Tottenham Hotspur registered a narrow win over Cardiff City earlier today to make it three wins in three league games. Eric Dier’s early eighth-minute goal proved to be the main difference between the two sides before Cardiff City were reduced to 10-men in the second half when Joe Ralls saw a red for his awful tackle on Lucas Moura.
With the win, Tottenham now climb to third in the league table, although both Chelsea and Arsenal are due to play on Sunday.
Here are the Tottenham player ratings.
Hugo Lloris (7.5/10): A mixed performance from the French international, whose lack of confidence almost handed Cardiff the equaliser in the first half as he hesitated to come out of his goal to clear a through ball. That being said, Lloris made a host of important saves as the game wore on, including an extraordinary one to deny Sean Morrison in the second half.
Kieran Trippier (8/10): A vital cog in Spurs’ build-up from the back, Kieran Trippier dominated the right flank with some pinpoint passing and neat football. His accurate delivery from the right-hand side initiated Spurs’ early opener.
Davinson Sanchez (7/10): Looked tentative at times in dealing with Callum Paterson, who caused a lot of problems for the Colombian international. While he did manage to see out Spurs’ slender one-goal lead at the end, he definitely needs to improve in the upcoming games.
Toby Alderweireld (8.5/10): Marshalled the backline with a great defensive display. The Belgian looked confident on the ball and didn’t appear tentative while defending. Most importantly, however, he made a vital off the line clearance in the first half to deny Cardiff the equaliser.
Danny Rose (9/10): An excellent performance from the English international, who was not only confident in his play but made a series of attacking surges. He was up and down the pitch throughout the course of the game before being subbed off in the 88th minute.
Moussa Sissoko (7.5/10): An industrious performance from the French international, who was both tireless and inventive as he caused a myriad of problems for the opposing defence. He link-up play with Kieran Trippier on the right-back was also impressive and overall, it was definitely one of his best performances as a Spurs player.
Harry Winks (8/10): An unsung hero for Tottenham in midfield, Winks instigated the play with his neat movements and excellent passes. Not only did he skip past defenders to initiate attacking opportunities for his side but he also attained the joint-highest (tied with Davinson Sanchez at 93%) pass accuracy than anyone else on the pitch.
Eric Dier (7/10): A mixed performance from Eric Dier, who, despite scoring the only goal of the game, appeared wobbly at the base of Tottenham’s 4-4-2. Although his performance was significantly better than the last few matches, the English international allowed Cardiff to initiate a couple of scoring chances. Therefore, he definitely needs to improve his performances, especially with Victor Wanyama back to full fitness.
Son Heung-Min (7/10): Guilty of not being able to make the most of his chances, Son had a pretty disappointing game by his lofty standards. Although he didn’t find it difficult to make mazy runs into the final third, the end-product was always lacking as he was replaced by Erik Lamela in the 72nd minute.
Lucas Moura (7.5/10): By far the most active attacker for Tottenham, Lucas Moura almost looked untouchable at times during his marauding runs into the box. He showcased with his dribbling qualities by skipping past defenders at ease.
Harry Kane (7/10): An underwhelming performance from Harry Kane, whose role in the final third was perplexing at the very least. The English international, more or less, operated as the false nine alongside Lucas Moura, often looking to create opportunities. Perhaps with no Dele Alli or Christian Eriksen in the team, Mauricio Pochettino looked to try something different, which proved to be quite ineffective in the end.
Substitutes
Erik Lamela (6.5/10): Arguably the most in-form player going into this game, Lamela was shockingly left out of the starting eleven. And when the Argentinian came on for Heung-Min Son in the 72nd minute, he had very little time to have an impact.
Victor Wanyama (NA): Came on for Moussa Sissoko in the 85th minute as Pochettino opted for more solidity in midfield.
Ben Davies (NA): Replaced the highly influential Danny Rose with just two minutes remaining on the clock.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored
