Tottenham’s pre-season victory was a triumph for manager Roberto De Zerbi, who opted for a measured and risk-averse strategy over a full-strength squad in a 2-0 win over Auckland FC at Eden Park.
The game got off to a flying start with a goal from Dane Scarlett for Spurs who had taken the lead early against the A-team champions. The five-set game was never in doubt, with Richarlison taking a brace to put the game away for good. But the tactical story was no scoreline but the ‘rotation’ strategy purposefully executed by De Zerbi.
Tottenham played in a load control system from a pre season management point of view. The Italian coach chose to play a young team of 11 players, as he didn’t want to risk injury to experienced players due to the extensive travelling and fatigue. This is in line with modern high performance protocols where injury prevention and conditioning cycles would take precedence over short-term competitiveness.
Only one of the big boys had made their debut in the squad though: Mateus Fernandes, who had come from West Ham United for £85m. His integration was introduced after the hour mark, in a manner of a ‘phased’ introduction, and was not to overwhelm the physical demands.
What was missing was Newcastle United’s £100m marquee, Sandro Tonali. De Zerbi admitted the midfielder had a minor problem to deal with, and this was the club’s approach to the zero-risk policy in the early pre-season matches. Likewise, key defenders Jan Paul van Hecke, Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi were excluded from the squad as part of a wider defence of the team.
Analytically, this match is more a calibration match than an analytical match. The idea behind Tottenham’s controlled execution and player exposure is that it’s an optimization strategy for the entire year leading.
