It’s not about how you start, it’s about how you finish a Premier League season. Can Monday night be the turning point for Tottenham Hotspur?
After seven games last term, for instance, the Lilywhites had lost just once under Thomas Frank, winning four times, amid a solid yet unspectacular start for the Dane.
As those of a Spurs persuasion are well aware, it all went south rather quickly after that, the club winning just three more top-flight games prior to Roberto De Zerbi getting off the mark in April.
The first seven games of this new campaign under the Italian have yielded just one win, yet last night’s triumph over Coventry City showcased why brighter days may now lie ahead for the north London side.
The winners & losers from Tottenham’s 3-1 win over Coventry
Starting on the negative front, there were some shaky moments for Spurs at the back, it must be said, with Antonin Kinsky looking a little unconvincing throughout.
The young Czech ‘keeper has recovered remarkably well from that night in Madrid, although he produced a rather weak attempt when trying to keep out Jack Rudoni’s close-range effort.
Jan Paul van Hecke didn’t fare much better ahead of Kinsky at right-back, while it was also another tough outing for Dominic Solanke in attack, the Englishman having still only scored four league goals since the start of last season.
Elsewhere, however, Micky van de Ven put in a captain’s performance at left centre-back, while the experienced Andy Robertson was a constant threat down that left flank, firing in seven crosses in total.
The star of the show was undoubtedly James Maddison, the Englishman opening the scoring on what was his first start in 536 days, while the man alongside him, Archie Gray, also led the charge in an advanced midfield role.
|
Tottenham |
Statistic |
Coventry City |
|---|---|---|
|
65% |
Ball possession |
35% |
|
119.4 km |
Distance covered |
117.6 km |
|
0.86 |
Expected goals (xG) |
0.77 |
|
0 |
Big chances |
1 |
|
16 |
Total shots |
12 |
|
0 |
Goalkeeper saves |
2 |
|
131 |
Number of sprints |
109 |
|
4 |
Corner kicks |
4 |
|
15 |
Fouls |
14 |
|
566 |
Passes |
290 |
|
13 |
Tackles |
17 |
|
14 |
Free kicks |
15 |
|
1 |
Yellow cards |
3 |
It’s also worth noting the impact of Omar Marmoush off the left, the Egyptian forward finally breaking his Tottenham duck and in some style too.
Plenty for De Zerbi to be encouraged about heading into this weekend, with one other player, in particular, having caught his eye on Monday night.
Why De Zerbi was raving about the new Dembele
Considering Spurs were up against a newly-promoted side, it isn’t actually time to be getting carried, not least on the evidence of the last 12 to 18 months at N17.
That said, De Zerbi was right to be positive in his post-match press conference, having highlighted a handful of key individuals who stood out in the 3-1 victory.
The former Marseille boss suggested that the aforementioned Robertson had “played very well”, while he also reserved praise for a certain Mohammed Kudus on the opposite side, the Ghanaian proving a real handful all night.
“Kudus also, I liked his performance, and especially in the second half, because in the first half I think it was too difficult to find the space.”
De Zerbi also admitted that he didn’t actually intend to bring Kudus off, such was the level of his performance, although he wanted to hand Dejan Kulusevski the chance to make his long-awaited return from injury.
“Listen Kudus, I thought he was playing well, I think he could finish the game, but I thought of Kulusevski just for the fans, because they waited (for) him on the pitch.”
Kulusevski may be chomping at the bit to get back in the mix on a regular basis, but that starting berth belongs to Kudus for now, the ex-West Ham United man notably supplying the assist for Maddison’s opener.
In all, the £55m man supplied two key passes, completed two of his six attempted crosses and also recorded a remarkable 97% pass accuracy rate, that latter metric particularly impressive for any forward player.
He’s so dynamic and direct, the 26-year-old boasting the ability to drag Spurs forward time and again, as seen in his tally of four progressive carries and two successfully completed dribbles.
It’s for that athleticism and ball-carrying prowess that he has earned comparisons to the great Mousa Dembele in the past, with pundit John Wenham describing Kudus as the “closest” thing Spurs have had to the elegant Belgian in that sense.
“Kudus is like having two players rolled into one,” Wenham said.”On one hand, he’s this tricky, skilful right-winger that gets loads of goals and assists. On the other hand, he’s like a massively powerful central midfield player.
“He’s the closest equivalent we’ve had to Mousa Dembele, in terms of the strength that he’s got and the way he holds players off, although they’re completely different players.”
Also hailed as having a ‘more advanced and goal-threatening Dembele vibe’, in the view of journalist Alasdair Gold, Kudus could well be the modern lynchpin of this Tottenham team – providing he can stay injury-free, of course.
