Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham Hotspur

Premier League • England

Player ratings: Tottenham pass master becoming Conte favourite but sluggish finisher fails

Harry Winks, Ibrahima Diallo Southampton v Tottenham December 2021

Tottenham had three goals disallowed as they could not capitalise on Southampton’s first-half red card, eventually settling for a 1-1 draw.

Southampton dominated the opening stages of the game before James Ward-Prowse finished fantastically, cutting the ball across Hugo Lloris’ goal and into the corner.

Harry Kane responded with a penalty to make it 1-1 for Antonio Conte‘s men, shortly after Mohammed Salisu received a second yellow card for a tackle on Son Heung-min.

In the second half, Spurs dominated and while they had the ball in the net two more times, both efforts were disallowed and the Saints otherwise dug in to hold out for a good point.

As for who stood out, Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks’ passing was brilliant and he was also impressive in possession. At the other end, Southampton’s defenders did well to keep Spurs out after they made three attacking substitutions.

Southampton

Fraser Forster: Saved a Kane free-kick and a Son shot in the first half, but his distribution was wasteful on two occasions. Saved a Matt Doherty effort after getting somewhat lucky when the full-back’s bizarre effort was ruled out for a foul. Finished the game strongly. 6.

Yan Valery: Made a number of vital interceptions when Spurs threatened to transition up the pitch and shot wide of the post. Heavily involved in keeping Southampton level in the second half. 6.

Jan Bednarek: Kept Kane quiet in the first half, stepping up to meet and deal with the England captain. He was the Saints’ best defender in the second half as they held on for a draw. 6.

Mohammed Salisu: The weakest of Southampton’s defenders in the first half. Eager to step up and defend like Bednarek but got it wrong and got sent off after 40 minutes for a second yellow card. 3.

Kyle Walker-Peters: Dangerous on the right hand side of Southampton’s attack in the early stages, but yellow-carded for a tug on Sergio Reguilon. Struggled to be as much of a threat in the second half but painfully put his face in the firing line to block a shot at the other end. 6.

Stuart Armstrong: He was continuing his return from injury and looked steady in the midfield, sometimes getting forward on the left. Some nice touches and passes thereafter. 5.

James Ward-Prowse, Kyle Walker-Peters, Ibrahima Diallo Southampton v Tottenham December 2021

James Ward-Prowse: Showed a great passing range early on before slicing the ball excellently past Lloris for the opening goal. Quieter in the second half following the Southampton red card. 7.

Ibrahima Diallo: Like Valery, in the right place at the right time to nick the ball on a few occasions. Struggled to get a hold of the midfield battle in the second half as Spurs played wide and over the top. 5.

Romain Perraud: Looked a threat at times down the left of the Saints attack and caused Emerson Royal a few problems. At the other end, he kept Dele Alli at bay to stop a breakaway. Involved more defensively than offensively after the break. 5.

Shane Long: Glanced a Walker-Peters cross wide but that was his only real contribution in the first half. Like in the first half, had no direct chances after the break. 4.

Adam Armstrong: Made a lot of runs down the left but, like Long, did not have any clear-cut first-half chances. Yellow-carded after the interval. 4.

Substitutes:

Armando Broja (on for Long, 71): Made a good run forward at Ben Davies and had a shot blocked late on. 4.

Nathan Redmond (on for Armstrong, 83): N/A


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Tottenham

Hugo Lloris: Couldn’t do anything with Ward-Prowse’s finish and had little else to do in the first half. Similarly quiet for most of the second half as Spurs dominated the ball. 6.

Davinson Sanchez: Made a couple of good tackles but his passing could have been better in the first half. Had little to do in the second half but intercepted when needed, especially against Broja late on. 5.

Eric Dier: Did not have much to do in the first half, despite Southampton’s dominance. Tried a couple of passes up to Kane to no great avail. Made a few nice interceptions and tackles after the break. 6.

Eric Dier, Shane Long Southampton v Tottenham December 2021

Ben Davies: Good header for his offside goal, even if it was disallowed. At the other end, he did well to cover the ground and intercept on a Southampton breakaway. Impressed after the break with a good low cross and a tackle to stop a Southampton breakaway. 6.

Emerson Royal: Made a few blocks down the left and felt the wrath of the Saints fans for going down under one particular challenge. Could not really affect the second half too much. 5.

Harry Winks: Tottenham’s pass master throughout and he was also solid in possession. Won the ball a couple of times, including after a mistake in possession. Played some cute passes but the most important one was his assist for Son which led to the penalty. Played another great ball for a second Kane goal which was just offside, before setting up Son and Doherty for further chances. 7.

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Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: Solid in the midfield and defended when he needed to. 5.

Sergio Reguilon: Had a shaky start with some poor touches. Involved up and down the left-hand side in a battle with Walker-Peters while trying to get Spurs forward. Came off at half time after receiving a yellow card. 5.

Dele Alli: Had a slow start and never really got going. He did not add much to the attacking link-up between himself, Kane and Son. 5.

Harry Kane: Sent Forster the other way with his fantastic penalty. Before that, he showed good hold-up play but his passing into Son and Reguilon was not always accurate. Had a second goal ruled out for offside following a great first touch and fine finish and his passing was more accurate in the second half. 7.

Son Heung-min: Very quiet early on due to Spurs’ struggles to link in attack, but ended up winning the penalty in the challenge with Salisu before the break. Heavily involved in the second half with shots and passes, but could not find the finishing touch. 7.

Substitutes:

Matt Doherty (on for Reguilon, 46): Had two clear-cut chances to score from Winks and Son passes, but his sluggish finishing let Tottenham down. Also put in a few crosses from the left. 4.

Lucas Moura (on for Alli, 62): A lively presence when combining with Kane and Son and his shot straight at Forster was saved. 5.

Bryan Gil (on for Emerson Royal, 77): His crosses sometimes caused a problem and he had a shot saved at the death. 5.