Rewatched the final

Watching the game live, pi55ed and emotional in a packed Madrid bar, the only main takeaways I had from the game were that we had most of the ball, and neither team created many chances at all. It was a game where, at the time, I felt we were the better team and so I was incredibly frustrated. Although the penalty decision was correct under the current laws, to be 1-0 down in a CL final after 30 seconds without Liverpool doing anything to deserve it was hard to take

I rewatched the game this morning to assess it with a clear head. Firstly, while Liverpool were good defensively, I think claims by some of their supporters that it was defensive masterclass are overstated. While I do agree that they didn't have to be attack-minded once they had the lead, and therefore could retreat into a defensive shape, I think we beat their press and enabled attacking opportunities relatively well. The issue was the final third, where our attackers didn't show the composure to make the final pass or shot. Plus van Dijk, Matip and Allison had very good games in the last line of defence


Lloris' kicking was as good as I've ever seen it. Rose was probably our MOTM and was the player really trying to drive us forward. Toby and Jan were excellent, both defensively and in terms of playing around their press and building from the back. Trippier and Sissoko were decent enough, while Winks was the most composed midfielder on the pitch

Our front four really let us down, however. Imo particularly Son and Dele. Constantly their touch or decision making let them down, ruining good attacking opportunities once we got in behind their midfield. Eriksen was way too quiet but actually delivered some nice passes once he got on the ball

Kane has been massively scapegoated. It's obviously predictable that if we lost and he started the decision to start him would be the main talking point, but, despite not being at his sharpest, he actually got the better of van Dijk twice to set us through on goal. Still, our attack on the whole underperformed hugely. Poch had the right tactics to get us into these situations, but was let down by the front players

That being said, I'm not going to question the commitment of the players who got Tottenham to a CL final and have delivered CL football for four successive years, which I've seen many doing. I hope it's reactionary and short-lived following the disappointment of us not playing to our potential in our biggest ever game. Nor am I gonna question Poch's decisions, despite feeling that his subs should have been different. The man has worked miracles for our club


Levy needs to spend heavily this summer, and not just spending the money we might receive for Eriksen. I'm not a Levy hater, and can appreciate what he's done for the club, taking us from mid-table to CL regular with the stadium, training centre etc. However, the squad needs a revamp. This is going to be unpopular, but despite Sissoko's importance this year, he cannot be such a regular for us again. Between 2015-2017 we would dominate teams with Dembele bossing the midfield, and nowadays we bypass it because we cannot control it. We need better, and he needs to be a squad option rather than a key player if we are to progress. I know it's harsh to single him out after such an important season, but I strongly feel we need to reassert dominance in this area which he cannot provide