Tottenham Hotspur made it two for two at their new stadium as Heung-Min Son scored the winner in a slender 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday evening.
Sergio Aguero could have given the visitors the lead after VAR contributed to a penalty being given for handball but the Argentine could not find the net from the spot. They were left to rue that missed chance as despite Harry Kane leaving the field through injury, Heung-Min Son struck with a clinical finish in the 78th minute to give Spurs a crucial win.
VAR gives penalty but Aguero fails to take advantage
Tottenham created the best chance of the game early on as Moussa Sissoko picked out Dele Alli, however the midfielder’s acrobatic effort fizzed over the crossbar.
Pep Guardiola’s men were then given a wonderful opportunity to open the scoring as thanks to VAR, Danny Rose was adjudged the have handled the ball in the area. Aguero stepped up but could not beat Lloris from the spot who had guessed the right way to palm the ball away.
Harry Kane then drew the best out of Ederson as he swivelled in the box as both sides looked to open the scoring.
Competitive clash
Spurs marginally edged the chances throughout the majority of the game but could have blasted themselves into the lead just after the break as Son curled a great effort just wide of the post.
Their task was then made difficult as after crunching into a challenge with Fabian Delph, Harry Kane hobbled off of the pitch with what looked like a nasty ankle injury.
Son makes history again
Despite the injury to the England man, Mauricio Pochettino’s men seized the lead. Son did excellently to run in behind the Manchester City defence and keep the ball from trickling out of play. He came back inside and fired the ball underneath Ederson to give the hosts what could potentially be a vital advantage.
The hosts defended stubbornly throughout the rest of the clash and very much limited their visitors to only rare chances. They now claim a crucial victory as they look to reach the semi-finals.
Final Thoughts
Pep Guardiola will be bitterly disappointed with the performance of his team. Had Sergio Aguero’s penalty hit the back of the net, it could have been a different story but the Sky Blues really struggled to create any real chances of note. They will have to be a lot better if they have any hope of reaching the semi-finals. Credit must go to Tottenham though for an extremely gutsy performance and they now have the edge as focus switches to the return-leg at the Etihad Stadium.
Match Report
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris (7); Rose (6), Vertonghen (7), Alderweireld (7), Trippier (6); Winks (7) (Wanyama (N/A), 81′), Sissoko (6), Eriksen (7); Alli (6) (Llorente (N/A), 87′), Kane (6) (Moura (6), 58′), Son (7).
Manchester City: Ederson (6); Delph (6), Laporte (6), Otamendi (6), Walker (6); D. Silva (6) (De Bruyne (N/A), 89′), Fernandinho (7), Gundogan (6); Mahrez (6) (Sane (N/A), 89′), Aguero (5) (Jesus (5), 71′), Sterling (6).
Goals: Son (78′)
Referee: Bjorn Kuipers
Yellow Cards: Rose (12′), Laporte (28′), Mahrez (59′)
Red Cards: N/A
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