The half-time whistle has blown in the Premier League match between Tottenham and Crystal Palace, and it’s time for our player ratings.
Tottenham Hotspur head into the break trailing Crystal Palace 3-1 in their crucial relegation scrap. Dominic Solanke’s opener was cancelled out by an Ismaila Sarr penalty following a Micky van de Ven sending-off, before Jorgen Strand Larsen put Palace ahead, and Sarr added Palace’s third.
Let’s take a look at how the individual players got on:
Guglielmo Vicario – He was called into action early after an Adam Wharton strike but proved equal to the task. The Italian was then beaten by Ismaila Sarr from the penalty spot, and Jorgen Strand Larsen made it two from close range. Palace kept piling on the pressure and made it three, but Vicario was slow to get off his line following Wharton’s cross into the box. 3.
Pedro Porro – Not in his preferred full-back role, instead deployed in a back three where he has had to pick his moments to go forward. He has offered some creativity from deep, although not all his long balls have found their intended target. 4.
Kevin Danso – The centre-back returned to the starting XI and posed some set-piece threat with his long throw, which led to an early Pape Matar Sarr chance. Defensively, he managed a few blocks and often looked to play forward passes to the attackers. 3.
Micky van de Ven – The defender looked assured early on, marshalling the backline with controlled aggression while showing a willingness to step forward. He was later sent off for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity after holding Sarr to prevent him from going clean through on goal. 2.
Souza – The wing-back on the left today picked up an early yellow card inside the opening ten minutes after a crunching challenge on Munoz. His first Premier League start was cut short as Tudor replaced him with Yves Bissouma after Tottenham went down to ten men. 5.
Archie Gray – The 19-year-old held the width at right-back in the first half and often pushed high and wide to support attacks. He reached the byline several times and delivered a few crosses into the box. He produced a superb assist for Solanke’s opener after neat play in the Palace box allowed him the space to pick out the striker from the byline. 6.5.
Joao Palhinha – A quiet half from the midfielder, but he was key to Spurs’ tactical setup as he dropped deep to cover for Porro when the Spaniard pushed forward. He also helped deal with a Palace counterattack midway through the half after Danso lost possession following a Tottenham free-kick. He was eventually moved to centre-back after van de Ven’s sending off. 5.
Pape Matar Sarr – Came close to scoring after his shot inside the Palace box went wide after Tottenham won the second ball from a Danso long throw. He also picked up a needless yellow card in the opening forty-five minutes. His evening got a lot worse as he was easily dispossessed in midfield, an action that led directly to Palace’s second. 4.
Mathys Tel – Produced Tottenham’s first shot on target of the night after a positive, direct run into the Palace box, but his effort was straight at Henderson. 5.
Dominic Solanke – Chosen to lead the line tonight and endured a quiet first half. He came alive when Gray reached the byline, with the cross finding him for a simple tap-in. 6.
Randal Kolo Muani – The Frenchman has been deployed behind Solanke and tasked with linking play, which he has done well alongside Tel and Gray. At times, he has overplayed and invited pressure on Spurs. 4.
Substitutes
Conor Gallagher – Following the red card, the Englishman replaced Randal Kolo Muani.
Yves Bissouma – The Malian came on for Souza, who was already on a yellow card after Micky van de Ven’s sending-off.