Source: Daily_Mail
JAMIE REDKNAPP: Tom Huddlestone has grown into the English Alonso
Moves well for a big man: Huddlestonehas improved his mobility in midfield[LNB]We've all been going crazy about the midfield play of Paul Scholesand rightly so, but Tottenham's Tom Huddlestone can do all of that, too. [LNB]He's the English Xabi Alonso, who will pass a team to death with hisdaisy cutters, those drilled passes that skip off the grass when hepings the ball so effortlessly with either foot. [LNB]He doesn't just launch the ball. Short and long, his passing hasnever been questioned, but he is now more dynamic with his play. [LNB]His improved fitness has allowed him to surge upfield and he will pick up the ball 20 or 30 yards further forward. [LNB]Thetouch maps on this page suggest he was sitting deeper when he ran thegame against Young Boys on Wednesday, operating as a front sweeper. [LNB]But,remember, he is playing in a 4-4-2. Most clubs in the modern game,especially in the Champions League, play a 4-3-3 - so he is one shortfor help in there. [LNB]He'd be even better in a three.[LNB] Itdidn't stop him against Manchester City's trio of Nigel de Jong, YayaToure and Gareth Barry.And there is some experience there. [LNB]Heneeds to score more goals and should have more faith in his shootingbecause he strikes the ball cleanly from distance and with pace. [LNB] In our country, we focus on what players can't do, rather than what they can do. We ask if Tom is mobile enough. [LNB]Well, he's not a box-to-box midfielder with little legs who scurries about the pitch. [LNB]He is big with long legs and a long stride. [LNB]It might look like it takes him time to cover the same ground, but he can shift and he is operating further up the pitch than he was before. [LNB]Also, you can't play in a two in there, often against three opponents, if you can't cover the ground. In the past, he could sit deep and admire his passing, but now he is going to the ball and bossing matches. [LNB]He is setting the tempo, being proactive, rather than reacting to the tempo of the game.[LNB] He's got to believe in himself more - like Steven Gerrard when he plays for Liverpool or Frank Lampard in the blue of Chelsea. [LNB]They have an arrogance about themselves - and you need that to play at the highest level. [LNB]They have a look that says: 'When I play, we play.' [LNB]Tom is starting to find that. He is growing up. He has sharpened up his fitness and is thriving playing for a manager who loves him. [LNB]Surely, he HAS to be in this next England squad. [LNB]What more does a young man have to do?[LNB] If we say one of our problems is keeping the ball and passing the ball, then here is the answer: put him in, keep him in and trust him. [LNB]He didn't go to the World Cup in South Africa, he was left out for the last squad, but I sat five or six seats away from Fabio Capello on Wednesday night and I can't believe he didn't see an England player in Huddlestone.[LNB] He is an international quality passer of the ball, who needs international experience to continue his progress. [LNB]He will get it in the Champions League now. And that, too, can only be good news for England.[LNB]... or is it Tom Hoddlestone? Genius: Glenn Hoddle wowed the crowds with his distribution[LNB]The way Tom Huddlestone passed the ball around for Tottenham on Wednesday night evoked memories of one of the game's great playmakers, Glenn Hoddle. [LNB]Hoddle's sublime passing was a feature of the Spurs teams of the Seventies and Eighties, when he was regularly featured on Match of the Day. [LNB]Any more of Huddlestone's dazzling distribution and he will be renamed Tom Hoddlestone. [LNB] TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC: All the latest news from across the webCHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW: Tottenham land holders Inter Milan while Manchester United and Rangers face Battle of BritainWenger wants Arsenal to put Euro new boys Spurs in their place[LNB] [LNB]
