Tottenham Hotspur booked their place in the Champions League knockouts in style this evening with a last-minute winner to send them to the top of Group D.
Let’s take a look at how the individual players got on:
Hugo Lloris – 6 – Made a few key stops in the first half, although nothing you wouldn’t expect him to make. Most importantly, no errors though. Stood firm when he needed to.
Ryan Sessegnon – 5 – Started on the right side then switched to the left but looked nervous at the back in both positions. Was taken off at half-time to put a natural right footer on the right.
Eric Dier – 6 – Won some strong headers in the air and got forward at times down the right, but that’s about it. Some of his cross-field passes tonight put Spurs in all kinds of problems. Much better in the second half on and off the ball.
Clement Lenglet – 7 – Meant to be in there for his quality on the ball, but Lenglet was just as panicked and poor in possession as everyone else in the first half. Struggled in the air too. Much better in the second half finding those passes out the back and that goal was HUGE!
Ben Davies – 5 – All over the place with his passing. Making the blocks is one thing, but you have to find a simple pass out otherwise the opposition attacks never end. Davies often resorted to just stabbing it clear and hoping for the best. Like everyone else, he did improve in the second 45.
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Ivan Perisic – 6 – Meant to bring experience on nights like these. He was beaten by the full-backs for fun and offered almost nothing on the ball or going forward in the first half. A more well-rounded performance in the second half and ran his socks off. That block was as good as a goal too.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – 7.5 – Completely overwhelmed in the middle of the pitch in the first 45. Seemed to lose every second ball and his passing felt panicked and often negative. In the second half, he was like a different player, making so much time and space for his teammates. And what a goal to win the game too!
Rodrigo Bentancur – 8 – A strangely anonymous first half, but boy did Bentancur come to life in the second 45. He dictated play as only he can in this Spurs side, starting almost every attack. His pressing was also unbelievable throughout the half. MOTM by a long way.
Lucas Moura – 5.5 – Looked like a man who is still far from match sharp. Worked hard to turn over the ball or make himself available, but consistently overran the ball once it was at his feet. Better in the second half when he served as more of a hold-up player at times.
Harry Kane – 7 – Barely in the game at all. Not sure why he was playing so deep without influencing the game defensively in the first half. Spurs were braver in the second 45 and pushed Kane higher, allowing him to give the defence all kinds of problems, hence getting Spurs further up the pitch.
Heung-min Son – N/A – Barely got a kick of the ball before going off with a concussion before the half-hour mark. Struggled to get into the game at all during that short time.
Substitutes:
Yves Bissouma – 6 – Came on for Son after 30 minutes and it felt like he never quite got up to the speed of the game in the first half. In the second, I was really impressed by how well he turned the ball over and kickstarted breakaways.
Emerson Royal – 6 – A few sloppy moments at the back, but all-in-all he actually played pretty well after coming on at half-time. Spurs certainly improved down the right side with him on the pitch.
Oliver Skipp – N/A
Bryan Gil – N/A
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