At the Races

The main reason I was so annoyed about the two Spurs senior team matches being at the exact same time on Sunday was that I knew they were both going to be intriguing and important games. Well, they delivered—albeit in different ways.

In this issue: Manchester United recap | Pub chat | Aston Villa recap | Previewing the midweek matches |

Unfortunately, it's time for some pub chat due to a very disappointing incident amongst the traveling support at Old Trafford.

It's going to be a busy midweek with both teams in action in cup play; the Women's team gets their League Cup group stage started away at Charlton, while Spurs Men travel to Hungary to resume the Europa Leaguephase (this is how I'm going to shorten it and you can't stop me—Europa Leauge league phase sounds way too redundant).

PL Matchday 6 recap | Manchester United 0 - 3 Tottenham

Johnson 3', Kulusevski 47', Solanke 77'

To use the American term, we creamed 'em. At no point were Manchester United a viable challenger in this game, not before Bruno Fernandes' 42nd-minute red card and certainly not after. It was pure dominance by Spurs from kickoff to final whistle.

Starting XI:

Oh, and we did it all without the help of Son Heung-min, who missed out with injury. Ange Postecoglou made a joke after the game about Sonny likely dancing around the Lodge back at Hotspur Way in celebration, but I think it's more likely he was seething in frustration at not being able to get in on the fun (and goals) himself. I doubt that Ange will risk letting him travel to Budapest for the Europa League fixture, but god help Brighton on the weekend. He'll be raring to go!

In Son's absence, Timo Werner got the nod to start on the left wing. Eager as I think we all are to see Mikey Moore receive more (no pun intended) game time, this was the right choice from Ange. Werner's struggles in front of goal continued, failing to finish two big chances where he was one-on-one with United's André Onana, but he contributed plenty to the buildup throughout the game. As his loan progressed last spring I noted that we have to adjust our expectations in terms of what we can realistically ask of him (assists, mostly), and that hasn't changed with his renewed loan this season.

Otherwise, the lineup was as expected. Rodrigo Bentancur appears to be more in favor with Ange than Yves Bissouma since he's getting the coveted league starts, while Bissouma is the rotational option for cup games. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Perhaps more surprising is that Dejan Kulusevski is becoming an indispensable part of the midfield in a partnership with James Maddison. My Tottenham Depot co-hosts have taken to referring to Deki as Spurs' point guard, and it's a fitting descriptor. We're getting to see the creativity of his play brought out to best effect, all while he maintains the work rate and mentality he was already known for.

Key highlights and takeaways:

• Forget being the highlight of the game, Van de Ven's second (!) roaming assist of the campaign for the first goal might end up being a highlight of the season contender. The initial run, spanning more than half of the pitch, was similar to the buildup for the Son goal he assisted earlier in the season against Everton, but this time he added a level of difficulty by driving all the way to the goal line and sending in a blistering cross for Brennan Johnson to finish—the Welshman's fourth goal in four games straight. The fact that Johnson was already grinning from ear to ear before the ball even reached him was a testament to the novelty of a player of Micky's stature and position executing such a flawless attacking move.

• We had a flurry of further chances in the first half but couldn't convert any of them. United made the task of doubling the lead that much easier just before halftime when Bruno Fernandes was given a straight red card—which has now, unbelievably, been successfully appealed by his club. To me it was a clear case of a red card intended as a deterrent; although there wasn't much obvious intent behind Fernandes' challenge on Maddison, it was reckless by the letter of the law, and we've seen many similar challenges punished and upheld in the past across the league. I really don't know how he's weaseled his way out of the three-match ban, but whatever, it's not our problem. As it was, his carelessness left his team shorthanded for the entire second half and Spurs took full advantage.

• Destiny Udogie's fitness is still a concern, as he was pulled off at halftime as a precaution. Unfortunately, his backup, Djed Spence, wasn't included in the Europa League squad. Therefore we have to cross our fingers that Udogie is okay to play midweek.

• The goal that Kulusevski scored just after play resumed is the type of goal you live for as a football fan: acrobatic, technically flawless, and downright audacious. It was also emblematic of how Deki can feast on scraps in the box; the chance came about from a deflected cross by Johnson, and even calling it a half-chance might be generous considering the height and speed of the ball's approach. He had no shortage of imagination, thankfully. It's not the same type of shot, but I couldn't help but be reminded of Richarlison's famous goal from the 2022 World Cup when I saw the photo below, just because of the sheer athleticism required to pull off both shots.

• The third goal was a nicely worked set piece from an initial Lucas Bergvall corner kick (he had literally just subbed in). Upon rewatching, Pape Sarr's headed flick-on didn't have quite enough power to evade both Onana and Diogo Dalot (lurking near the goal line) at that angle, so Dominic Solanke's final diverting touch was fully necessary and not robbing us of a first Bergvall Premier League assist, as I initially had thought. Instead, Sarr gets another notch on his goal contributions tally for the season, and Solanke registers three goals in three games.

• The majority of non-Spurs-centric outlets have focused on how poor United were rather than praising the many things that Ange and his team got right, but I'm only going to devote a single bullet point to talking about them. Outside of some energetic yet sloppy linkup play between Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho, United hardly offered anything in attack. But the defense was even more forgivable if you ask me. It's kind of a football cliché, but United's backline truly looked like they lacked conviction, especially in their marking assignments. This is going to be a recurring theme unless and until the United board finally decides to sack Erik Ten Hag; his tactics are uninspiring, he doesn't set his players up for success, and he doesn't handle the in-game management well. The undeniable talent of some of the individuals in the playing squad will bail him out from time to time, but they aren't going to find sustainable success under his management (or lack thereof). It's dire times in the red half of Manchester.

SAtP Player of the Match: Micky van de Ven

It's gotta be Micky this week—and let's be real, he's a candidate most weeks. He's simply doing things that other centerbacks in the league are incapable of attempting, let alone executing.

Honorable mention goes to the gaffer, Ange Postecoglou, for giving Micky ten precious minutes of rest at the end of the game. We rarely have the luxury of subbing off such a key player and he took it. Cheers, United!

Notable and quotable:

• We set a club record for xG in a single Premier League game, with a whopping 4.59 xG.

• Both Brennan Johnson and Dominic Solanke are on active scoring streaks across all competitions, with four goals for Johnson and three for Solanke.

• This was the first game of the season in which we improved on the result from the same fixture in the prior season (Leicester City excepted as they are newly promoted); last season we shared the points at Old Trafford.

Pub chat: Homophobic chanting in the away end

As I was basking in the happiness of a win at Old Trafford, I was brought back down to earth by the sad reality that homophobia is still a persistent stain on supporter culture in our sport—and indeed even within the Tottenham fanbase. The Proud Lilywhites shared a statement from the club about a homophobic chant (ostensibly in support of Dominic Solanke but making a rude allusion to Arsenal's manager) that was sung in the away end during the United game. I have also heard from others that the tired old Chelsea slur was used against Mason Mount when he subbed into the game, and there has certainly been enough education around that chant that those who use it can no longer claim ignorance of its harm.

I have a few thoughts on this, starting with the obvious: rather than punching down with our chants, wouldn't it be more useful to uplift the players on the pitch instead? It is hard for me, personally, to understand why so many football fans insist on using matchdays as an outlet for their negativity—which too often comes coupled with bigotry. If they actually care about supporting the players of our club, why not express that with some positive songs and chants? Is it really that hard to focus on the game at hand rather than insulting everyone from opposition managers to long-gone former players? A little light-hearted banter is of course acceptable, but I think some fans are being way too disingenuous about not knowing where the line is drawn. There's a difference between singing that a manager is getting sacked in the morning (which could have been a real likelihood for Erik Ten Hag, for example) and devolving into personal insults against a manager who wasn't even involved in the game!

I don't want to print what exactly it was suggested that Arteta does in the supporter song "for" Solanke —and god knows that Solanke probably has zero desire to be associated with such mean-spirited behavior, especially in a moment where he should be celebrated for his personal achievement in the game. You can look it up if you really want to. But it's worth addressing some of the so-called defenses of the chant that I've seen in the replies to the club's statement post. "Well, what if he does?" "He might!" "It could be true." You cannot justify this chant with speculative conjecture, which is also problematic in and of itself; this defense is asking for unearned kudos for expressing an inclusive attitude that they don't actually believe in or put into practice, but instead are using as a convenient cudgel to whitewash their implicit homophobia.

