Spurs shine in six-goal spectacle: In-depth player ratings from the thrilling Tottenham-Manchester City 3-3 draw
Tottenham arrived at the Etihad to face Manchester City today under immense pressure. A trio of successive defeats to Chelsea, Wolves, and Aston Villa had swiftly eroded the excitement generated from their unbeaten start to the season.
Not many teams can claim that they came to City’s hunting ground and held their own. Even Spurs, after the first half would not stand a chance. However, when the full-time whistle blew, Ange’s men were able to walk out with their heads held high.
With a central defensive partnership of Emerson Royal and Ben Davies, Spurs were set up for trouble from minute one. Luckily for them, Erling Haaland had a woeful day in front of goal. Despite this, Spurs could have been at least four goals down by halftime.
Postecoglou made one key change for the second half, taking off Bryan Gil and bringing on Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and moving Giovani Lo Celso into a more familiar number 10 role. This slight tweak turned the game on its head.
At the end of ninety minutes, City will feel they should have won this game whilst Spurs can breathe easy, having brought the losing streak to an end.
Below are TTLB’s ratings on the performance of Spurs players in their clash with Manchester City.
Guglielmo Vicario: 7.5/10
Vicario had one shaky moment minutes into the second half when he passed a ball out straight to a Manchester City player but he more than redeemed himself by saving the subsequent shot from Bernardo Silva.
The Italian goalie continued his good start to life at Spurs, putting in a solid performance and often bailing his team out in critical situations. His passing out of the back was decent but can surely get better.
Pedro Porro: 8/10
Simply sensational. Porro was easily Spurs’ best defender on the pitch today. Defensively, he was solid and kept Jeremy Doku in his pocket, except for one instance in the first half. He also did well against Grealish.
Going forward, Porro’s link-up play with Kulusevski and Brennan Johnson on the right was a sight to sore eyes. Special mention to his deliveries from corners – an aspect of the game he really seems to have worked on.
Emerson Royal: 5/10
Shambolic display from the Brazilian who clearly is not a centre-back. Postecoglou does not have options and is forced to field Emerson in that role. The sheer number of times he gave the ball away in the first half was ridiculous.
Cristian Romero should be back next game and we can finally stop this experiment of Emerson at centre-back. It does not help us, nor does it help the player.
Ben Davies: 7/10
A tale of two halves for the Welshman. Looked like a fish out of water in the first half. Having an unreliable partner in Emerson Royal certainly did not help the cause. Quite a few mistakes in the opening 45.
The second half was in complete contrast. Davies was imposing in aerial challenges and looked much more assured. He was instrumental in Lo Celso’s goal that helped Spurs equalise. Will do much better with someone like Romero alongside him.
Destiny Udogie: 6.5/10
Udogie takes up some outrageous positions on the field which makes you wonder if he is a left-back at all. Unfortunately today, that’s about all that he did on the pitch. One of his quieter performances. Nothing much to offer in attack but did nothing wrong defensively either.
Yves Bissouma: 5.5/10
Sloppy display from the Mali international who looked some paces off it against Manchester City. Easily his worst performance in a Spurs shirt this season.
Anonymous in the first half, Bissouma looked like he was growing into the game in the second half. However, it was his mistake that led to City’s third goal, which was scored by Grealish. One to forget.
Giovani Lo Celso: 8/10
Did not do much wrong in the first half. Did not do much right either. Struggled to bypass City’s press with his creativity. Things changed in the second half though.
Playing in a much familiar advanced role, Lo Celso opened up. Intelligent touches, silky passes and a general sense of urgency defined his game. He capped it off with a sensational striker to score his second goal in two games for Spurs.
Dejan Kulusevski: 9/10
Spurs’ MOTM. Kulusevski was literally everywhere. He started in a number 10 role on paper but kept drifting left, right and centre and proved to be a menace for the City defenders. Was instrumental with the assist for Son’s first goal.
The goal he scored late on to equalise for Spurs personifies the player Deki is. In that aerial challenge, he just wanted it more than Nathan Ake. It was a sensational header that ensured Tottenham did not lose a fourth game on the bounce.
Brennan Johnson: 6/10
Started the game on the right, finished the game on the left. Looked much more at home on the left-hand side though. Blew hot and cold throughout. Had a few moments of brilliance but nothing much to write about.
Bryan Gil: 5/10
The Spaniard kept trying in the first half but not much came off for him. It was just not his day. Understandably taken off at half-time in a substitution that changed the game on its head.
Son Heung-min: 7.5/10
Gave Tottenham an early lead in a sensational counter-attacking move. Dropped deep and linked up exceptionally well with teammates, especially Kulusevski. Provided the assist for Lo Celso’s goal as well. Decent outing from the captain.
Substitutes:
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: 7/10
Came on at half-time and did what was expected of him. It was a typical performance from the Dane, doing all the hard yards and going under the radar. Deserves more minutes in such games.
Oliver Skipp: 6.5/10
Hardly touched the ball after coming on for Giovani Lo Celso. Not much to write about.
Richarlison: N/A
Returning from injury. Not enough time to make an impact.
Jamie Donley: N/A
Making his debut. Came on in the closing stages for Brennan Johnson. Not enough time to make an impact.
