Tottenham bounce back

Tottenham halted their freefall, and continued Leeds United’s, with a 4-0 win over the Yorkshire side, heaping the pressure on Marcelo Bielsa in the process.

Matt Doherty popped up with the opening goal after 10 minutes, before Dejan Kulusevski doubled their lead for an under fire Antonio Conte.

A perfectly weighted pass from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg allowed Harry Kane to steer home a third goal, and leave Leeds staring down the barrel of yet another defeat, as they slide towards relegation.

Heung-Min Son added a fourth, following a brilliant pass from Harry Kane, which in turn set a new Premier League record.

It will come as the perfect tonic to Antonio Conte too, who was left considering his future following a 1-0 defeat to Burnley, Tottenham’s fourth in five games.

For Leeds, it means that they have conceded 10 goals in their last two Premier League games without scoring, and prompts further question marks over Marcelo Bielsa’s position.

Player ratings

Illan Meslier – 5

Was not at fault for any of the goals but always gives the feeling that he could do more to prevent them. Frequently exposed by a porous defence, it is hard not to feel sorry for the Frenchman.

Luke Ayling – 5

Was tasked with man-marking Heung Min-Son, and subsequently saw himself drawn all over the pitch. Kept the South Korean relatively quiet for the game, but the damage was done elsewhere and Son added a fourth late on.

Robin Koch – 4

Was left behind by Harry Kane for Tottenham’s third, and had another afternoon to forget in a defence that has now conceded 9 times in 2 Premier League games.

Diego Llorente – 4

Inexplicably ran over the ball instead of clearing it just before Kulusevski’s strike.

Junior Firpo – 3

Struggled all game tracking Dejan Kulusevski, and seems to have lost all confidence in his own ability under Marcelo Bielsa.

Pascal Struijk- 4

Headed a glorious opportunity wide in the opening minutes which would have changed the outlook of the game. Struggled defensively with Tottenham’s movement.

Adam Forshaw – 4

Kept the ball moving when Leeds had it but did little to help either in defence or attack. Man-to-man system meant that he was consistently stuck unable to pick up Harry Kane, who drifted onto his shoulder.

Stuart Dallas- 4

Like many in Leeds white, looked out on his feet for much of the game.

Raphinha – 6

The sole bright spark in the Leeds side but there was always too much for the Brazilian to do by himself. Was unlucky to see his brilliant free-kick cannon back off the post late on. It is easy to see why he would be keen to leave in the summer.

Jack Harrison -3

Anonymous and substituted at halftime. By that point, the damage had been done though.

Dan James – 4

Hardly had a touch in the first half, and couldn’t find space between Tottenham’s three centre backs. Moved out to the left in the second half but was equally ineffective.

Rodrigo- 3

Came on at half time in an attempt to get Leeds back into the game, but offered even less than the man he replaced, and looked lost up font on his own.

Tottenham:

Hugo Lloris – 6

Had very little to do but did what he did well for the most part. One major error when coming to clear the ball almost led to a Leeds goal, only for Dallas to waste a practically open goal.

Matt Doherty – 8

Opened the scoring, and silenced the crowd after 10 minutes, then proceeded to provide an assist for the second. Was constantly in good positions and worked well with Kulusevski in front of him.

Cristian Romero – 6

Showed his usually aggressive defensive style, and looked comfortable on the ball. The Tottenham defence was not brilliant, but held onto a clean sheet, just.

Eric Dier – 6

Tottenham’s defence looks much calmer with him in it. Headed everything away and kept the ball well, but was untested physically.

Ben Davies – 6

The game passed Davies by, noticed only when he picked up a yellow card on the edge of his own box for a silly foul.

Ryan Sessegnon – 6

Much better than his last outing. Laid the ball on a plate for Doherty’s opening strike, but struggled defensively against Raphinha and was perhaps lucky to get off scot-free in the first half.

Harry Winks – 7

Filled in for the injured Bentancur well, and played a sublime pass for the opening goal to set Sessegnon away

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – 6

Played a perfectly weighted ball to Harry Kane for the third goal that put the tie to bed, but in truth had little to do patrolling the Tottenham midfield.

Dejan Kulusevski – 7

Dovetailed well with Kane and Son and continued to show why he has the potential to be a brilliant addition to the Tottenham squad. Holds width well and took his goal very nicely but was lucky not to give a penalty away in the second half.

Harry Kane – 9

Once again the centre of Tottenham’s attacks, Kane added Tottenham’s third and was constantly dropping deep to create pockets for teammates, especially the wingbacks, who arguably should have done better when found. Produced a wonderful pass to Son and moves one goal behind Thierry Henry in the Premier League scoring charts.

Heung-Min Son – 7

Kept running, and was finally rewarded when he grabbed Tottenham’s fourth. Continues to show an almost telepathic connection with Harry Kane, but was often snubbed in favour of the right-hand side.

 

Read more:

Effective changes & determination: How Antonio Conte turned Tottenham’s awful form around vs Leeds

West Ham United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers betting tips: Premier League preview, predictions and odds