We can safely say that the line about Arteta was intended to be a homophobic insult because of the traditional structure of a supporter song: line 1 praises the player the singer supports, then line 2 contrasts the player via rhyme with a player (or manager in this case) that they don't support, casting a derisive judgment on the latter. The player in line 1 is good, and the player in line 2 is bad. For an example that falls under the "harmless banter" banner rather than offensive, think of the Dele song. "He only cost 5 mil, he's better than Özil." It's (somewhat) factual and doesn't stoop to othering an entire class of people by association as the Arteta line does.

So why does it matter? Are those of us who were offended by the song just being "too sensitive" and getting worked up about something that doesn't really make a difference in the grand scheme of things? I don't think so, and I offer this sad reality as evidence: to my knowledge, there are still only three active men's professional footballers who are out, and that's across three different continents (there was a fourth that many of you will have heard of, Jake Daniels, but he is currently not playing at the fully professional level). There are surely more gay players in the top men's leagues, but songs like the one in question and numerous other instances of normalized homophobia in the stands (and in locker rooms) deter most of them from feeling safe and accepted enough to be out during their playing careers.

That's a terrible shame, and something that we all hold responsibility for if we don't call out the derogatory behavior and its chilling effect. I am thankful that the Proud Lilywhites continue to be a tireless advocate for the community and thankful that the club was swift in acknowledging the incident. I hope there will be meaningful consequences for everyone involved in singing the chant so that we can finally start to stamp this kind of abuse out of football. It's harmful to everyone in the LGBTQ community who's involved in the game, including supporters.

WSL Matchday 2 recap | Aston Villa 2 - 2 Tottenham

Leon 78', Daly 88' | Summanen (pen) 23', England 90+6'

This was not a dominant performance for Spurs, far from it, but we secured an important point at Villa Park.

Our first-half goal came slightly against the run of play, and we struggled to gain a foothold in the flow of the game. Aston Villa's equalizer and then potential game-winner came so late that it looked like all hope was lost of rescuing a result, but our super-sub captain, Bethany England, scored with a diving header deep in stoppage time (which was only so extensive because of a lengthy injury treatment for keeper Becky Spencer earlier in the match).

We might look back on this result as a crucial one come the end of the season.

Starting XI:

It was an unchanged lineup from the first match against Crystal Palace, so no notes, really! Robert Vilahamn obviously has a good feeling about this core group of players and wants them to have plenty of time to build chemistry on the pitch.

Key highlights and takeaways:

• I was a little perplexed by Eveliina Summanen seeming to be the new designated penalty taker (at least when England isn't starting), but then I remembered that she takes penalties for Finland all the time. So we were in safe hands—or safe feet, rather.

• I alluded to Spencer's injury scare already, so let's just address the elephant in the room: Vilahamn doesn't yet trust either of the backup keeper options (Katelin Talbert was on the bench for this game, while Eleanor Heeps didn't make the matchday squad). I don't know if that's a matter of not having seen enough of them in training yet (surely not the case for Heeps, who's been in and out of training with the first team squad for several seasons now, including one under his management) or simply preferring to save them both for midweek cup game rotation. Either way, it seemed very risky to keep Spencer in the game after her collision with Molly Bartrip and heavy fall. She looked shaky for the rest of the game and was partially culpable for the second goal conceded. Even with Talbert being an unknown quantity at this point for Spurs, it would have been better to risk her having a tough first game (and it would have been with the quality of forwards in the opposition) than to risk aggravating an injury for Spencer.

Personally, I'm excited to see both of the second (and third, not that we know the true order in Vilahamn's thinking) keepers in action to see what we have to work with. This is another one of those times when I really hate that we don't get to watch the pre-season friendlies. Let me have an actual opinion on these players, not a shroud of mystery!

It seems strange that Heeps has yet to make her competitive debut considering how long she's been with the club, though perhaps Talbert's presence on the bench instead of her suggests that Heeps is not seen as a trusted prospect to replace Spencer in the long-term. If that's the case, let's give Talbert a chance to prove herself and decide if we want to negotiate with West Ham United for a permanent transfer in the winter transfer window. We won't know until we see her play.

