Tottenham 2-0 Chelsea (Skipp 46′, Kane 82′)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM — Tottenham‘s first win against Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was rubber-stamped by two homegrown stars at opposite ends of their Spurs journeys.
Oliver Skipp could not have picked a better fixture or method to open his goalscoring account for the club, lashing an unstoppable strike sweetly on the half-volley into the top corner from the edge of the box, before the club’s new all-time record goalscorer Harry Kane scrambled in the second to settle the contest and Spurs nerves late on.
Skipp was superb against English football’s most expensive ever player, Enzo Fernandez, in midfield and Kane led the line with typical authority but it was a performance in which every player did their part, including Emerson Royal, who added another chapter to his Spurs redemption story with a dominant display on the right flank. A royal celebration is becoming a regular occurrence in this corner of north London.
Tottenham’s transfer deadline day in January was dominated by right-backs: Pedro Porro joined on loan ahead of a £40m permanent move from Sporting Lisbon in the summer, Djed Spence moved to Rennes on loan until the end of the campaign and Matt Doherty was released to Atletico Madrid after Spurs realised that Fifa regulations prevented them from sending him to the Spanish capital on a temporary basis.
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The one right-back unaffected by the comings and goings was Royal, a player who has veered from cult hero to chief scapegoat during his 18-month spell at the club. It may be coincidental, but Royal’s best run of form in a Spurs shirt has undeniably come in the immediate period prior to and after Porro’s arrival. That the Spanish wing-back endured a torrid debut against Leicester has only helped Royal cement his starting place.
“Emerson Royal is playing at a very high level at the moment, which is fantastic to see,” Spurs legend Ledley King said on Sky Sports before the game. “He’s been a slow burner during his time here, but we can all see the quality he has and at the moment he’s playing as well as anyone.”
Before the last month or so, Royal tended to be on the periphery of Tottenham’s attacking moves but he is becoming an increasingly prominent part of them now. After scoring just one Premier League goal in his debut campaign, Royal has managed two since January and almost had a third at the start of the second half after drawing a Kepa Arrizabalaga fumble from close range. A few seconds later, Skipp thundered in the game’s opening goal.
SKIPPPPPP!!!!
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 26, 2023pic.twitter.com/mrTN7O36ZI
His growing influence was further evidenced by his number of touches across the 90 minutes. Only Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (with 80) managed more in a Spurs shirt than Royal’s 74 which was 32 more than the opposite wing-back Ben Davies. Promisingly, his partnership with Dejan Kulusevski also seems to be blossoming; the Swede enjoyed his best game for some time in what has been a stop-start campaign. Royal’s industry, willingness to provide an overlapping option and defensive solidity, can provide a solid platform from which Kulusevski can work.
Concerns over Royal’s aptitude have generally centred around his attacking qualities rather than defensive ones. He has generally been sound in his own defensive third, if ineffective in the middle and attacking ones. But he has shown signs of improvement in that regard too, notably nullifying one of the division’s most in-form wingers, Jack Grealish, in the recent win against Manchester City.
A recovery tackle on Ben Chilwell as the Chelsea left-back sprinted into the box was crucial and timed to perfection, while his appetite to get stuck in was demonstrated by his seven attempted tackles; no other player on the pitch made more than five.
Royal’s afternoon wasn’t completely blemish-free. He was booked after needlessly involving himself in a scrap initiated by Richarlison and Hakim Ziyech and over-reacted by going to ground clutching his face when the latter unwisely pushed him in the face. In a bizarre sequence of events, Ziyech was sent off before Stuart Attwell rescinded the decision after reviewing the incident on his pitch-side monitor.
Incredible scenes at Spurs
— Sky Sports (@SkySports) February 26, 2023
Stuart Attwell sends off Hakim Ziyech after speaking with VAR – then watches the incident himself and rescinds the red card.pic.twitter.com/p3592GveNg
But it was another impactful display to add to a growing collection. When Spurs finally struck a deal with Sporting for Porro – clearly at the request of Antonio Conte – it looked as though Royal’s days in the starting XI were numbered. Instead, he has been a player reborn. Tottenham have perenially struggled at right-back since selling Kyle Walker in 2017 and Kieran Trippier two years later. Finally, they look to have rectified it via an unlikely source.
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