Tottenham were narrowly beaten at home by Liverpool despite putting in a valiant display after being reduced in numbers. The north Londoners were let down by a moment of madness from Xavi Simons, who was dismissed after just 33 minutes for a brainless foul on Virgil van Dijk. He was initially shown a yellow card but it was correctly upgraded to a straight red following a VAR intervention.
It left Tottenham with a mountain to climb, but they dug deep and arguably looked better with one less player on the pitch. Unfortunately for the hosts, it was Liverpool who struck the first blow with Alexander Isak scoring and injuring himself in the process. Hugo Ekitike doubled their lead with 25 minutes remaining, with Cristian Romero at fault for both goals.
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Richarlison offered a glimmer of hope with a late strike for Tottenham, which seemed to inspire the hosts as they piled forward. However, a silly moment from Romero all but ended their hopes of snatching a dramatic equaliser. He was sent off for lashing out in the closing minutes, with his display of rage leaving the referee with no choice but to brandish another red card.
Express Sport rates and slates the Tottenham players following today's defeat...
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Tottenham player ratings vs Liverpool
Guglielmo Vicario - 6
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Made a couple of smart saves to keep the score level until the opening goal, which he probably could have done more to stop.
Pedro Porro - 7
Got himself in the right positions to snuff out counter-attacking moves. Posed a threat with his crossing further forward. A decent display.
Cristian Romero - 3
Wasn't strong enough in defence. At fault for the opening goal and too weak for the second, after which he was booked for dissent. Got a second yellow for losing his temper in stoppage time in another idiotic moment.
Micky van de Ven - 6
Produced a few crucial interceptions and kept the ball moving with some simple passes to nearby team-mates. Was the better of Tottenham's central defensive pairing.
Djed Spence - 7
Caused problems with his mazy running down the left flank and was Tottenham's biggest threat for the most part. Was unfortunate to be on the wrong side of a few questionable refereeing decisions.
Archie Gray - 6
Did okay in the middle of the park without setting the world alight. Job was made harder when Spurs were reduced in numbers.
Rodrigo Bentancur - 5
Ran around a lot but did little worth mentioning apart from a block to deny Florian Wirtz. Doesn't seem to offer much these days. Picked up a late booking.
Lucas Bergvall - 5
Looked lively to start with but saw his influence tail off as the match progressed. Blended into the background after the red card.
Mohammed Kudus - 5
Had opportunities to break away down the right but often killed momentum by slowing play down, which frustrated the home crowd. Pulled off a few nice passes, though.
Xavi Simons - 3
Did okay until he was rightly sent off for raking his studs down the back of Van Dijk's leg. Had no chance of winning the ball and ended up letting his team down in a moment of madness.
Randal Kolo Muani - 6
Had a few attempts on goal, missing a big chance from point-blank range and hitting the crossbar in the second half. Looked dangerous but lacked the clinical edge needed to score.
Substitutes
Brennan Johnson - 6
Came on for the final 30 minutes, replacing Kudus. Looked up for it but couldn't get himself on the scoresheet.
Joao Palhinha - 6
Looked energetic and became frustrated with his team-mates when he tried to lead the press but nobody followed.
Wilson Odobert - 5
Introduced for the final 20 minutes in place of Bergvall. Didn't offer a great deal, in all honesty.
Richarlison - 7
Immediately made a nuisance of himself in the box and scored within seconds of coming off the bench. A great cameo.