So that’s your lot. David Hytner was our man in N17 tonight, and here’s his verdict. Enjoy, enjoy. And thanks for reading this MBM, wherever you are. Nighty night!
Jose’s up. How close, asks Sky’s Geoff Shreeves, were Spurs from getting something? “You know how close. And I think the guys in the studio also know how close. Very, very close. I have reasons to be sad with the result, but to be happy with what the boys did and tried to do. Yesterday we spent half an hour defending throw-ins, and lost the game defending a throw-in. And to top it off, the throw-in should be in our favour. So it’s a bit frustrating. Unfortunately the assistant didn’t see it. But I have only reasons to be proud of the boys. We have what we have, and we have to try to create a puzzle with what we have to compete against a good team like they are, and I think we deserve more from this game. We had lots of good chances to score. It is fantastic to compete against such a good team. I think Japhet Tanganga was very good, everyone at the club should be proud of him. That’s Tottenham!” He then gives Liverpool the mother of all back-handed compliments. “They are so so good and so so strong in every area. And on top of that, they are lucky. They were lucky. They could perfectly concede a goal, they could perfectly finish with ten, the VAR were having their tea and didn’t watch Robertson for a red card.”
Here’s Jurgen! “The result is the most important thing. There was one team that deserved to win and that was us. Away against Tottenham is pretty special. We had big chances but didn’t score. We had situations that weren’t even chances, for example Robbo on the touchline completely free with four in the box, and hitting the first defender. That should be a big chance. But it’s difficult to come here. You can expect them to defend deep and they are really good at counter-attacking. I am fine. If it would be easy to win here, then more teams would do it. We should have scored more. We have to be honest to ourselves. A slightly longer break is good physically but it costs you rhythm. We can do better. I am really happy about the best start, but you don’t get anything for it. I am only interested in what we can get in the summer, and that’s not done yet, because this league is so strong and we face so many tough opponents. We have to be ready. The moment we have enough points that nobody can catch us any more, I will start talking about it. At the moment, I couldn’t be less interested.”
Jordan Henderson has a chat with Jamie Redknapp on Sky. “In the end we made hard work of it. That can always happen when you fail to find the second goal. There is still a lot to improve on, things we can be better at. But Spurs are a good team with good players. A couple of times we were a little bit sloppy. But we moved the ball well and created some decent chances. Thankfully today we kept a clean sheet. We don’t wanna ... we don’t really think about what’s happened. The next challenge is the next game. We have to keep working and see where that takes us come the end of the season.”
Virgil van Dijk speaks. “We want to analyse this game and do much better, especially in the second half. But three points is massive, especially here. The Champions League final must still hurt for them, and they want to bounce back. Any chance they get, they want to beat us. Especially in the second half they pressed us and made things difficult. [The best-ever start] gives us a good feeling, but you can see there is still room for improvement, especially in the second half. We have to look at the things we have to improve. That’s the mentality we have. Obviously we are in a good situation, but there is still so much work we can do to make it easier at times.”
Spurs will be glad to see the back of Liverpool, having now lost their last five matches against the Reds. Next up in the Premier League, a trip to Watford, though before that there’s an FA Cup replay at home to Middlesbrough to be negotiated. Liverpool meanwhile have some toughies coming up, at home to Manchester United, then away to Wolves and West Ham. They’ll be pleased to have started a tricky sequence of fixtures with this (mainly) impressive win.
That’s a huge win for Liverpool. Correction: that’s another huge win for Liverpool. They extend their lead at the top of the table - 16 points over Leicester with a game in hand - and stretch their unbeaten run to 38 league games in the process. They’re 17 clear of third-placed Manchester City, having played the same number of games. The reigning champions play at Aston Villa tomorrow, and can leapfrog Leicester, cutting Liverpool’s lead to 14, should they win. Spurs meanwhile are stuck in eighth place, nine points off Chelsea in the fourth Champions League spot.
