Blackpool 3 - 1 Spurs

With Alan Hutton mysteriously missing from the squad and Vedran Ćorluka out after Mathieu Flamini’s violent challenge the Spurs back four underwent another change in personnel. William Gallas can do a job at full-back, but if there is an alternative to playing Sebastien Bassong surely it must be used. In the first minute he dwelled on the ball putting the defence under pressure and in the 18^th he needlessly kicked DJ Campbell in the box to give away a penalty. It was a calamitous effort, even by Bassong’s standards. Charlie Adam whipped his spot-kick to the left and beat Heurelho Gomes.

Spurs had two efforts cleared off the line in the first half. The first came when Richard Kingson came charging toward Defoe getting a hand to Defoe’s dink, which sailed over him and was dipping in before Craig Cathcart headed it on to the bar and out. The second was from another Defoe effort. Aaron Lennon chipped the ball toward the back post, Kingson could only parry, Roman Pavlyuchenko laid it off to Defoe and his strike was cleared by Alex Baptiste.  Steven Pienaar also had a deflected shot go narrowly over.

Blackpool broke with a devastating counter attack that left the Spurs defence shell-shocked and another goal in arrears. Campbell ran with the ball, gave it to Sergei Kornilenko who back-heeled to Beattie. Beattie crossed and Campbell, who’d got in front of Gallas, volleyed the ball in from a few yards.

Commentators and pundits love a bit of juxtaposition and insisted on contrasting the glamour of the San Siro with whatever ring-ding little ground Blackpool play at. There was still hope – Spurs are comeback kings this season and Blackpool were in similar position against Manchester United and came away with nothing.

Our first move of the second half was quick and elegant – Luka Modrić running with the ball, passing it between two Blackpool players to Lennon who hit the byline and crossed for Pienaar. Rather that bury it with his laces Pienaar got very little on it, although a late arrival and a bad pitch may have contributed to his feeble side-foot.

Lennon was our best player leaving defenders panting in his wake. He put a ball on to Pavlyuchenko's head, unmarked on the penalty spot, and another at the back post later in the game, but both times Pavlyuchenko only gave Kingson elementary tests. Modrić cut inside and put a curling shot over the bar and Defoe and Niko Kranjčar struck low crosses across the face of goal in quick succession. In the 72^nd minute Baptiste cleared yet another one off the line, this time a Modrić lob. The Blackpool goal might as well have had a forcefield around it. 

With ten minutes to go Blackpool put the game to bed with a shambolic third. Benoit Assou-Ekotto impressively muscled a Blackpool player off the ball in the box, but rather than lamp it into the stands he casually knocked the ball into Brett Omerod's path and he tapped it in.

We got on the score sheet in the last minute of stoppage time. Pavlyuchenko got hold of Crouch's header, took it on his chest, let it bounce and spanked a deflected shot into the net. It was the only one of his potshots that went anywhere near the goal.

Missing the opportunity to go third is disappointing, but it was still only three points at stake and if at the end of the season there are only a couple of points in it I won't be looking back at this result as the one that cost us. Our mid-season form has been very good all things considered and last night was a bit of a freak result.

What’s worrying is that the complete impotence of the strikers. The midfield has played so well this season that we’ve gotten away Defoe, Pavlyuchenko and Crouch misfiring, but there’s only so far you can go with the forwards making such a small contribution. Which makes the decision not to pick Kranjčar all the more odd. With a lack of goals in the team you’d think the man that scored the winning goals and our last two league games (and how!) would be the first name on the team sheet. From Kranjčar’s point of view it must be the final straw. It’s one thing being behind Gareth Bale in the pecking order, but if you can’t get in the team on current form and with Bale out its time to move on.