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Tottenham Hotspur smashed Leicester City 6-2 in the Premier League on Saturday, September 17. The win sees them climb to second place with 17 points, level with league-leaders Manchester City.
The Foxes have made one of the poorest starts to a league season by any English side. Theyaree rooted to the bottom of the table with just one point from their six games so far. Unless things change drastically, Leicester could find themselves in a relegation scrap.
Tottenham, on the other hand, were in third place with 14 points prior to kick-off. Despite not finding last season's rhythm fully, they have scored 12 goals so far. Antonio Conte fielded a slightly-changed lineup following their midweek loss to Sporting CP.
Tottenham were slow off the blocks and it showed as they made a string of mistakes early in the game. Davinson Sanchez committed an early foul inside Spurs' penalty area. He was drawn into the tackle by James Justin, who did well to get his foot on the white line just before contact was made.
Youri Tielemans stepped up and saw his effort valiantly saved by Hugo Lloris. However, the Frenchman was off his line and the penalty was asked to be retaken. Tielemans scored from the second opportunity. However, their lead only lasted a matter of minutes.
Dejan Kulusevski delivered an inviting ball into the box from the right flank. Harry Kane met the cross with a powerful header to equalize after nine minutes. Eric Dier then doubled Tottenham's lead as he converted a corner from Ivan Perisic after 21 minutes.
Leicester seem to have woken up and soon began playing with urgency. Justin was a menace on the left flank as he attempted several crosses and long balls. James Maddison scored the deftest of volleys from a cross by Timothy Castagne just before half-time.
The two teams simply could not be separated after a franctic first half that ended 2-2.
Tottenham started the second half well and were offered some help by Wilfried Ndidi, who gave the ball away cheaply. Rodrigo Bentancur benefitted from that and smashed a curling effort into the bottom-right corner of the goal.
Conte then made three changes as he brought Cristian Romero and Heung-min Son into the game. The visitors continued to pass the ball well but were clearly affected after falling behind once again. Maddison and Daka continued to arrive in key areas but failed to convert.
Heung-min Son then produced a memorable cameo, netting a 13-minute hat-trick comprising of three world class goals. He had been on the pitch for just 27 minutes when he completed his hat-trick, having been goalless prior to that this season. His goals added an extra layer of atmosphere in the stadium as Spurs saw out the remainder of the time to secure the win.
That said, let's take a look at the five hits and flops from the game.
#5. Hit - Eric Dier
Dier had a great game at the heart of Tottenham's defense and looked solid on the ball. He also scored the goal that made it 2-1 to his side with a lovely glancing header into the far post from a corner. He won one of his three duels, making three clearances and one interception. He also distributed the ball well, playing nine accurate long balls.
#4. Flop - Davinson Sanchez
Davinson Sanchez was baited into making a silly tackle in the early stages of the game. James Justin carried the ball to the edge of Tottenham's penalty area and shortened his stride, waiting for Sanchez to stick a leg out.
The Colombian was drawn in and obliged, which resulted in a penalty for Leicester after just six minutes. It was the first foul of the game and conceded another one midway through the first half. He was subbed off after 59 minutes.
#3. Hit - Rodrigo Bentancur
Bentancur was one of Tottenham's best players on the pitch in terms of total contribution. He scored his side's all-important go-ahead goal just two minutes after the start of the second half. What made the goal sweeter was that Bentancur stole it from Ndidi, created the opportunity for himself and then scored with a peach of a shot from outside the box.
He also provided an assist for his side's fourth goal. He also played two key passes, winning four of his six duels and blocking three shots.
#2. Flop - Danny Ward
Danny Ward looks far from a top-level goalkeeper and has proven to be a tremendous downgrade for Leicester from Kasper Schmeichel. Many were surprised when the Midlands club allowed their Danish skipper to leave for OGC Nice in France.
Ward faced 11 shots and conceded goals from more than half of them, making just five saves. His positioning and agility are much lesser compared to other elite custodians in the league. Leicester need to sort this out should they make an attempt to reignite their long-lost form.
#1. Hit - Heung-min Son
Son entered this game having failed to score in any of his eight appearances across competitions. He was brought into the game after 59 minutes as Tottenham looked to increase their one-goal lead at the time.
Son doubled Spurs' lead after 73 minutes with a long-range effort that beat Danny Ward all ends up. Just 11 minutes later, he came up with another world class strike, this time with his weaker left foot into the top-left corner of the net. Son added a third just two minutes later, but there was added suspense as VAR took some time to confirm he was onside.
He attempted four shots, all were on target and he scored from three of those. He also won three of his four duels.
