Brandon Austin made his Tottenham debut vs Newcastle United on Saturday
A depleted Tottenham Hotspur squandered another lead at home to lose 2-1 to Newcastle United in the Premier League on Saturday.
Dominic Solanke opened the scoring with a fantastic diving header in the fourth minute, giving Ange Postecoglou’s side the start they desperately craved for. However, only two minutes later, Anthony Gordon levelled the matters with a fine left-footed strike which was controversial as the lead-up to the goal came off Joelinton’s hand. VAR didn’t overturn the referee’s on-field decision Gordon’s goal stood much to the Spurs boss and his players’ bemusement.
Alexander Isak continued his hot goalscoring form to make it 2-1 for the Magpies in the 38th minute, albeit with slight help from Tottenham defender Radu Dragusin. It turned out to be another painful afternoon for the Lilywhites as they suffered their 10th loss of the Premier League season.
Spurs were missing 10 senior players due to injury, illness or suspension against Eddie Howe’s side, and one of them was backup goalkeeper Fraser Forster. The ex-England international, who has deputised well in the absence of No.1 Guglielmo Vicario, was ruled out after failing ill earlier this week.
This forced Big Ange to hand Brandon Austin his Tottenham debut. Incredibly well-composed for his first Premier League start, the 25-year-old was helpless for both Newcastle goals. He commanded the box well and barely looked flustered in front of the jam-packed Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
After the game, Big Ange was asked about Austin’s performance on his Tottenham debut. The Spurs boss praised his goalkeeper, stating on BBC Sport:
“Really good. The moments we are going through putting big tasks on players and they’re rising to occasion.”
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Austin has played for Spurs’ youth teams since 2014 and has been a regular member of the first-team squad since returning from a loan spell at Orlando City in 2021. He has appeared in Tottenham’s senior matchday squad on 78 occasions before his debut vs Newcastle on Saturday. The former USA youth international’s patience and persistence finally paid off, although he would have loved to be on the winning side.
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This could yet prove to be the 25-year-old’s only appearance for the North Londoners, who are closing in on the signing of goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky from Slavia Prague. It will be interesting to see whether Big Ange shows faith in Austin to continue in goal for the upcoming fixtures or recalls Forster to the lineup after his recovery from illness.
