The next ten minutes went by in a similar fashion, with Tottenham showing the same boring possession tactics, yet unable to get a shot on target. The controlled and consistent pressing of Barnsley kept them at bay.
However, Michael noticed a shift in the Spurs players' body language. If before they were just going through the motions with expressionless faces, they now seemed more alert, making eye contact with each other and even being more vocal.
Vicario and Udogie were the proponents of this as they started to be more aggressive with their positioning. It was the 38th minute and Son Heung-min was dropping deep, ready for the next safe pass.
His expression was desperate. This was the first game that he had such little impact, not even able to touch the ball in the final third after 20 minutes. He prided himself on being the captain, yet he was being shut down by his own manager's system.
Son had already resolved himself to pass backward, no matter what.
