Spurs 2-2 Arsenal:(Match report)

“I am immensely proud of our performance today as should every Spurs fan we played with our motto sewn on our hearts, the lads played with sheer passion they played as winners do”.

Yesterday’s north London derby at the lane was a truly magnificent spectacle, as the lads battled it out with our bitter local rivals to earn a two all draw, in what was dubbed as the most Important north London derby in a generation. The match began with the Lilywhites controlling the majority of possession as our fast paced attacking football seemed to overwhelm Arsenal, as for the first quarter of the match we dictated the tempo and the overall flow of the game. 25 minutes in the best opportunity of the match arose, Kyle Walker drove a fast low ball into the box as Lamela unleashed an effort which came of the Argentine’s shin as Ospina pulled off a marvellous save to deny Spurs from taking the lead. We continuously caused Arsenal with an avalanche of problems as out movement and tenacity had put us on the front foot in the first half. So it came with great surprise and disappointment on the 39th minute when Arsenal took a surprising lead, in a moment of sheer spontaneity. The Welshman Aaron Ramsey put the gunners ahead after being picked out well by Bellerin and the Welshman put the ball in the back of the net with a clever back heel, leaving Lloris helpless, 1-0 Arsenal.

The second half couldn’t have started any better for the Lillywhites as Arsenal were reduced to ten men on 55 minutes, Francis Coquelin receiving his second Yellpw after a cynical foul on Kane. The sending off benefited us greatly, as shortly afterwards Kane went mightily close, as a corner was whipped in Kane worked hard to find space and fired the ball towards the goal. However, Ospina managed somehow to keep it out with a fine save and Michael Oliver confirmed via goal line technology that it was just on the line. Although a goal came shortly afterwards for the battling lads of White Hart lane, as the ball slipped through from the resulting corner was met by Alderweireld and the Belgian slotted it well in to the bottom left hand corner of the net as he sent the Spurs fans wild one all the score, and the Belgians third goal of the season. The wild cheers of the home fans turned in to delirium two minutes after as Spurs doubled their lead, Alli showed his excellent fitness as he chased the rolling ball as it entered the byline before knocking it back for Kane who looked up and curled an excellent shot from far out high in to the net, 2-1 Spurs!

A victory seemed a certainty as we looked to capitalise on our lead with an almighty buzz ringing around the ground in the aftermath of the goal and we almost secured victory in the 72nd minute. Harry Kane swiveled around in the box to fire a shot narrowly wide of the post. Elation turned to deflation five minutes after kane’s golden opportunity, as Alexis Sanchez scored to draw level for the gunners. The Chile international received a perfectly weighted pass as he tucked the ball home after being one on one with lloris,2-2. Sanchez almost found the winner for Arsenal soon after his equaliser, as he fired a free kick in the direction of the top corner however, Lloris dealt well with his effort and thwarted it wide. The gunners again didn’t settle for the draw and Wimmer excellently denied Arsenal from securing a victory, the Austrian charged down Ramsey who one on one with Lloris fired an effort which Wimmer expertly blocked with an inch perfect slide tackle. 2-2 the final score at the lane, my view of the performance is of great admiration as I tweeted the following on Saturday, in what I feel summarised the match in a nutshell; “I am immensely proud of our performance today as should every Spurs fan we played with our motto sewn on our hearts, the lads played with sheer passion they played as winners do”.

Spurs (4-2-3-1): Lloris (c), Walker, Alderweireld, Wimmer, Rose (Davies 78), Dier, Dembele (Son 82), Lamela (Mason 67), Alli, Eriksen, Kane. Substitutes (not used): Vorm, Trippier, Carroll, Chadli.

West Ham United 1-0 Spurs:(Match report)

The floodlights of Upton Park beamed down on one last West Ham v Spurs London derby,at the soon to be demolished ground. However it was not to be a memorable occasion for the Lillywhites as we fell to a disappointing 1-0 loss at the hands of the hammers. The game was only seven minutes old when the deadlock was broken,as Payet’s artistry had struck us with great consequence. The Frenchman served up a fine ball in to the area from the resulting corner and the inform Michail Antonio punished us as unmarked winger planted a powerful header into the back of the net despite the best efforts of Lloris,1-0 West Ham. A little under ten minutes afterwards West Ham almost doubled their lead against us, as Mark Noble unleashed a powerful shot which was heading in to the top corner,but Lloris showcased his excellent reflexes with a very good save. The hammers had total control in the remainder of the first half and Antonio nearly doubled their lead. The former Nottingham Forest man received a perfect pass,however Wimmer blocked his effort expertly. Kouyate had the ball in the back of our net just before the halftime whistle,although it was thankfully judged offside,1-0 to West Ham at the interval.

Things couldn’t get any worse in the second half,considering we had zero goal attempts in the first 45. Pochettino had clearly changed the tactics at half time as we played with more energy and creativity,however Bilic had set West Ham up in a defensive format as chances became a rarity. We should have taken the lead on the hour mark,as Alderweireld hit a powerful low shot from some distance out,Adrian parried his effort to the feet of Kane who had the chance to fire into an open net. However Kane couldn’t get his feet sorted out in time and he didn’t make enough contact with the ball as his effort was blocked by the hammers defence. Shortly afterward we again caused problems for the east London side,Eriksen fired the ball towards the net from close range but the Dane was denied by a fine save from Adrian. The hammers almost sealed victory at the other end as Antonio fired the ball over from close range after a free kick was whipped in,Spurs were let of the hook in that instance. In the preceding minutes our energy and drive was missing,possibly the psychological effects that were brought with the game tonight,as a win would of sent us top,but it wasn’t to be as West Ham sealed a deserved victory.

The chemical balance didn’t seem to be present on the night with Alli missing but the lads were ultimately tired and it was one game to many in close succession. Although there was a silver lining on the night as Arsenal fell to a 2-1 loss to Swansea which keeps us three points clear of our rivals and only three points behind Leicester in top spot. We tend to bounce back well after a defeat and with ten league games remaining we are still a big contender for the title. The north London derby awaits us on Saturday in what will be the biggest match between the two in years, a win is imperative and Pochettino will no doubt address the lads and prepare them well for the upcoming battle.COYS⚽️
Spurs (4-2-3-1) – Lloris (c); Trippier, Alderweireld, Wimmer (Carroll 77), Davies; Dier, Mason; Lamela (Son 70), Eriksen, Chadli (Alli 60); Kane. Substitutes (not used): Vorm, Rose, Walker, Onomah.