Tottenham Hotspur enjoyed a magnificent return to winning ways following a thunderous three points against West Ham at White Hart Lane earlier today. The North Londoners came from behind to take the winning claim in the London Derby.
The Hammers laid the first blow when Mohamed Kudus found the back of Vicario’s net in the eighteenth minute. However, that was the concentration boost that Ange Postecoglou’s side needed as the Swede winger curled it past Areola in the thirty-sixth minute to start a massive comeback.
The scores were all tied going into halftime, and the Greece-born tactician subbed out James Maddison for Pape Sarr to provide more stability in the midfield, possibly with the Brighton game in the back of his mind. And what a substitution that turned out to be, as the Lilywhites scored three in seven minutes to put the game to bed.
Kulusevski praises Sarr
And James Kulusevski was asked about the substitution after the conclusion of the game, where he suggested how it is difficult to defend and attack at the same time before going on to claim that Sarr changed the game for the North Londoners.
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Speaking via. BBC, the Swede winger said:
“It’s hard to do both things [attack and defend] all the time and it was good to get Pape in, he changed the game for us.”
With Pape Sarr in the midfield, Tottenham got a physical presence in the midfield who is capable of getting on top of transitional situations, and that proved to be absolutely integral to containing the Hammers attacks. Him and Bissouma formed a pivot that provided some dominance on the ball in the second half.
It is great to see such changes from the manager, showing how those can change the game.
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For Madison, he would be fuming about the change after giving an assist for the first goal, but it’s clear that Ange Postecoglou had tactical reasons for the decision. And while likely being frustrated, the former Leicester City midfielder will understand the decision.
What did you make of Sarr’s performance vs West Ham? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
