why he didn't play was because he just came back from Argentina and got news that his brother was kidnapped the night before Norwich which probably kept him up at all night.