FULL TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Liverpool
Son cuts in from the right, drops a shoulder, and takes a final shot for Spurs. Aiming for the top left, he can’t get enough curl on the ball, and it’s straight into Alisson’s midriff. And that’s that. Liverpool’s lead at the top of the Premier League is now 16 points. That’s 20 wins and one draw from 21 games, and it’s the best start ever by a team in the English league!
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90 min +2: Shaqiri comes on for Salah. Winks races down the right, but his deep cross is cleared easily enough by Alexander-Arnold.
90 min +1: Lamela makes like Origi up the other end and nearly finds space to shoot in the Liverpool box. Gomez toe-pokes the ball away from him. Alisson gathers. Gomez picks Lamela up, irritating the Spurs man, who threatens to kick off. He calms down soon enough.
90 min: Origi executes a crisp pullback on the edge of the Spurs box, but sends his subsequent shot straight at Gazzaniga. There will be three added minutes.
89 min: Lamela spins into a little space down the middle and takes a shot from 25 yards. He tries to thread it into the bottom right. It’s an easy claim for Alisson.
88 min: Wijnaldum jigs in from the left, a lovely run. He enters the box and pulls back for Origi, who can’t get the ball out from under his feet. Spurs clear.
87 min: Robertson leaves his boot in on Alderweireld, kicking the defender on the shin, but escapes censure. A bit naughty.
86 min: This game is suddenly a shapeless mess. Both sides have lost their tactical discipline. So anything could happen now. Stay tuned, won’t you.
85 min: Lallana dribbles around in the midfield and draws a cheap foul from Lamela. He takes the opportunity to go over and roll around for a bit. Lamela isn’t happy, but that was a foolish challenge, with the Liverpool midfielder going nowhere.
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84 min: Firmino is bundled over as he races towards the Spurs box. A chance for Liverpool to calm things down a little, and perhaps cause the hosts a few problems. But Robertson’s delivery is no good. Liverpool are a collective bag of nerves.
82 min: What a miss! Aurier, out on the right, curls a glorious low ball towards the far post. Lo Celso, six yards out and level with the left-hand post, creams a shot across Alisson and out for a goal kick. How on earth did he fail to hit the target from there? On the touchline, it’s Jurgen Klopp’s turn to go potty.
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81 min: Mane is replaced by Origi. The Spurs crowd have found their voice; they know there’s something in this, despite Liverpool’s earlier dominance. Can they make the leaders regret their profligacy?
80 min: Liverpool are certainly giving up chances now. Lo Celso races off into acres down the right. He reaches the byline and pearls a cross along the corridor of uncertainty. Only Lamela tries to run it home, but misses. Liverpool get away with another one.
79 min: It’s end to end now. Wijnaldum shapes to shoot on the edge of the Spurs D, but is legally bundled off the ball. Spurs go up the other end, Moura lining one up only to be denied by Lallana. The tension is palpable.
77 min: Liverpool’s nerves are beginning to betray them. Alisson comes out of the box and passes the ball straight to Lo Celso. Happily for Liverpool, there’s no easy way for the Spurs man to dispatch the ball towards the unguarded goal, crowded as he is. Liverpool get away with it. But this is very much not over.
76 min: Son makes good down the left and whips a cross through the Liverpool box. There’s nobody in white to convert. Liverpool are beginning to make some sloppy mistakes, in the knowledge that they really should have put this game to bed. But it’s still in the balance.
75 min: Tanganga is good to continue, for now at the very least. The game restarts with a drop ball. Liverpool, their concentration broken, make a big mistake. Passing it around the back, Wijnaldum is robbed by Moura, and the ball’s shifted to Son, just inside the box on the left. Son leans back and lifts his shot over the bar. He should have worked Alisson at the very least. Really, he should have scored. On the touchline, Jose Mourinho holds his head accordingly.
