The versatile defender and our longest-serving player, back from injury for his 13th season ahead, Ben timed his run to perfection to meet Luca Williams-Barnett’s cross after a short corner routine with returning James Maddison to level up Adam Hlozek’s penalty at 1-1 on 20 minutes.
Williams-Barnett continued his impressive pre-season with a precise finish from Pape Matar Sarr’s assist for 2-1 in added time in the first half before Valentin Gendrey levelled for the Bundesliga side in the second half.
That’s how it stayed as not only did we see Madders start his first game in over a year, but alongside him the likes of Mateus Fernandes, Rodrigo Bentancur, Kevin Danso plus Ben and Pape.
Speaking to presenter Ben Haines and legendary former striker and pundit Clive Allen on SPURSPLAY afterwards, here are Ben’s thoughts on the game…
Q1 | Let’s start with your goal - a great cross and great finish…
Ben: “I should have scored last week, to be fair! I was making up for that one! It's something we work on quite a lot. We saw how important it was for us last season in the league, how important set-pieces are, where they changed a lot of games for us. It's part of the game now where you have to get those details right and when the quality is on the ball like that, it makes it pretty easy.”
Q2 | How important are the first-time crosses? We saw the same with Andy Robertson to Richarlison on Saturday…
Ben: “I think the biggest thing it gives is that the defensive line's not set. They don't have a chance to get ready. I think it probably looks to a few people it might have been offside, but I don't know if their back line gets out quickly enough because of how quickly the ball comes in. It's a great ball and I'm happy to have nicked one there.”
Q3 | Can you tell us where we are tactically at the moment?
Ben: “I think when the manager came in towards the end of last season, it was a very different situation, desperate for results. You've seen this pre-season, we've tried to play a lot with the ball. You can see our midfielders are very confident to get on it, try to play forward as much as they can. We're hoping we'll have a lot of the ball. We'll have to be patient at times. We're not going to try and just constantly force the ball to try and score goals, but everything comes with a reason, we're moving the opposition around to be able to create chances. The manager is obviously trying to implement that. I think Richy's goal yesterday and Luca's goal today, if you actually look at it, we're pretty calm with the ball, we're moving it around, it doesn't look like a lot's happening, but then one pass into Pape or one pass into Sandro, and all of a sudden, the ball's in the back of the net in a couple of passes. It's all with a reason.”
Q4 | How do you feel the younger players have got on over the course of pre-season? It feels like they’ve all stepped up…
Ben: “Definitely. It's exactly what you need for the club and also for us as a first team prepping for the season. It's a big opportunity for these boys to come and show the manager what they can do. I remember when I was coming through at Swansea - it was pre-season and that gives you the opportunity to be around the first team. I'm sure some of these boys have taken it and hopefully we'll see them get their chances this year as well.”
Q5 | Finally, it’s season number 13 for you at Spurs – how are you feeling?
Ben: “I’m feeling really good. I'm really happy. I've got another 90 minutes under my belt, so very happy. I'm feeling fit.”