Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino must be fretting more than ever ahead of their trip to Liverpool.
His side were toothless against bottom of the Premier League table Watford last weekend and a 5-0 win over Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League may have only papered over the cracks.
A 1-1 draw against the Hornets last weekend was reminiscent of the dreary last days of Andre Villas-Boas, where possession appeared to outweigh progression and attacking threat.
It’s worth noting Villas-Boas’ final game as Spurs boss was a match with the Merseysiders.
A 5-0 demolition sealed the Portuguese boss’ fate, although it should be remembered he had been forced to play with Etienne Capoue at centre-back and Kyle Naughton at left-back.
But Pochettino is approaching a full strength squad with only Hugo Lloris, a long-term absentee, out of the reckoning for Anfield.
And if Tottenham are going to turn their form around the Argentine might want to take a leaf out of Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s book – but it might mean dropping superstar striker Harry Kane.
Kane looked somewhere close to his best in a 4-2-3-1 in midweek but an isolated showing against Watford was a big worry and it remains to be seen if he can get close to his best again in the Premier League.
Man United boss Solskjaer has hardly been known for his tactical excellence since his arrival as Red Devils boss but his switch to a 5-3-2 had Liverpool shell-shocked in the first half of their 1-1 draw on Sunday.
Pochettino has been known to use a back five at points and did so in the dire display against Watford, although with some slightly different tweaks to Solskjaer.
Spurs attempted to get one wing-back as high as possible against the Hornets to make a front-four with the wide man joining Kane, Lucas Moura and Dele Alli in the attacking line.
Unfortunately, Watford’s three-man midfield stopped Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko progressing the ball leaving the trio isolated, even with one of the wing-backs high up the field, while Toby Alderweireld had to try and move forward to muck in.
Eventually, Alli one of Spurs’ better players dropped deeper to interact with Danny Rose and Jan Vertonghen, allowing them to move the ball more freely down the left compared to the persistent and almost aimless crossing from the right side.
At the break, Heung-Min Son was introduced to make a full on front and while Spurs looked more fluid it was only when Tanguy Ndombele entered the fray they looked like actually creating anything in midfield.
Against Liverpool, though, knowing his side would be on the counter, Solskjaer set up with two wider fast forwards operating in the gaps between the full-backs and centre-backs.
This made Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson a lot more cautious, while Andreas Pereira’s runs from deep kept Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk on their toes.
Meanwhile, the back-five played far deeper than Spurs – for obvious reason as it was against the attacking Liverpool rather than Watford.
Pochettino may seek to use the Manchester United tactic – which was eventually countered (just about) by Klopp moving to a narrow 4-2-3-1.
If he does though, it could see him dropping Harry Kane – or at the very least moving him into a much deeper role.
The player most capable of playing in the wide forward roles are Son and Lucas, who caused havoc against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and Manchester City in the Premier League when occupying similar positions.
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Meanwhile, it is perhaps Alli and not Kane who would suit the deep-lying forward slot Andreas Pereira held thanks to his fine movement and ability to play in a deeper midfield role.
It might seem mad to drop Kane, especially after two goals against Red Star Belgrade, but if he doesn’t suit one of the tactics that has troubled Liverpool the most this season then it isn’t something which shouldn’t be out of the question.
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Bringing Ndombele back into the fold would also be recommended thanks to his ability to contribute in attacking and defensive phases of the game – as he displayed against Belgrade.
Pochettino will, though, find it hard deciding who to ditch out of Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko given their very different qualities.
The latter can counter exceptionally well but is severely lacking in technical quality, while Winks is superb on the ball but would struggle to do as well in breakaways which could be vital.
If Giovani Lo Celso he may well be another consideration given he’s excelled in several different central midfield positions throughout his career so far and looked handy in the final stages against Red Star.
As the poor league form continues for Tottenham, Pochettino has a big call to make – but can he make the biggest call of all and drop Kane against Liverpool?
It’s extremely unlikely but the use of Kane in the tactic played by Man United would also be intriguing to see, can he play the role of creator behind a front two? His England form suggest so.
It’s certainly food for thought for Pochettino, but can he act and avoid another embarrassing league defeat?