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73 min: Liverpool continue to pass it among themselves. The sequence is only brought to an end by Tanganga, who is down rubbing his leg. The play is stopped so he can get some treatment.
71 min: Liverpool stroke it around again. They’ve controlled this match pretty much from the off, but there’s still just one goal in it. Spurs retain hope. A big final 20 minutes coming up.
69 min: Spurs make a double change: Eriksen and Rose make way for Lamela and Lo Celso. Eriksen, the subject of much transfer speculation, receives the bird from his own fans as he departs. The home crowd are pretty sure his mind is elsewhere.
68 min: Spurs can’t get anything going up front. Sanchez tries to split Liverpool’s defence with a long pass down the middle, but there’s nobody there in white, and the ball sails through to Alisson. The crowd groan.
66 min: Robertson overruns a ball out on the left. He’s clumped by Tanganga as they contest a 50-50. Or did he clump Tanganga? He might have caught the young defender on the shin. The pair roll around in agony. Play continues, though, and Alexander-Arnold crosses from the right. Mane tries to guide a header back across Gazzaniga, towards the bottom right. The keeper does extremely well to stop it with a strong arm. Spurs clear the loose ball.
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64 min: Liverpool take the heat out of things with more patient possession at the back. Suddenly they spring forward through Gomez and Wijnaldum. Mane then feeds Robertson down the left. He reaches the byline, but can’t find anyone in the middle for a tap-in. The resulting corner isn’t all that.
62 min: Gomez passes the ball straight out of play. He’s been sloppy on several occasions this evening. On the touchline, his manager makes his feelings known in the colourful style, effing and jeffing with great passion.
61 min: Liverpool make the first change of the evening, replacing Oxlade-Chamberlain with Lallana.
60 min: Eriksen scoops a pass wide left for Son, who drops a shoulder to sail inside, past Alexander-Arnold and Oxlade-Chamberlain. His low shot is deflected wide right. The resulting corner is a non-event. But that’s much better from Tottenham.
58 min: Firmino and Salah one-two down the middle, the latter releasing the former into the box with a cushioned flick. Firmino goes for a curler towards the top right. He doesn’t catch it, and it’s easy pickings for Gazzaniga.
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57 min: A poor Gomez header drops to Alli, who zips towards the Liverpool box. Just as he’s going to shoot, Van Dijk slides in, bravely seeing Alli’s in the area. A clean tackle, though the ball breaks to Aurier to the right; the full back whips a shot straight down Alisson’s throat. A reminder that this is far from over, no matter how dominant Liverpool have been since the restart.
55 min: Liverpool continue to knock it around. Moura drops deep and breaks up their passing groove, but Wijnaldum is quickly on the case, battling away in the centre circle to re-establish possession for the visitors.
53 min: Liverpool stroke it around the back in hypnotic style. They’re in total control right now.
51 min: Alexander-Arnold cuts in from the right and loops towards the far post, where Firmino and Mane await. Gazzaniga does extremely well to anticipate the cross and claim.
50 min: Liverpool again over-elaborate, Salah breaking down the right, failing to work space to shoot, then failing to tee up Mane on the left. The ball is worked back to the right for Alexander-Arnold, whose bumbling shot bounces harmlessly across the face of goal and out for a goal kick. This game isn’t over yet; they can’t afford to start passing up chances.
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49 min: Eriksen’s delivery fails to beat the first man. That’s awful, and it gives Liverpool a chance to break upfield. Eriksen is extremely relieved when Liverpool over-complicate matters and the counter-attack falls to pieces.
48 min: Moura is fouled again, this time by Mane. This time he goes down, and this is a free kick 35 yards out, right of centre. Spurs line up on the edge of the Liverpool box.
46 min: Moura zips into space down the inside right. He’s clipped by Henderson, clumsily so, but stays on his feet and enters the box, because the situation is so promising. He then lashes his shot wide right, spurning it terribly. Spurs want the game pulled back for the free kick, but that’s good refereeing by Martin Atkinson. It was a great chance for Spurs, and Moura clearly wanted to keep going.
