Tottenham Hotspur came out winners in the first leg of their last 16 tie with Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb, to put them in a commanding position ahead of the second leg.
Embed from Getty ImagesHere are the player ratings for the North London side.
Jose Mourinho: 8 – The Portuguese manager has led his side to five victories out of five in all competitions, scoring 15 goals and conceding just one goal. Mourinho managed to rotate key players and still picked up a healthy lead going into the second leg.
Hugo Lloris: 8 – The French goalkeeper did not have much work to do thanks to the dominance of his side, but he easily dealt with the few long shots that came his way.
Serge Aurier: 8 – The Ivorian defender barely put a foot wrong throughout the game and will have given Jose Mourinho a big headache over whether to start him or Matt Doherty against Arsenal. Aurier also got an assist for Kane’s second goal.
Davinson Sanchez: 7 – Despite receiving a lot of criticism this season, Sanchez has been brilliant in the last four victories for Spurs. Although the young defender did not have lots to do, everything he did was very solid.
Eric Dier: 7 – Dier has been out of the team since his calamity at West Ham, having been replaced by Toby Alderweireld, but the England defender didn’t put a foot wrong in the minimal defending he had to do.
Ben Davies 7 – Like Sanchez, Davies has received a lot of criticism this season, but put in a good performance against Zagreb and was constantly on the front foot. The Welshman defended well and put a number of deliveries into the box.
Moussa Sissoko: 7 – The Frenchman provided the needed strength and grit in Spurs’ midfield, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg on the bench. Sissoko broke up any Zagreb attacks and did all the simple things brilliantly.
Tanguy Ndombele: 8 – The dazzling midfielder was once again almost unplayable all night. Ndombele dribbled round Zagreb midfielders with ease, providing a platform for Spurs’ midfield. The Frenchman should have had a penalty when he was fouled after some brilliant footwork in the second half.
Dele: 5 – The English midfielder still looks a bit short of match fitness and was rusty throughout the match. Dele seemed to slow down much of Spurs’ attacking play, but he did contribute to the build up of Kane’s first goal.
Erik Lamela: 7 – The Argentine provided brilliant energy throughout his time on the pitch and was a right nuisance for Zagreb. Lamela also went on an extraordinary run past multiple defenders, before his shot struck the post and fell out to Kane, who tapped the ball into an empty net.
Son Heung-Min: 6 – The South-Korean made plenty of dangerous runs throughout the match and received the ball in plenty of good positions, causing a threat down the left-wing. However, Son’s final pass or shot just wasn’t quite at the quality that is expected of him and he wasn’t able to contribute with any goals or assists.
Harry Kane 10: – The England captain is in incredible form at the moment and he was a cut above every other player on the pitch. Kane’s passing is that of a seasoned midfielder, constantly playing through-balls and diagonal passes. The Spurs vice-captain also bagged a brace, with an easy finish for the first and a brilliant strike through the defenders legs for the second.
Substitutions:
Gareth Bale: 6 – The Welshman showed his class almost instantly after coming on the pitch, by crossing the ball brilliantly with the outside of his foot to Steven Bergwijn, who fluffed his lines. Although, the winger did put a tap in at the back post narrowly wide.
Steven Bergwijn: 5 – The Dutchman looks void of confidence at the moment and a shadow of the player that scored on his debut against Manchester City last season. The winger did produce a cross for Bale who should’ve scored, but fluffed a volley of his own at the back post.
Lucas Moura: 5 – The Brazilian winger didn’t have too much of an impact on the game despite looking bright.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: 4 – The ever-present Danish midfielder struggled to really adapt to the game when he came on and was booked for stopping a counter-attack, ruling him out of the second leg in Zagreb.
Carlos Vinicius: 6 – The young striker looked bright when he came on and put the Zagreb defence under pressure. He set up his own chance late on with some brilliant dribbling, but his shot was weak and easily saved.
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