• Regardless of all the background intrigue around Spencer's potential injury, she'd been having a good game up until that point, and there have already been too many times in her Spurs career when an injury has threatened to derail a strong run of form for our #1 (well, #22 technically). I just want Becky to thrive! She's had terrible luck.

• The midfield was not looking as fluid and functional as it did in the home opener. This was our first hint that the pace and physicality of the WSL could be a challenge for newcomer Maite Oroz, though she still had plenty of promising moments in possession to counteract the rushed passes and mistimed attempts to press. To look at it in an optimistic light, this game against Villa will have been a valuable test that helps her settle in ahead of the upcoming matches against top-level teams. Vilahamn may want to rest her midweek for the sake of not making her physical disadvantage worse for the weekend game, but significant game time against Liverpool would give her another key testing ground.

• Clare Hunt also had a rude awakening when she got flustered trying to play out from the defensive third in the lead-up to Villa's first goal. We've already seen some signs that she's a capable defender, but she'll need to develop her passing game to get on the same level as her centerback partner, Bartrip.

• The second conceded goal felt more like a collective lapse of concentration on a (throw-in) set piece, not an uncommon issue for this side no matter who is in the lineup. It didn't help that Spencer's timing to try to come out and collect the ball before Daly got her head on it was all wrong. She didn't fully commit and came up short, leaving herself no chance of making a save at that point, caught in the middle.

• Martha Thomas didn't score in the first game but had plenty of chances and was heavily involved in the buildup play. In contrast, this was a much quieter performance from the Scottish striker. Over the first two matches, England has contributed an assist and a goal from the bench, so she may be forcing the question of who makes the next starting XI. Beth has a tendency to deliver when it matters most, for what it's worth. Her fitness could still be a concern when it comes to getting starts, though; hopefully she had a productive and strengthening pre-season in that regard.

There's also the dilemma of Jess Naz's best role in the forward line. So many of her best moments last season happened at the striker position and she hasn't looked as comfortable back out on the left wing so far this campaign. That being said, with Amanda Nildén showing herself to be a reliable presence in the attack from overlapping on the flank, perhaps Vilahman can tweak the tactics to allow Naz more freedom to play centrally at times, complementing whoever is playing as the #9 rather than replacing them.

SAtP Player of the Match: Amanda Nildén

Nildén was the one player from the backline that I can't recall having a truly unfortunate moment in defense (with the caveat once again that I had divided attention for this game), and her assist for the equalizer was superb. She timed her run to the goal line perfectly to get on the end of Bartrip's looping pass, only needing one touch to send the ball into the box for England to finish. So while I appreciate that her defensive performance was strong, her attacking instincts have been even more valuable.

Notable and quotable:

• Beth England was less than thrilled with the overall game management on the pitch:

We handled the game well where we could, but we still need to get better at holding onto a lead.

She was probably having flashbacks to her first half of a season with the club, when we were in a relegation battle and there were far too many occasions where her last-minute heroics were called upon.

• England and Eveliina Summanen are the only two players to have both a goal and an assist on the season so far.

• We end the matchday in 3rd place on goal difference above Arsenal and Manchester City.

Women's League Cup Group Stage Matchday 1 — Charlton Athletic

Although we're away for this first League Cup group stage fixture, we don't have far to go—even more convenient with a home game on the weekend. Still, some rotation of the lineup will be necessary to keep everyone fresh. Robert Vilahamn noted after the Aston Villa game that he's happy to have a big squad this season with plenty of talent to call upon.

We last met Charlton in the previous season's FA Cup run. This time, we don't have Kit Graham available to bail us out with a long-range goal, so let's hope we get the business done earlier in the game. It won't be an easy match by any means, with Charlton is in great form at the moment and leading the Championship table. They've also had three clean sheets in their first four games, only letting in one goal.

In his pre-match press conference, Vilahamn was full of praise for former Spurs player Ellie Brazil, now starting for the Addicks:

[I'm] very happy for her that she gets the game time and the goals that she deserves. She’s a brilliant professional footballer, so it makes me very happy to see that she’s performing that well and it’s going to be a threat for us because she’s quick.

Luckily, Becky Spencer's injury was not as serious as it looked and she's in contention for the matchday squad—though I think we'd all like to see a glimpse of what Katelin Talbert or Eleanor Heeps can do instead and give her some rest! Ella Morris is not as lucky and had a setback in her injury recovery, so she'll miss out on this chance to finally make her competitive Spurs debut. Amy James-Turner and Wang Shuang are both still out, but Luana Bühler returns to the matchday squad.