The second half is GO! Spurs get the ball rolling for the second half. No changes. Meanwhile in an email headed “Richard Keys throw-in strop” - you’d click on it, too, wouldn’t you? - Tony Barr writes: “I’m watching the game live in Dubai. Peter Reid and Andy Gray (two Evertonians) are currently doing a great job of patronising Richard Keys who’s going apoplectic about the throw-in being awarded to Liverpool. I think he might explode if Liverpool win the league.”
Half-time reading. Ed Aarons was at the King Power to see Southampton goal machine Danny Ings pay back second-placed Leicester City for that result.
HALF TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Liverpool
On balance, a fair scoreline at the halfway point. Spurs have asked a few questions, but Liverpool carved out three golden chances. As things stand, the leaders are going 16 points clear at the top. But there’s an awfully long way to go.
45 min +2: Van Dijk creams a pass down the left. Too hard. A little less juice, and he’d have sent Robertson scampering clear on goal. As it is, it’s a goal kick.
45 min +1: ... Moura heads harmlessly over from six yards. That was a great chance to flick home at the near post.
45 min: Alli spends Aurier into space down the right. He sends a deep cross towards Moura; Alexander-Arnold rises higher to knock the ball out for a corner on the left. From which ...
43 min: Firmino robs Alli and sends Salah off down the inside right. He enters the box, drops a shoulder to move inside, and whips a low shot wide right. Meanwhile there’s a little controversy over the goal, as the throw that started the move should have been awarded to Spurs. Aurier and Mane had come together on the line, the former playing the ball against the latter. Not one that would have been easy to spot with the naked eye, to be fair to the match officials.
41 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain embarks on a mammoth dribble down the right. Spurs made that easy for him. He reaches the area and clips one inside for Mane, who can’t bring it down on the penalty spot. Spurs clear.
40 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain is booked, hanging out a leg to stop Moura. He can have no complaints.
39 min: There’s a VAR check for handball, when Henderson got involved, heading down towards Salah. But if the ball hit an arm, it was Alli’s. The goal stands.
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GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 Liverpool (Firmino 37)
A scrappy one, this. A throw from the left. Spurs don’t clear it, Alderweireld failing to get much purchase on his header. Henderson heads down to Salah, on the penalty spot. Salah slips a pass wide left for Firmino, who drops a shoulder, takes a touch to the left to send Tanganga the wrong way, and slams home.
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35 min: Salah and Firmino combine cutely down the left, the latter crossing for Mane who shapes like Zinedine Zidane in the 2002 Champions League final ... but only succeeds in sending his spectacular effort down into the ground, back up and over the bar. Gazzaniga had it covered completely, in any case.
34 min: Alexander-Arnold throws in from the right. Salah spins Rose and very nearly works space to shoot inside the box. He takes one touch too many, and when he eventually pulls the trigger, the chance has gone and it’s an easy block for Sanchez.
32 min: Tanganga nicks the ball off Mane, who slyly falls into him from behind in the centre circle. A foul, though Mane is pretty lucky to avoid a yellow card. It looked a more cynical challenge than the one Gomez actually was booked for.
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31 min: Spurs are beginning to cause Liverpool a few problems. They’re pressing hard, and Liverpool are misplacing a few passes. It’s a good contest.
30 min: Another Spurs long pass. Moura and Gomez come together as the pair battle for the high ball. Alisson comes miles out of his area to head clear. Spurs want a foul, and perhaps a second booking for Gomez, but they’re getting neither.
29 min: Liverpool stroke it around the back in the late-Seventies style. Then Mane bursts down the left and attempts a one-two with Wijnaldum. The move breaks down on the edge of the box.
27 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain tries to release Salah down the right with a slide-rule pass, but his team-mate is clearly offside, and the flag goes up.
