Tottenham followers stood and applauded on the ultimate whistle. Their staff had simply been crushed 4-1 by one in all their fiercest rivals in a London derby. And within the Chelsea dugout stood their former supervisor, Mauricio Pochettino, returning to N17 for the primary time. However they didn’t miss him one bit.
Spurs completed the sport with simply 4 of their beginning XI on the pitch. Cristian Romero and Destony Udogie each picked up pink playing cards, whereas Micky van de Ven and James Maddison had been misplaced to damage. But Ange Postecoglou’s facet had been nonetheless within the match till the 94th minute.
All the way down to 9 males and with each of their centre-backs compelled off, Tottenham stayed true to their fashion as Postecoglou’s excessive line of defense remained. It may need appeared naïve and even reckless – nevertheless it gave them an opportunity. With 9 males on the pitch, Eric Dier noticed a volley dominated out for offside following a set piece. From one other, the returning Rodrigo Bentancur missed with a header from contained in the six-yard field. And within the 93rd minute, Son Heung-min’s shot was saved at full stretch by Robert Sanchez following a fast break.
Chelsea then went up the opposite finish and scored the third. And the Blues added one other within the 97th minute to wrap up an in the end huge win for the guests. However the scoreline didn’t inform the story in one more dramatic finale on the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs secured the most recent comeback in Premier League historical past as they got here again from a objective right down to beat Sheffield United 2-1 with objectives within the 98th and one centesimal minutes in September. And in opposition to Liverpool later within the month, Postecoglou’s facet sealed victory within the 96th minute in opposition to the Reds’ 9 males.
It did not work on Monday evening, however sitting again may need introduced the identical consequence. Underneath Nuno Espirito Santo, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, it definitely did not deliver a lot pleasure.
VIDEO: Ange Postecoglou: “We Need To Obtain Issues That Have By no means Been Achieved Earlier than”
Postecoglou had not misplaced in his earlier 52 dwelling matches as a coach. Tottenham had not been crushed all season within the Premier League. Each of these data went on Monday, however Tottenham received plenty of credit score in defeat to Chelsea.
“It is simply who we’re and who we’re going to be so long as I’m right here. We go down to 5 males, mate and we could have a crack,” the Australian stated after the sport when requested why he didn’t instruct his staff to defend deeper.
The Tottenham supervisor additionally refused to criticise the officers’ choices following a weekend which noticed Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta vent his anger at Newcastle United’s objective within the Gunners’ 1-0 loss at St. James’ Park and Spurs’ north London rivals launch an announcement supporting the Basque.
“In my 26 years, I used to be at all times ready to just accept the referee’s determination good, unhealthy or in any other case,” Postecoglou stated. “And I’ve had some shockers in my profession, let me let you know. I’ve had some go my approach as properly.”
Romero and Udogie can most likely have few complaints underneath the legal guidelines of the sport now and each flirted with reds earlier within the sport too. Behind the scenes, Postecoglou is prone to communicate to each as their actions value the staff on Monday.
The Argentine will now be banned for 3 matches and can miss the video games in opposition to Wolves, Aston Villa and Manchester Metropolis. Udogie may even be suspended for the journey to Molineux subsequent Saturday, whereas Van de Ven is ready for just a few weeks on the sidelines no less than after pulling his hamstring and Maddison will should be assessed for an ankle downside.
It’s early November and Spurs’ quick squad is already set to be examined following Monday’s epic encounter, however there’s a togetherness on this group and a communion with the followers which has not been seen for a very long time in N17.
Tottenham misplaced a match on Monday however stayed true to their attacking ideas. It’s what the followers have wished for a very long time and it’s why they adore Postecoglou.
It’s straightforward to overlook that this was a membership in disarray after the sacking of Conte earlier this 12 months and rocked by the summer time sale of their biggest goalscorer, Harry Kane, optimism was not excessive forward of the brand new season.
But Spurs sit only a level off the highest after 11 matches and, underneath Postecoglou, they’re taking part in probably the most thrilling soccer these supporters have seen in years.
Regardless of defeat on Monday, the followers might be vastly pleased with their staff. And even when a dip in type follows with a number of gamers out, they are often extraordinarily enthusiastic about what comes subsequent.
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