Antoine Semenyo scored a stunning 95th-minute winner in what proved his final touch as an AFC Bournemouth player, prior to a reported £62.5m move to Manchester City.
The Ghana international’s name rang out around the Vitality Stadium as he was substituted moments after crashing a right-footed drive beyond the reach of Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, as he signed off in style.
The night, which ultimately belonged to Bournemouth and Semenyo, had started well for the visitors, who went in front after just five minutes through Mathys Tel. The Cherries levelled 17 minutes later when Evanilson headed home from a Marcus Tavernier cross, though.
'Dr Tottenham will see you now'
Eli Junior Kroupi then scored his seventh goal of the season – and his second in as many matches – on 36 minutes as the home side turned the game on its head.
Spurs saw the awarding of a 72nd-minute penalty overturned by VAR before equalising six minutes later through a stunning overhead kick from João Palhinha.
And the visitors nearly grabbed an 84th-minute winner but Micky van de Ven was denied by an incredible save from Djordje Petrovic.
There were 27 shots from the two teams combined during a lively match in which a late winner always felt like a distinct possibility. And Semenyo duly obliged, with the most perfect of parting gifts.
Here’s a look at five things we learned from a pulsating night of Premier League football on the south coast…
‘Dr Tottenham’ cures once again
‘Receiving a visit from Dr Tottenham’.
That is how Spurs fans describe the phenomenon of out-of-form teams getting their season back on track with a much-needed result against their team. Understandably, those supporters would have shuddered at the prospect of facing an AFC Bournemouth on an 11-game winless run in the Premier League…
'Dr Tottenham' has reared his ugly head on more than one occasion this season. Wolverhampton Wanderers – on a run of five straight league defeats – picked up their first point of a disastrous season at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 27th September.
Fulham meanwhile went into matchday 13 of the Premier League campaign with the joint-worst away record in the division before they ran out 2-1 winners in N17.
And prior to this game at the Vitality Stadium, the Cherries hadn’t collected three points since 26th October. Cynical Spurs fans will say a visit from 'Dr Tottenham' was always going to be the perfect tonic for Bournemouth.
Creative block
Thomas Frank’s managerial reign at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has been blighted by a significant lack of creativity from his side.
In their 1-0 defeat to Chelsea in November, Spurs recorded an xG of just 0.1 – the second-lowest total recorded by a club since Opta began recording Expected Goals at the start of the 2012/13 season.
Prior to this game, Frank’s side had attempted a Premier League low of just nine through balls all season. The teams with the second lowest tally, Wolves and Leeds United, had both attempted 15 each while, at the other end of the scale, Manchester City had managed 73.
After 21 Premier League matches this season meanwhile, Spurs have averaged 10.2 shots per game, with 3.4 on target - the fifth and sixth lowest tallies in the division.
There were some sparks of invention from Spurs at the Vitality Stadium, including Mathys Tel’s run and shot that led to their opener. But ultimately, their lack of cutting edge cost them. Of their 16 attempts on the night, just four were on target.
Tel you what
Just two days after Brennan Johnson completed his move to Crystal Palace, Mohammed Kudus was substituted after sustaining an injury in Spurs’ 1-1 draw with Sunderland. The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath reported that “scans showed Mohammed Kudus was worse than first feared”, adding to the club’s attacking woes.
Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison haven’t featured for Spurs all season due to injury, while Dominic Solanke has been absent since August with an ankle problem.
“I think it's pretty fair to say that we are maybe a little bit short on offensive options,” said Frank in his pre-Bournemouth press conference. “I think also it's fair [to say], there's no one who's really grabbed that shirt on the left-hand side. So, I think that's definitely up for grabs.”
On the evidence of his performance at the Vitality Stadium, Mathys Tel could make that left-sided role his own. The Frenchman has had something of a stop-start career with Spurs since joining, initially on loan, from Bayern Munich last February.
The chance to start regularly could be the opportunity Tel needs to reproduce the kind of displays he showed at Rennes and for France at various youth levels that ultimately led to a big money move to Bayern in 2022.
Kroupi again
Speaking of talented Frenchmen, Eli Junior Kroupi has been a standout performer for AFC Bournemouth this season.
The 19-year-old scored an absolute worldie against Arsenal last time out and showed his striker’s instinct against Spurs to get in the middle of the six-yard-box to score from Marcos Senesi’s cut back for his seventh goal of the season.
Kroupi cost a reported £10m last February, which looks like another bargain buy for the Cherries. Bournemouth made huge profits on the sales of Dean Huijsen, Milos Kerkez, Illia Zabarnyi and Dango Ouattara earlier in the season – as they have done with Antoine Semenyo's move to Manchester City. Kroupi will surely have a large sell-on value of his own should he ever depart the Vitality Stadium.
Fairytale ending
The last word on this game has to go to Semenyo.
On his 26th birthday, the London-born winger delivered what his manager, Andoni Iraola, described as a “perfect moment”, adding “he is one of the best players I’ve coached”.
His strike against Spurs is his 32nd for Bournemouth in what was his 110th and final appearance for the club.