I expect to see Anna Csiki given a start since she's only made substitute appearances so far, while Matilda Vinberg and Charli Grant would also benefit from more game time. Vilahamn hinted that England is likely to start.

And good news! This fixture will be streaming on the WSL YouTube channel (the match link is already available here). I believe the FA Cup games are still going to be on the FA Player this season, but it's nice to see the League Cup group stage getting more reliable coverage. In previous seasons it was largely up to the hosting club to provide a stream, so we would often watch Spurs Women's home games on SpursPlay and just be out of luck if we were away at a lower-division opponent without the technological capacity. Cheers to the FA for finally making the group-stage games a broadcasting priority.

Previewing Europa League Matchday 2 — Ferencváros

It's the first away day of the league phase, and candidly, I know next to nothing about this opponent. A quick glance at their squad list isn't ringing any bells except for Barnabas Varga, who I'm sadly only familiar with because of his scary head injury at the last Euros. Good to see that he's been playing for both club and country since recovering!

So let's focus on the Tottenham side of the equation. We know Radu Drăgușin won't be featuring since he's suspended due to his red card in the first match. With Destiny Udogie a fitness doubt (I'm writing this ahead of the latest team news for the Men's team) and Djed Spence not registered for the Europa League squad, we're going to be pretty thin in terms of defensive options for this match. Fingers crossed that Udogie can start after all, although that's not ideal in the big picture; we'd prefer to see him rested for the more difficult fixture against Brighton on the weekend. The problem is that we can only afford to do so if Archie Gray fills in for one of the other usual backline starters who could also use rest and Ben Davies plays at left fullback. As Milo observed over on Bluesky, Alfie Dorrington wasn't in the U21s squad for their game in the National League Cup and could be brought in to provide extra backup for the senior team. I feel stressed just thinking about this selection dilemma, so my sympathies are with Ange Postecoglou, who has to make the real decision.

Lucas Bergvall will surely get another start after his European debut was truncated last time out. I wouldn't risk playing Son Heung-min unless absolutely necessary, so Timo Werner will probably get another chance to cobble together some form. Neither Wilson Odobert nor Richarlison is expected to return to the matchday squad any time soon, so the rest of the forward line is kind of picking itself at the moment. It would be great for the team to secure an early lead though so Mikey Moore can get another run out, and perhaps we may even see a European debut for Will Lankshear.

It's very important to take these early league phase games seriously and stake out a claim at the top of the table before the fixture congestion gets even more burdensome around the turn of the year. It would be nice to have a top-eight finish (and automatic entrance to the knockout rounds, avoiding the playoff) guaranteed well before we have to juggle the later league phase fixtures with our entrance to the FA Cup. I'm telling you, this new format is a mess. A mess that nobody asked for! But alas, we must navigate it.

Quick shoutout to the Men's U21s for pulling off an incredible comeback in the aforementioned National League Cup game, playing away at Dagenham and Redbridge. They were down 4-1 at halftime and were able to tie it up at 5-5 to force the penalty shootout for an extra point, which they won 3-5. This was one of the senior teams in the new cup competition that has a mix of senior and academy sides, although I suspect Dag & Red probably rotated significantly from their usual starting lineup. Still, it was an impressive show of mentality by our youngsters to recover from the early deficit, particularly from Jaden Williams with his brace and Yusuf Akhamrich scoring both the equalizer and the winning penalty.

Here's a refresher on the new competition if you need it. It's another way to gauge this rebuilding (so to speak) U21 team's progress in a season where their PL2 campaign has been off to a tough start. Don't look at that PL2 table right now, by the way. Trust me. And trust the process!

Instead, enjoy the extended highlights from the cup game:

Dagenham 5-5 Spurs U21 | Extended Highlights | 2024/25

Highlights of our National League Cup clash with Dagenham & Redbridge at Victoria Road in October, 2024.

SPURSPLAY

All right, let's keep the midweek cup action going with the senior teams, starting with Spurs Women on Wednesday and Spurs Men on Thursday. It's good to have so much Tottenham football again!

COYS

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