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Tottenham Hotspur continued their resurgence under Roberto De Zerbi with a comfortable 2-0 victory against 10-man Crystal Palace at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The London derby swung heavily in Spurs’ favor following Jean-Philippe Mateta’s early 13th-minute red card for a studs-up challenge on Micky van de Ven.
Archie Gray opened the scoring in the 25th minute before summer signing Jan Paul van Hecke sealed all three points in the 73rd minute. The result secured Tottenham’s third consecutive Premier League victory and pushed them into the top half of the table.
Here are the primary winners and losers from a Tottenham Hotspur perspective following the match.
Jan Paul van Hecke
The Dutch defender delivered a commanding 9/10 Star Man performance that showcased his importance to De Zerbi’s high-possession setup. Van Hecke was the primary build-up orchestrator, completing 127 passes and spending most of the second half parked deep inside Palace territory. He capped his dominant afternoon by heading home Spurs’ second goal on his second attempt following an initial save onto the crossbar by Dean Henderson.
Mohammed Kudus
Looking back to his absolute best, the Ghanaian international was a persistent nightmare for the Palace defense down the right flank. Kudus provided the precision assist for Gray’s opening goal with a looping corner to the back post and was only denied a goal of his own late in the contest by a tight offside call.
Sandro Tonali
Tonali’s relentless engine continues to power Tottenham’s midfield. The Italian midfielder covered the most ground of any player on the pitch for the second game running, breaking up Palace transition attempts and driving Spurs into dangerous central areas.
Luca Williams-Barnett
The highly-rated academy prospect made his long-awaited Premier League debut to a rousing reception from the North London crowd. In a brief cameo, Williams-Barnett displayed his exceptional technical ability with a dazzling sequence of skill that nearly resulted in an assist for Kudus.
Omar Marmoush
Deployed centrally in the No. 10 role, Marmoush struggled to make a meaningful impact against Palace’s compact low block. While the Egyptian forward worked tirelessly out of possession, his movement was stifled in tight spaces, leading to a quiet afternoon before being substituted for Dejan Kulusevski in the 76th minute.
Dominic Solanke
It was a frustrating afternoon for Spurs’ central striker. Despite his customary work rate and a crucial second-half defensive block to deny Dwight McNeil, Solanke struggled to find clean sights of goal against Palace’s deep defensive line before being replaced by Conor Gallagher in the 65th minute.