26 min: Son walks past a non-existent Alexander-Arnold challenge. But fair play to the Liverpool right-back, who recovers to reach Son and usher him away from the danger zone. A good duel in the making here.
24 min: Son goes off up the other end and is tumbled over from behind by Gomez, who is booked. From the resulting free kick, a corner on the right is earned by Alli. And from the set piece, Aurier nearly bustles free down the inside right, but Robertson eventually hacks clear. Not sure how this is still goalless; both teams have had their chances.
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22 min: Mane works down the left again and earns a corner off Sanchez. From the corner, hit long, Salah finds Henderson, who dinks back towards the near post for Van Dijk, who must score. Van Dijk doesn’t get any power on his header, allowing Gazzaniga to parry. I wonder if he’d have been an armpit offside? It was borderline. Ridiculous, I know, but here we are.
21 min: Henderson is again caught napping on the ball, this time allowing Alli to zip towards the Liverpool goal. Alli lays off to Eriksen, who sends a pea-roller straight into the arms of Alisson.
20 min: Mane slips a pass down the inside left intended for Salah, who briefly threatens to control and break into the box. But Sanchez is on hand to shepherd him out of play for a goal kick.
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19 min: Liverpool are enjoying the lion’s share of possession. Spurs are happy enough to sit back and play on the break. They’re looking solid enough right now. Alexander-Arnold tries to tear past Rose down the right, but the Spurs left-back fends him off.
17 min: Liverpool pass it around awhile. Suddenly they spring down the left. Mane reaches the byline and crosses from a tight spot. Salah winds his neck back, but Sanchez anticipates well and clears just in time.
15 min: Robertson heads down the left in the hope of releasing Mane. The new African player of the year is offside, so he doesn’t engage. Robertson chases after his own pass, reaches it, and backheels to eventually find Mane. The move then peters out, but that was distilled essence of Andrew Robertson. His relentless MO captured in amber.
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13 min: Spurs are making changes when they go long. Alli chases one down the middle He tries to chest down. Alexander-Arnold kicks the ball up onto his hand. Alli aims for the top right but sends his shot sailing miles over. Had it nestled into the net, chances are that’d have been ruled out for hands. As it is, we simply play on.
12 min: Wijnaldum sends Robertson into acres of space down the left. Real danger for Spurs, so they’re relieved when Robertson clumps an uncharacteristically witless ball through the box at great speed, and out for a throw on the other side. Those in the middle had no hope.
10 min: Salah swings a ball in from the right and nearly finds Mane. Just a bit too much on it, and that’s Gazzaniga’s. Then Robertson whips one in from the left, but can’t find Firmino in the middle. Spurs are holding their shape well.
9 min: Alexander-Arnold scoops a surprise dead ball into the Spurs box, hoping to find Salah. Too clever by half, and easily cleared by Spurs.
8 min: Mane threatens to burst past Tanganga and off down the inside-left channel. The debutant is forced to bowl his opponent to the ground. A free kick the best part of 30 yards out.
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7 min: It’s high-octane stuff in these early stages. Both teams snapping into tackles, closing down space, pinging it around at double speed. Son strips Henderson of possession and steams down the inside left. He cuts infield and curls harmlessly wide right from 20 yards. He had Moura in close attendance; he might have done better to slip a pass to him, releasing him into the area.
5 min: Gomez’s misjudgement allows Moura to scamper down the left. He cuts inside before dragging a shot wide left. Alisson had it covered. Spurs have already caused the leaders a couple of problems at the back.
4 min: That’ll fill the new boy with confidence. Less than a couple of minutes into his top-flight career, and he’s already made a goal-saving block from a Brazil international. Not a bad way to announce yourself. Liverpool will wonder how they’re not leading, though.
