Here are our Tottenham Hotspur player ratings after their much-needed victory at Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday night
21:08, 03 May 2026Updated 21:23, 03 May 2026
Conor Gallagher of Tottenham Hotspur opened the scoring vs Aston Villa
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Conor Gallagher of Tottenham Hotspur opened the scoring vs Aston Villa (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Tottenham picked up a huge 2-1 win at Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday night to jump out of the bottom three and here are our Spurs player ratings from the match.
Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi had made four changes to his team, two of them enforced after the latest injuries to Xavi Simons or Dominic Solanke, while Unai Emery's fifth-placed Villa are between Europa League semi-final legs against Nottingham Forest and made seven changes to their side.
Joao Palhinha netted an important goal for Spurs at Wolves last weekend and earned himself a starting spot alongside Rodrigo Bentancur in the midfield, while Mathys Tel and Richarlison replaced Xavi and Solanke with Destiny Udogie returning from injury at left-back.
Conor Gallagher opened the scoring 12 minutes into the contest with his first goal in a Tottenham shirt. He took down a headed clearance from Kevin Danso's long throw on the edge of the box and fired it perfectly into the bottom left corner of the net.
Palhinha hit the left-hand post with an effort from outside the box a couple of minutes later and Spurs did make it 2-0 on 25 minutes when Richarlison headed home Tel's pinpoint cross from the right.
The second half brought little in the way of incident until Emiliano Buendia looped a header into the Tottenham net deep into added time but it was too little too late for the hosts.
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Here are our Spurs player ratings:
Antonin Kinsky
His distribution was near perfect and the organisation in front of him only let up with that late Villa goal. 7
Pedro Porro
Had a roving role, sometimes following Rogers, sometimes pushed right up the pitch with Palhinha tucked in behind him. Fought for everything in one of his best defensive performances in a long time. 9
Kevin Danso
A huge presence at the back with so many big headers. His long throw led to Gallagher's opening goal. 9
Micky van de Ven
The captain made a great tackle to deny Abraham running through five minutes into the second half. Looked to have rolled his ankle late in the game but kept on going. Buendia got in ahead of him but Palhinha had lost him. 9
Destiny Udogie
Great to have the Italian back in the side and he was excellent down the left. So little got past him. 9
Rodrigo Bentancur
A busy performance, chasing down everything and knitting together the defence and midfield. Needed treatment before he came off. Had gone down in the first half. Spurs need him fit. 8
Joao Palhinha
An absolute dominant character in the game. Spent his time switching between midfield and the right of a back three. Hit a low shot from outside the box that struck the left-hand upright 16 minutes in. Fought everything, won almost everything and roared in delight every time. Did lose Buendia for that late goal but it was too late to matter on the night. Was a 10 otherwise. 9
Randal Kolo Muani
Had an effort tipped over by the keeper just before Richarlison's headed goal. Worked hard in tracking back and getting down the wing. 7
Conor Gallagher
Lovely first goal for Tottenham as he controlled a headed clearance on the edge of the box and sent it back low into the bottom left corner. Covered so much ground it was ridiculous. Found his confidence and position under De Zerbi. 9
Mathys Tel
Picked out Kolo Muani for a chance that Martinez saved then curled in a great cross for Richarlison to head home. Had a couple of opportunities to pass in the first half that he should have taken but worked really hard in tracking back. 8
Richarlison
Had an early effort deflected for a corner and then powered home a header on 25 minutes. Chased everything and continues to play a bit part in this Tottenham season. 9
Subs
Yves Bissouma
Added some legs to the midfield late in the game. 6
Djed Spence
A willing runner down the right flank in the latter stages. 6
Lucas Bergvall
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A late cameo in added time. N/A
Pape Matar Sarr
Came on with Bergvall in the final minutes. N/A