Tottenham suffocated a possession-hungry Manchester City in a fascinating tactical contest between two old foesYou know, this might just catch on. For an hour at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium the white shirts of Spurs and the all-blacks of Manchester City played out a game of such familiar contrasts, possession v non-possession, that it felt like watching a sporting remake from the Legends Tours, Tyson v Holyfield or Benn v Eubank. Related: Son and Lo Celso take Tottenham top with win over Manchester City Related: No amount of Marcelo Bielsa’s genius can save Leeds from a bumpy ride | Jonathan Wilson Continue reading...
Defensive solidity plus a lethal forward pairing may be all it takes for Tottenham to be considered serious challengersThis has already been a deeply confusing season. Nothing makes much sense and as the impact of the virus and the compacted calendar continues to be felt, nothing is likely to any time soon. But still, particularly given how the opening weekend went, there can be few details weirder than Tottenham, who host Brighton on Sunday, would have gone into this weekend top of the Premier League had they not let slip a 3-0 lead against West Ham. Related: Lanzini's late gem completes stunning West Ham fightback at Tottenham The likelihood is still that Liverpool or City win the title but suddenly...
Tottenham’s remarkable 3-3 draw with West Ham from 3-0 up showed the potency of the Son-Kane partnership Gareth Bale can complement but also what can go awry The scriptwriters can hardly say they did not try. When Gareth Bale weaved in, out and past Angelo Ogbonna with two minutes left of added time, the juiciest of cherries looked ripe for garnishing a Tottenham performance that had lurched from scintillating to skittish. Through he ran, rolling back the years in so doing, and it was the kind of self-made chance he has made a career of gobbling up. Lukasz Fabianski stood still; the romantics held their breaths; the ball went past the post and, well, it was probably not going to...
Wales forward has respect and deep affection for the club and is delighted to be back as fans eagerly await his second debutGareth Bale wanted to leave Tottenham, but not like this. It was the long and stressful summer of 2013, Real Madrid were making their moves, supremely confident that they would get their man, and Team Bale felt they had to harden their exit strategy.Whoever said what to whom is unclear but the upshot was that Bale changed. He had played and scored in Spurs’s opening friendly at Swindon in mid-July and it would be his last involvement for the team. He developed a gluteal injury followed by a foot problem, which ruled him out of the rest of...
Ancelotti has Everton aiming high, Manchester United need more than Cavani and flying full-backs impressedHéctor Bellerín has had his doubters over the past year. There have been suggestions a touch of his old pace has gone after long-term injury, and when PSG bid for him last month there was an argument it could be a good time for Arsenal to cash in. But Bellerín set up both goals against Sheffield United, the first after a typically barnstorming burst to the line, and is looking a touch nearer to his old self. “After such a long time at the club he doubted what ambitions he had here, how he could evolve here,” Mikel Arteta said after Arsenal’s narrow win. “But he...