ALLIANZ STADIM, SYDNEY — There was a little less tension in the air for this penalty shootout than the last one Australian football was front and centre in at the World Cup, and the only thing that screams pre-season more than spot kicks after a 1-1 draw in a friendly is when an entire outfield is subbed off within 90 minutes, which Roberto De Zerbi did tonight.
Dane Scarlett slid home the winning penalty but once again, the A-League hosts gave another good account of themselves against Premier League opposition in a 1-1 draw over 90 minutes.
Spurs’ penalty line-up summed up the quality on show that Sydney had to contend with, despite De Zerbi saving a number of his big guns for the weekend’s clash with Chelsea, with the bright teenager Luca Williams-Barnett, record signing Sandro Tonali and Liverpool Premier League winner Andy Robertson trading penalties with Gabriel Popovic and Al Hassan Toure before 19-year-old Joe Lacey struck the woodwork. He was bailed out by his keeper Gus Hoefsloot diving far to his right to thwart Jamie Donley but Martin Dubravka then stood up to save Alexander Popovic with a replica save.
After the swashbuckling 10-goal thriller between Chelsea and Western Sydney, the second clash in the Sydney Super Cup, in front of a subdued Wednesday night crowd, felt more like a pre-season hitout but there was still enough for both sets of fans to take away.
For Spurs, Mathys Tel’s sparkling first half goal was the highlight, but fans also saw the introduction of Sandro Tonali and Andy Robertson in the second half, as well as glimpses of the fluidity, press and desire to pass end to end from De Zerbi’s side – although not consistently over the 90 minutes.
That was because Patrick Kisnorbo’s side grew into the game, and as their young brigade of players acquitted themselves well, one of their more experienced players, new recruit Takhiro Sekine from Urawa Red Diamonds, opened his account for the club with the equalising goal, the result of some typically clever craft from Tiago Quintal, which forced Kota Takai to scramble his attempted intercept into Sekine’s path.
The hosts couldn’t get a sniff over the opening 15 minutes as De Zerbi’s side dominated with the ball as the Sky Blues retreated.
A lot went through Archie Gray in the middle of the park, with reportedly wantaway Lucas Bergvall and Connor Callagher alongside him. When Sydney got stretched or their press didn’t work, they were able to cut through the centre of the park alarmingly easily.
It was a nervous start, too. Goalkeeper Gus Hoefsloot, deputising for Harrison Devenish-Meares, was wayward on the ball and had to save off Tel after handing the ball straight to him. Jordan Courtney Perkins also had to clear a Callagher effort off the line.
But the A-League side managed to settle; for some reason Spurs retreated a little and the likes of Wataru Kamijo and Rhys Youlley got a little bit of time to settle.
The thing about these fixtures, is the touring teams are littered with quality and can hurt you just when you think you’re in the game.
In a half that had yielded little, Spurs got a free-kick just before the half hour mark and Tel stepped up and stroked a majestic goal into the top corner. De Zerbi might have rested a roll call of his most high profile squad members, but that was a strike the Spurs fans in attendance will cherish having seen.
Gallagher hit the post not long after, but Sydney’s young stars, pleasingly for the home fans, showed they weren’t rattled and regrouped – none more so than Mathias Macallister, who audaciously tried to chip Dubravka from within his own half and had him scrambling, before almost chipping past him minutes later after a run in behind.
The introduction of 17-year-old Williams-Barnett down the left livened things up for Spurs and he had a great battle with veteran Sydney skipper Rhyan Grant, 18 years his senior. He hit the woodwork almost immediately after coming on, before Richarlison, well contained, appealed for a penalty after an Alexander Popovic scramble in the box.
Sydney really settled in the middle part of the half and started to press a bit more positively around the period that they were rewarded with a goal; Quintal drove towards the final third and was rewarded for his clever reverse pass that deflected into Sekine’s path.
But as both sides rung the changes and De Zerbi completely changed all 10 outfield players, he had the likes of record signing Tonali on the park. The Italian forced a save low in the 68th minute, while Robertson forced a fine save across the face of goal and also whipped a classic ball to the back post that Yan Min-Hyeok ought to have prodded home. The hosts were forced deeper and deeper. They also continued to try to play out from the back, which invited further pressure – but Spurs were not good enough to deliver the final ball, until the match was decided from the penalty spot.
The final match of the Sydney Super Cup is on Saturday night between Chelsea and Tottenham at Accor Stadium.