Tottenham Hotspur 0-2 Ipswich Town – Half-Time
Sunday, 10th Nov 2024 15:05
Goals from Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap have given Town a 2-0 half-time lead over Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Axel Tuanzebe made a surprise return to the Blues’ XI, having undergone surgery due to severe cut to his hand last month.
The DR Congo international came in at right-back with Ben Johnson moving to the right-sided role ahead of him. Omari Hutchinson switched to the middle with Conor Chaplin dropping to the bench.
In Town’s only other change Jens Cajuste joined skipper Sam Morsy in midfield for Kalvin Phillips, suspended following his red card last week.
Former Tottenham pair Massimo Luongo and Jack Clarke were on the bench, along with Harry Clarke, back from his suspension, with Nathan Broadhead dropping out of the 20.
Spurs named the same team which beat Aston Villa 4-1 a week ago with central defender Cristian Romero OK despite missing the 3-2 Europa League defeat away against Galatasaray on Thursday due to a toe injury.
Town, in their pink third kit for the first time, threatened in the second minute, Hutchinson seizing on Rado Dragosin’s hesitation to win the ball and then send in a cross which fell to Szmodics following some indecisive defending, the Irish international hitting a shot from a tight angle which home keeper Gugliemo Vicario forced behind.
From the corner, Dara O’Shea flicked a header across goal from the near post which struck Dominic Solanke and flew not too far wide. Referee Darren England missed the former Bournemouth man’s touch and awarded a goal-kick.
Spurs quickly started to take control the game and will feel they should have scored in the third minute when Son Heung-min crossed low from the left to the near post and Brennan Johnson, son of Blues legend David, stabbed wide with some home fans already celebrating.
But it was far from all Tottenham and in the eighth minute, following good work from Cajuste, a Szmodics cross from the left was turned behind in front of Ben Johnson breaking into the back of the box.
From the resultant corner, Town went very close to going in front. Burgess got away from his man at the far post and headed back across goal but off the bar.
Spurs broke quickly through Son, who cut the ball across the area from the left but too far in front of his teammates and Brennan Johnson eventually shot well over.
On 11, as the frantic very open start continued, Solanke’s shot from inside the box was deflected over, then from the resultant flag-kick on the right, Son twisted and turned his way away from Ben Johnson on the left before hitting a strike which clipped a defender but which Aro Muric was still able to claim.
It took eight minutes for the game’s next chance as the pace briefly slowed a little, Solanke hitting a shot on the turn which Muric did well to palm wide down to his left. Two minutes later, Tuanzebe was booked for kicking the ball away after Ben Johnson had conceded a free-kick.
In the 26th minute, Brennan Johnson’s low cross from the right struck Leif Davis and deflected towards Muric’s left post but the keeper was able to scramble a cross to save.
While the home side had been on top and had had a number of chances, but the Blues had had their moments and the better opportunities and in the 31st minute they went in front.
Johnson and Cajuste exchanged passes on the right after a break involving the Swede and Liam Delap. Johnson laid it back to the on-loan Napoli man, who crossed, the ball flicking off Delap’s head as he challenged with Romaro and up into the air, and Szmodics’s overhead kick found the corner of the net.
The Town support at the other end went wild, as they did the last time the teams had met when Finidi George similarly scored an overhead kick.
After a long delay while Solanke underwent treatment, Spurs went about looking for a leveller, Ben Johnson making an impressive challenge on Destiny Udogie as the Italian international burst into the box. There were claims for a penalty from the home fans but not from the players.
Delap thought he’d bullied his way through on goal as the half moved into its final five minutes, however, referee England felt he had done so illegally and pulled play back as Vicario dived at his feet.
There was a scare for the Blues in the 42nd minute when Muric played the ball out straight to a Dejan Kulusevski midway inside the Town half in space. For a moment it appeared Spurs players were queuing up to score but somehow the Blues escaped.
And from the subsequent break, they doubled their lead. Hutchinson broke forward riding challenges, finding Davis on the left, who moved it on to Szmodics, whose low cross was diverted towards his own goal by Dragusin and Delap added the final touch from a yard out, gleefully smashing his sixth goal of the season into the roof of the net. The Town fans at the other end of the ground again went into raptures.
The Blues saw out four minutes of injury time to lead a game at half-time for the first time since promotion, the home fans booing loudly at the whistle.
As was always likely, Tottenham had seen most of the ball and chances, but aside from Johnson’s early shot wide and Solanke’s effort which was well-stopped by Solanke, the resolute Town backline, effectively a five-man defence when out of possession, having been solid and Muric handling confidently when required.
Town had shown their threat on the break from the early stages with Spurs always looking vulnerable to those counter-attacks.
Szmodics took his opportunity clinically, echoing Finidi’s goal in Town’s last game at White Hart Lane, and then the former Colchester man made an important contribution to the second, Delap making sure the ball was forced over the line and becoming the first Town player to score in three successive away games since Claus Thomsen in 1994.
The half had been very open, particularly in the early stages, and it seems likely there could be more goals in the second half, perhaps at both ends.
Tottenham: Vicario, Pedro Porro, Romero, Dragusin, Udogie, Bentancur, Sarr, Kulusevski, Johnson, Solanke, Son (c). Subs: Forster, Spence, Davies, Gray, Bissouma, Bergvall, Maddison, Werner, Lankshear.
Town: Muric, Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Burgess, Davis, Morsy (c), Cajuste, Johnson, Hutchinson, Szmodics, Delap. Subs: Walton, H Clarke, Woolfenden, Townsend, Luongo, Burns, J Clarke, Chaplin, Hirst. Referee: Darren England (Doncaster). VAR official: John Brooks.
Photo: Sports Press Photo via Reuters Connect
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| TimmyH added 15:07 – Nov 10 When we play that well we really don’t need half-time…will only benefit one side. Fingers crossed! | |
| mathiemagic added 16:10 – Nov 10 What a win, such a great battling performance and for the most part the mistakes were cut out. Man Utd wont be looking forward to coming to Town that’s for sure. | |
| Super km added 16:16 – Nov 10 Muric absolutely class today. Top saves and bossed the area all afternoon. |  |
| ChingShady added 16:16 – Nov 10 Fantastic performance, we rode our luck at times and I must be honest, we were handed far too many soft falling over fouls, our boys knew they just had to go down to win freekicks but that isn’t our fault. Muric stepped up when needed and FINALLY! KICKED LONG WHEN we were evidently under pressure, whether that was Kieran telling him or just his instinct, just happy to see it. I of course want us to play out from the back but there needs to be an option to just go long if we’re under the cosh. Keep supporting them through thick and thin! Like I said last week, football can change in a flash. COYB! | |
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