2 min: Gazzaniga launches long. Moura nearly gets the better of Gomez, but the loose ball breaks to Alli, who wins the first corner of the match down the left. Liverpool take a while to clear the set piece, but are soon tearing upfield on the break. Firmino gets in behind Eriksen down the inside right. He enters the box and curls for the bottom left. Gazzaniga is beaten ... but Tanganga slides in to block! What a start to his Premier League career! The ball breaks to Oxlade-Chamberlain, who should score but hits the post and allows the keeper to snaffle.
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We’re off! Liverpool get the ball rolling. A huge roar of expectation rings around the shiny new bowl. This place provides such a spectacle. Gomez launches it long, and Tanganga gets his first touch as a Premier League player, heading the ball back upfield.
The teams are out and about! Tottenham wear their famous lilywhite, while Liverpool’s men are able to sport their titular red. A classic, old-school, first-choice aesthetic, and a fantastic atmosphere at this wonderful stadium. “Just to say that yes, the away dressing room is smaller, but it’s still bigger than my flat,” sighs David Grey. “Envious.” That’s London real estate for you. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes.
Jurgen Klopp, in a serious mood, speaks: “They play with five at the back from time to time, so I am not surprised. We have tried to prepare. [Spurs] can do anything. You can play football with this team: Aurier and Rose are proper wingers, they have two top strikers with Moura and Heung-min, and their midfield is football as well. It is not always possible [to impose our game on them] because they are too good for that. But if it is possible, we should try that.”
This isn’t the first time Jose Mourinho has sprung a 20-year-old surprise in defence against a title-chasing Liverpool side. Ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for Tomas Kalas.
Jose Mourinho speaks! “Tanganga is a good kid, working hard for years. He’s had a good preseason. We watched and analysed. He’s worked hard to have a chance, and this is Tottenham, it’s a good chance for him. He’s fast, he’s very fast, we need fast people when you play against Salah and Mane. We need speed. We lose in experience, but he’s fast. We don’t have Harry Kane, we don’t have another player similar to him. We don’t have another player similar to Sissoko.” Do you have enough to win this game? “Yeah.”
A peek inside the palatial dressing rooms at the glorious new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. First to the home side’s quarters, where debutant Japhet Tanganga’s shirt hangs alongside some more illustrious names.
The away changing room is a wee bit more basic. As you’d expect.
A pre-match boost for title-chasing Liverpool. Their nearest challengers, second-placed Leicester City, have been beaten 2-1 at home by Southampton. Some turnaround from that 9-0 shellacking in October. What a job Ralph Hasenhüttl is doing, and hats off to the Saints board for not jerking the knee in the wake of that record-equalling defeat. Hats off also to matchwinner Danny Ings, who has scored yet again, and in the process done his former club a big favour. Liverpool are now 13 points clear with, for the moment, two games in hand on the Foxes.
The big news for Tottenham: a Premier League debut for 20-year-old defender Japhet Tanganga. He’s one of five changes to the team that lost at Southampton on New Year’s Day. Danny Rose, Son Heung-min, Harry Winks and Davison Sanchez come in; Ryan Sessegnon and Jan Vertonghen drop to the bench, while Moussa Sissoko, Tanguy NDombele and the hamstrung Harry Kane are out altogether.
Liverpool make one change to the XI that saw off Sheffield United. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain replaces the injured James Milner. On the bench, and back from injury: Xherdan Shaqiri. Alongside him, hoping to make his Premier League debut: Takumi Minamino.
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The teams
Tottenham Hotspur: Gazzaniga, Sanchez, Alderweireld, Tanganga, Aurier, Winks, Eriksen, Rose, Lucas Moura, Alli, Son.
Subs: Vertonghen, Lamela, Vorm, Dier, Lo Celso, Sessegnon, Skipp.
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson, Wijnaldum, Henderson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Salah, Firmino, Mane.
Subs: Adrian, Minamino, Lallana, Shaqiri, Origi, Phillips, Williams.
Referee: Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire).
Preamble
A picture paints a thousand words ...
And if you’ve been thinking about it, you can be damn sure he is. Kick off is at 5.30pm. It’s on!
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