Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Liverpool: Isak and Ekitike goals enough to win chaotic clash against Thomas Frank’s spurs
A late goal from Richarlison scared Liverpool, but the Reds were able to hold onto their lead and leave north London with all three points. Tottenham lost again at home; Spurs have now played nine league games at home this year and lost five of them, although manager Thomas Frank could justifiably point to Xavi Simons’ 33rd minute red card as a reason for the let-down this time.
Tottenham streamed forward with enthusiasm in the early stages to make their point against Arne Slot’s struggling champions, but it was perhaps that enthusiasm that backfired, when Simons chased down Virgil van Dijk and hauled the Liverpool man down, grazing his leg with his studs. The video assistant referee intervened and Simons was sent off for serious foul play.
How might the game have been different if Simons had not let his heart get the better of his head? Despite Tottenham’s poor home form they had made it clear they were ready for a full-blooded contest, Frank desperate to improve his side’s fortunes, having implicitly begged for more time in midweek after pressure continued to mount due to unsatisfying results. “It’s not a quick fix,” Frank pleaded to the increasingly impatient Tottenham support. “If nobody gets time, nobody will be able to turn this around.”
But a man down, Spurs predictably retreated into their shell and Liverpool began to knock hard. Still, Florian Wirtz’s tame, if tricky, effort was the visitors’ closest moment before the break. But in the second half, Alexander Isak’s introduction added some attacking bite, the £125m man combining sweetly with Hugo Ekitike and Wirtz on minute 56 to finish past Guglielmo Vicario. But the goal proved costly for Isak, with Micky van de Ven having scissored his legs as he tried to take the shot.
The Swede then went off injured and his competitor at the head of Liverpool’s front line put himself once more into the picture. After Jeremie Frimpong’s deflected cross floated into the box Ekitike showed desire to rise above Cristian Romero and put a looping header past Vicario. Spurs’ appeals that their defender had been fouled were dismissed.
Liverpool’s torpor was on display when they had every man back for a corner, but somehow most of them stood idly by while five Spurs players harassed and hassled Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate, before Richarlison managed to smuggle the ball into goal to halve the deficit.
It ensured the visitors’ spent the last 10 minutes on panic mode, Spurs spamming crosses into the box as Liverpool tried to hold on. Captain Romero didn’t make things easier for his side when he lashed out at Konate and got sent off with a second yellow. Frank was looking absolutely ghastly on the touchline.
Interestingly, even with Spurs down two men it didn’t stop the pressure from coming. Alisson got down fast to save Pedro Porro’s deflected shot, before the Brazilian was alert again to claw away Wilson Odobert’s dangerous cross. Liverpool survived.
