Premier League: Three things learned as Brighton surprise Spurs

Alex Broun 01:40 18/04/2018
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  • Spurs striker Son Heung-Min

    A courageous Brighton claimed a 1-1 all draw with an under-strength Spurs at the Amex Stadium on Tuesday night.

    With a huge FA Cup semi-final coming up on Saturday, Mauricio Pochettino rotated his squad, who were again lethargic as they were in the weekend loss to Manchester City.

    Here are our three things learned from the match:

    Brighton the better side

    Whether they had one-eye on the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United, this was a limp performance from Spurs, especially in the first half, who could have drawn level with Liverpool in third place if they won.

    Brighton played most of the free-flowing football and if they had some better finishing may have found themselves on the winning side.

    This all goes to show what an excellent job Brighton manager Chris Hughton has done, firstly in keeping The Seagulls up and then forging them as a solid mid-table team who can be in the Premier League for years to come.

    Tottenham still have the danger of switching off when unfocussed. This was another example. Spurs fans will be hoping the other Tottenham turn up on the weekend.

    Golden Boot obsession

    Harry Kane, perhaps unfairly, has been relentlessly trolled since claiming a goal against Stoke.

    Understandably he is very keen to win his third-consecutive Golden Boot for the Premier League’s top scorer – and his team-mates are very keen to help him do it.

    As shown when Christian Eriksen was more than happy to help Kane claim the goal that he was originally awarded against Stoke.

    But it was noticeable in the first half that Spurs were guilty of trying to tee-up Kane for a goal rather than playing the ball to the player in the best scoring position, whether that was the Golden Boot contender or not.

    A perfect example was right on half time when Eriksen had a free-kick in a perfect position, and rather than slotting it home – rolled it to Kane whose tame shot was easily saved by Matt Ryan.

    In the end, Kane got his goal more through good luck and the tenacious spirit of Son Heung-min, who thanks to a wicked spinning ball that rolled along the touch line and refused to go out, was able to set up the striker for his goal.

    Spurs still not the finished article

    As much as Pochettino talks his team up they are still far away from the level of consistency needed to challenge for the Premier League’s title.

    Their meek surrender to City on the weekend was alarming, as was their Champions League dismissal at the hands of Juventus.

    There is no doubt that when they are playing well, Spurs are one of the best teams in the league. But they do not play well often enough.

    The FA Cup semi-final against United this weekend then is crucial as Spurs have a chance to defeat one of the heavyweights of the division and go on to claim a major prize.

    Spurs must rise to the challenge, not shrink away from it, and if they do they finally might make the jump from contenders to champions.

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