Former Tottenham Hotspur striker Clive Allen believes that Spurs' summer activity has boosted them physically but lack a bit of flair which is needed to win big games. The north London club conceded their first defeat of the season to arch rivals Arsenal, by a narrow margin of 1-0 but their failure to prise the Gunners open in spite of spending close to £100m this summer has irritated the fans.

Andre Villas-Boas
Reuters


"With the acquisitions they've made, they are a physically powerful team, but they lack a bit of flair, a little bit of what Gareth Bale had. That 'unpredictable something' that people can't stop. That would be the worry at the moment. They have amassed a good set of players and a lot of strength in depth, but I'm not sure whether they've got that little something different which will make them a great team," Allen told talkSPORT.

Tottenham sold Bale for a record signing of close to £80m and have invested the money recouped wisely, bringing in the likes of Etienne Capoue, Christian Eriksen, Paulinho, Erik Lamela and others to boost the core of their team. However, in spite of their expenditure, they have failed to score a goal from open play this far, with their two goals against Crystal Palace and Swansea City coming from the spot.

"If there's a worry [with the new set of players], then it's taking that number of goals out of your team, now that Bale has moved on. The worrying thing at this stage of the season is they haven't scored a goal in open play yet. I know they have started OK but it's going to take time for that group of players to gel together, to be that top team that can break into the top four at the end of the season," he added.

Tottenham will be looking to challenge the Gunners for a top four spot this season, having missed out on a place in the Champions league for the past two seasons over a single point. However, Andre Villas-Boas has to figure out a way to get his team to form a composition quickly, failing which they will give the initiative back to the Gunners who are on an upward spiral after winning four games on the trot and making a deadline day coup for Mesut Ozil.

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