Tottenham Hotspur go into the World Cup break on the back of a crazy 4-3 victory over Leeds United, cementing their place in the top four until after Christmas.
Let’s take a look at how the individual players got on:
Hugo Lloris – 5 – Would have been disappointed to be beaten at his near post for the opener. Made a couple of other very good stops, but Spurs were so open at the back today, Lloris was never going to keep a clean sheet. Isn’t in his best form at the moment.
Emerson Royal – 3 – Got in some great positions today and, once again, did not make it count. Blazed a huge chance over the bar after a superb cut-back from Ben Davies. At one point, he tried a cross-field pass and gave it straight to Leeds in the middle of the pitch. Just not good enough.
Eric Dier – 4 – His positioning for the first Leeds goal was not good enough. Doesn’t seem at home on the right side of a back three when it comes to defensive awareness. Definitely has no synergy with Emerson anyway. His form has really fallen off this month.
Clement Lenglet – 5 – Doesn’t exactly fill you with the same confidence as Dier used to in the centre. Can get bullied at times and his defensive positioning leaves a bit to be desired, even if he is good on the ball.
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Ben Davies – 8 – Really impressed with Davies today. Threw himself in front of everything and actually looked so effective on the underlap. Should have had an assist if Emerson hadn’t missed a sitter. The one defender who can take some credit today. Deserved his well-taken goal.
Ivan Perisic – 5 – Just felt a little bit flat at times. Want to see more of him offensively. You can’t help but feel if you combined the brain of Perisic and the body of Sessegnon, Spurs would have a great left-wing back. Better in the second half when he got one vs one a little more.
Rodrigo Bentancur – 9 – Honestly, it wasn’t his best game. He was neat and tidy in the middle of the park, but arguably not up to his usual standards. What he does give you is 90 minutes of non-stop running every game though. And two goals to win the match, he has to be MOTM!
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – 6 – Much like Bentancur but without the goals. Neat and tidy without anything exceptional. These two have played a whole lot of football this season, so it makes sense they look a little fatigued.
Dejan Kulusevski – 8.5 – Just oozes class whenever he’s on the ball. Most of Tottenham’s good attacks came from Kulusevski carrying the ball. Deserved to grab his assist for Bentancur’s winner, and if not for the Uruguayan’s brace, he would have been Man of the Match by a long way.
Harry Kane – 7 – Took his goal really nicely with the touch around the defender and volleyed finish. It’s the old frustrating pattern that if Spurs made a few chances per game for Kane (like Man City do with Haaland) then Spurs would win most games.
Richarlison – 6 – Loads of hard work, pressing and chasing, without the ball ever quite falling for him. Likely lacking some match sharpness but seemed more involved on the left side.
Substitutes:
Matt Doherty – 6.5 – Created a goal for Tottenham with a cross into the box, as well as some other good chances. It feels like even an out-of-form Doherty is better than Emerson in the RWB role.
Davinson Sanchez – 4 – Came on in the second half and made a big mistake with his positioning for Leeds to go 3-2 up.
Yves Bissouma – 6 – Came on to add solidity to the midfield and allow the likes of Bentancur to push forward, which ultimately won Spurs the game.
Lucas Moura – N/A
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