MATHYS Tel was at the centre of attention in N17 after cancelling out his brilliant opening goal by giving away a needless penalty to see Tottenham draw 1-1 against Leeds, reports Vlad Andrejevic from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Tottenham had a golden opportunity to go four points clear of West Ham with a victory against Leeds, and looked to be on their way when Tel took down a headed clearance and curled a beautiful shot into the top corner early in the second half. However, the young forward then gave away a needless penalty as his attempted bicycle-kick clearance caught Ethan Ampadu on the cheek, allowing Dominic Calvert-Lewin the chance to score from the spot.
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There was still plenty of time for drama left, but ultimately Leeds withstood the pressure, while Spurs had to thank Antonin Kinsky for two exceptional saves to ensure they left with at least a point. It was a credit to Daniel Farke’s men that, despite being mathematically safe, they put in a battling performance in North London to earn another good point in an exceptional season.
For Roberto De Zerbi’s men, however, it will feel like two points dropped, which could see their relegation battle go to the wire. Before the game, spirits around Tottenham were unusually high after picking up seven points in the last three games. As such, they named the same team from last weekend’s impressive 2-1 victory against Aston Villa, while Leeds made two changes in Brenden Aaronson and Dan James, with influential forward Noah Okafor out injured.
The home side dominated the ball in the early exchanges, but they offered very little tangible threat going forward. The first real chance of the game fell to Leeds, when Tel inexplicably tried to clear the ball across his own box and was bailed out by teammate Kevin Danso.
Moments later, the revitalised Kinsky came to Spurs’ rescue with a superb save that was millimetres from sneaking in. Former Tottenham defender Joe Rodon rose highest at the back post to fire a header towards the near post, but Kinsky collapsed just in time to keep the ball from fully crossing over the white line.
The home side seemed to heed the warning and started showing more intent, with Richarlison guilty of firing a shot straight at Karl Darlow. Half-chances from set pieces then came and went for Porro, Conor Gallagher and Rodrigo Bentancur before Joao Palhinha managed to take the ball down inside the 18-yard box but failed to keep his shot under the crossbar.
Bentancur then saw his header sail just wide of the far post before a marginal offside call just before half-time saved Spurs from potentially conceding a penalty, highlighting the fragility of the situation for the North London side.
However, the picture changed straight after the break as Tel broke the deadlock with a wonderful finish. Porro’s corner was headed clear by Jaka Bijol straight to the French forward, who took a delicate first touch to set himself before curling an inch-perfect shot into the top corner beyond Darlow’s reach.
With the crowd now in full flow, Tottenham looked to add a quick second and should have done so through Richarlison, but he skied his shot from eight yards out after Kolo Muani got the better of Sebastiaan Bornauw down the touchline.
Then, out of nowhere, Leeds were awarded a penalty after a moment of madness from Spurs’ goalscorer. Under virtually no pressure, Tel attempted an acrobatic clearance in his own area and caught Ampadu on the cheek as the Leeds midfielder just got in ahead of the forward to head the ball.
Initially, nothing was given, but following a weekend in which VAR was at the forefront of discourse, referee Jarred Gillett was eventually recommended to review his decision before eventually awarding the spot kick. Calvert-Lewin assuredly stepped up to equalise for Leeds, leaving the game in the balance with 16 minutes of normal time to play.
Despite the deflating nature of the equaliser, the crowd were revitalised when De Zerbi brought on James Maddison for his first appearance of the season following his ACL injury. With all the focus on whether Spurs could regain the lead, they were inches away from losing the game in the dying minutes had it not been for Kinsky once again pulling off a brilliant save.
Substitute Sean Longstaff ghosted into the box, having been found by James Justin, and fired a powerful shot from close range, which the goalkeeper did exceptionally well to divert onto the crossbar.
There was still time for a late penalty shout for Maddison, before a flurry of late corners, but ultimately Leeds held on for a well-deserved draw, leaving Spurs once again looking anxiously over their shoulder with two games left to play.