TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM — Manchester City do not like the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
This was their third visit to Daniel Levy’s masterpiece and the third time that they have returned to Manchester empty-handed. Each of their games here have followed a similar pattern: City have dominated possession, carried a greater attacking threat but failed to win. They haven’t even managed to score.
In April 2019, Son Heung-min scored the only goal as Tottenham took what proved a pivotal first-leg lead in the Champions League quarter-finals. In February 2020, Steven Bergwijn’s debut strike and another Son goal all but ended City’s Premier League title hopes.
And now, in November 2020, Son’s third goal in as many games in this fixture at this stadium, his fifth in his last five games against City and Giovani Lo Celso’s crisp finish 35 seconds after coming off the bench, boosted Tottenham’s claims as credible title challengers. This was the type of performance and result that gets supporters dreaming.
A year and a day since Jose Mourinho took charge of a Spurs side languishing down in 14th in the Premier League table, they now top of the pile after nine games. Further proof of the progress being made under Mourinho is that this was Tottenham’s fourth league win in a row, the first time that they have strung together such a run in 21 months.
The 2-0 scoreline mirrored that of last season but while that game felt like a fortuitous smash-and-grab for a team still finding its feet under a new manager, this had all the hallmarks of a vintage performance from a Mourinho-managed team. Tactically, Mourinho outsmarted his age-old adversary Pep Guardiola from minute one.
Tottenham’s first was typical of their season: Son darting after a ball that had been clipped into space before finishing clinically. The only surprise was that it was Tanguy Ndombele – again excellent in a No10 role – and not his usual supplier Harry Kane who claimed the assist with a superbly-weighted ball over the top.
Kane did get his trademark assist later on anyway, slipping in Lo Celso to score. He has now provided nine league assists this season, four more than any other player in Europe’s ‘top five’ leagues.
That goal after five minutes enabled Spurs to sit deep and contain their opponents, a task they managed with relative ease, even if there were one or two hairy moments. City felt they had equalised from one such situation when Aymeric Laporte slammed home from a Gabriel Jesus pull-back before the Brazilian was correctly penalised by Mike Dean for handball.
Not that City’s players were too happy with the decision. Kevin De Bruyne, Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva and Jesus himself, led the half-time protests as Dean and his assistants walked off the pitch.
City out-shot Spurs 22-4 but 50 per cent of those were blocked by defenders throwing their bodies on the line; they out-xG’d them 1.66-0.76 but failed to fashion any real chance of note until Ruben Dias’ header in the 90th minute; they out-passed them 597-313 but Spurs were disciplined in their shape and rarely caught out by City’s searching through balls into gaps.
“That discipline is not just about a plan, it’s about an emergency plan,” Mourinho said afterwards. “In case somebody makes a mistake you have to ready for it. That discipline requires a great effort. I’m so proud of all of the players. They were fantastic.”
Ultimately, Mourinho’s gameplan worked to a tee. Squint a little and it could easily have been Mourinho’s Porto or his Chelsea or his Inter or his Real Madrid team out there.
If Mourinho is able to lead a club of Tottenham’s size and lesser budget in comparison to their ‘big six’ rivals to Premier League glory, it would represent his greatest managerial feat since guiding Porto to Champions League glory in 2004. You could argue it would even eclipse it. Not since 1961 have Spurs got their hands on a league title, as rivals delight in reminding their long-suffering fans.
But for now, just savour it, Tottenham fans. Your team is top of the Premier League for the first time in six years. And maybe, just maybe, this year they can make that position their own.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3fjE7rR
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