Ange Postecoglou handed dent to Tottenham top four hopes after Conor Bradley update at Liverpool
Tottenham and Ange Postecoglou will be desperate to get back to winning ways in the Premier League following their disappointing defeat to Chelsea.
The Lilywhites never really looked at the races against Mauricio Pochettinho’s side on Thursday (2 May) as they were beaten 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to leave their hopes of Champions League qualification hanging by a thread.
Luckily for Spurs, the games come thick and fast in the Premier League and they have a chance to get back to winning ways on Sunday (5 May) when they travel to Anfield to face Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
It won’t be easy for Postecoglou’s side to cause an upset and it looks like the challenge could only get harder, with reports suggesting Conor Bradley is back in contention for the clash having recovered from injury [James Pearce, 3 May].
Will Tottenham and Ange Postecoglou qualify for the Champions League?
Bradley hasn’t played for the Reds since their 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace when he left the field after 48 minutes, but in that showing he managed to show his quality both in and out of possession.
The Northern Irish international completed 100 per cent of his attempted dribbles and made three passes into the final third of the pitch as he repeatedly tried to play Darwin Nunez and Mohammed Salah behind the Palace backline, according to Fotmob.
Off the ball, the 20-year-old won 100 per cent of his attempted tackles and two ground duels as he did what he could to keep the tricky combination of Tyrick Mitchell and Eberechi Eze quiet down the left flank.
Perhaps Bradley’s best showing in recent weeks came in the Reds’ 2-1 win over Brighton back in March as the young defender ran riot up and down the right flank at Anfield.
In 90 minutes of action, the Northern Irish defender completed 86 per cent of his 49 attempted passes and registered a remarkable 11 touches in the Seagulls’ penalty area as he repeatedly ventured forward.
No player on either side completed more than the Liverpool youngster’s four dribbles as Pervis Estupinan and Simon Adingra struggled to contain the defender out of possession, something that could be an issue for Spurs with Destiny Udogie sidelined.
Without the ball, Bradley was formidable, winning 83 per cent of his six attempted tackles and 11 of his 16 ground duels without committing a foul to completely nullify Brighton’s attacking threat.
When compared to his positional peers in the division, the Reds gem places in the 99th percentile for tackles made per game this season, with an average of 3.93 every 90 minutes, according to Fbref.
He will almost certainly cause Postecoglou’s backline plenty of problems as well as he sits in the top three per cent of fullbacks for assists per match, with an average of 0.37 every game.
Will Spurs have what it takes to beat Liverpool at Anfield?
While Spurs were never likely to be heading to Anfield full of confidence, they would have thought their attacking players would have been able to take advantage of Trent Alexander-Arnold, especially with Virgil van Dijk potentially sidelined.
But with Bradley back, Alexander-Arnold could well move into a midfield role to allow the Northern Irish gem back into the defence. If that is the case, it could harm Tottenham’s chances of picking up a result.
If Spurs don’t claim all three points at Anfield and Aston Villa win against Brighton, the Champions League may finally be out of reach. It’s safe to say, Bradley’s return could be a major blow for Tottenham.
In other Tottenham news, Santiago Gimenez wants “to be a part” of Postecoglou’s project at Spurs after he was spotted against Arsenal
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