Kevin Danso had a tough battle with Joao Pedro.placeholder image
Kevin Danso had a tough battle with Joao Pedro. | Getty Images
It was a series of errors that helped gift Chelsea the only goal in a 1-0 win over Spurs on Saturday evening.
Tottenham Hotspur were the masters of their own downfall in the 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, some calamitous defensive mistakes gifting the visitors the only goal in the fixture.
That was slotted home by Joao Pedro after 34 minutes, the Blues striker ending his goal drought. Tottenham Hotspur were booed off the pitch at half time and after the final whistle for another home performance lacking character.
Thomas Frank has failed to win in north London since the opening weekend of the season with the team relying on impressive away form so far this term. It’s frustrating for Spurs supporters and that emotion wasn’t helped by the errors against Chelsea.
Tottenham Hotspur defensive errors slammed by Jamie Redknapp
Analysing the game on Sky Sports, Jamie Redknapp didn’t hold back in his criticism of how the Chelsea goal came about. The former Spurs man said: “It’s as bad as it gets in every capacity. Djed Spence does himself no favours, gets really lucky then thinks I’m going to have a trick in my own half, loses it again. This is poor play by Van de Ven, Xavi Simons has left a poor one for him.
“You [Van de Ven] have to win this challenge, if you lose it you cost your team - he’s not strong or aggressive enough, really poor play by Micky. You can see there, one player wants it more. What kind of a challenge is that [Danso tackle] when you’re trying to stop a goal for his team? You’ve got to come full force and make sure you get the ball.
“Could you imagine Romero in this situation, he’s coming across with everything he’s got and wins that challenge. Kevin Danso, it’s such a half-hearted challenge. Three out of your back four making really poor mistakes, and I don’t like Djed Spence’s reaction walking back.”
Thomas Frank ‘irritated’ by Spurs mistakes
LondonWorld rated Kevin Danso a 4/10 for his showing against Chelsea. We wrote: “Shown up by Joao Pedro today. There’s been a lot of talk about the Chelsea striker’s lack of potency but his pace and strength regularly had Danso scrambling at the back for Spurs.”
Danso arrived at the club on loan from Lens in January and then made that temporary switch permanent for £25 million. The 27-year-old has started the last three league matches for Spurs alongside Van de Ven while Romero has struggled with a hamstring problem. The Argentine was handed 30 minutes off the bench on Saturday.
When asked about the defensive mistakes after the match, Frank said: “I think when players make mistakes on the pitch, if they lose a ball or miss a pass, I can get irritated in general but that’s part of football. It can be flow, confidence, whatever it is. Mistakes happen.”
In other news, Daniel Sturridge praises 'exemplary' Chelsea player for 9/10 Tottenham performance.
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