In what could prove to be a seismic game in their season, Tottenham Hotspur were beaten 3-1 by Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
For a long time, Tottenham have very much felt too big to go down. Any talks of a relegation battle were met by bemusement, and mainly came from trolling fans.
But this game confirmed that Spurs are in the thick of the relegation fight. Astoundingly.
Tottenham are without a win in their last 11 league games. The most shocking aspect of this latest loss was how easily Tottenhwm were to play through. And how clueless they were in attack.
Although Tottenhwm went ahead, Palace roared back and the game was changed with Micky van de Ven sent off. The Dutchman had brought down Ismaila Sarr inside the box, with no attempt to win the ball. Sarr converted the penalty, starting the comeback — with two more netted before half-time.
A man down in the second half, Igor Tudor didn’t throw caution to the wind. Bar long throws, Spurs looked utterly toothless.
In this article we’ll cover:
Palace boss the midfield
Some may say the game changed when Van de Ven was sent off. But the truth is, Tottenham had a very soft centre.
With Palace building up in a 3-2, Tudor needed to protect the middle. But Adam Wharton and Evann Guessand were consistently able to punch the ball through the gaps of Tottenham’s midfield four. Sarr was a constant thrown in Tottenham’s side, positioned just between their midfield and defence.
From minute one, it felt as though Tudor had set his side up in a mid/low-block to play on the counter. It’s staggering that this was his plan for a Palace side who normally benefit from playing on the counter themselves.
But even when Palace were tasked with taking the game to Tottenham, they largely controlled the match. It was always going to be an uphill battle for the hosts.
Wharton bossed the midfield, with Tottenham sitting off and allowing him space. Both of Palace’s open-play goals typified Tottenham’s messiness, and af failure to organise themselves after going a man down.
For Jorgen Strand Larsen’s goal, Guessand dispossessed Pape Matar Sarr before Wharton slipped the Palace striker through. Similarly, Palace’s third highlighted how well the Eagles rotate under Glasner. Daichi Kamada and Guessand dropped deeper, allowing Wharton to push up. Once again a progressive ball cut through Tottenham’s midfield, finding Sarr in behind with a wonderful pass.
Crystal Palace don’t need a second chance when they play a team that gives them space, and they dominated the midfield.
Toothless Tottenham
Tottenham were staring down the barrel at half-time. They were 3-1 down, having seen their centre-back (and captain) sent off, with Palace supporters chanting “Ole!” with every pass.
But the most shocking thing was an utter lack of response or fight.
When Newcastle United went down to 10 men against Manchester United just a day before, they were defiant. In fact, the sending off spurred them on.
You’d think that some Tottenha mplayers who use it as motivation, realising the severity of the situation. Tottenham have brilliant attacking players, who cost a lot of money and shouldn’t be where they are in the table.
But the worrying factor of Tudor’s short tenure to date is that you don’t know where the goals are going to come from.
If Tottenham’s plan was to hold Palace at arm’s length and hit them on the counter, they lacked compactness and pace in transition. Tottenham’s main plan in the second half was to hit the ball in hope to Dominic Solanke. Or get the ball into the box from long throws.
Sound familiar? It’s kind of what happened during the Thomas Frank era. The question is, where do Tudor’s side go from here?
The Croatian was brought in as an interim to steady the ship. A temporary plaster ahead of the necessary surgery later on.
But the wound is getting deeper. And Tottenham’s hierarchy simply cannot risk things getting unthinkably worse.
Tottenham are still to play Liverpool, Aston Villa and Chelsea as well as fellow relegation candidates Nottingham Forest. There are other tough fixtures like Leeds United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, who have nothing to lose.
Make no mistake, Tottenham are in crisis. They must act fast or the unthinkable of going from Europa League champions to the Championship will be reality.