Spurs’ “unbelievable” gem stole the show alongside Maddison vs Palace

Spurs’ “unbelievable” gem stole the show alongside Maddison vs Palace

James Maddison was the orchestrator once more but this dynamic star really underlined his value at Selhurst Park.

HIGHLIGHTS
Tottenham Hotspur’s win against Crystal Palace extends their winning run to four matches and solidifies their position at the top of the Premier League table.
James Maddison continues to impress for Spurs, providing strong link-up play and playing a vital role in the team’s success.
Pape Sarr’s performance should not be overlooked, as the midfielder demonstrated maturity and energy in contributing to both of Tottenham’s goals.
Tottenham Hotspur extended their winning run in the Premier League to four matches with victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, maintaining their lead at the top of the table.

The meteoric rise under Ange Postecoglou’s stewardship has been nothing short of exemplary, and against the Eagles, while not at their best, Spurs got the job done and brandished their title-winning credentials after securing a 2-1 victory.

Whereby last season only brought misery and a fourth managerial dismissal in as many years following Antonio Conte’s sacking in March, there is now a tangible possibility that silverware – a premium so agonisingly out of reach for so long at Tottenham – could be gleaned.

Spurs’ win against Roy Hodgson’s side means that eight victories have been collected from ten Premier League matches, having drawn the opener away to Brentford and again against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Tottenham’s performance vs Crystal Palace
Palace were resilient and looked to stifle the away side’s attacking verve through a cohesive, collective understanding of the match plan, and while they held their shape well for the lion’s share of the first 45 minutes, the tactical tweaks in the second half swayed the odds in Spurs’ favour.

Indeed, after a drab opening half, the away side knuckled down and started to thread their plan together, with James Maddison warming after an ineffective first 45 and Postecoglou’s substitutions working well.

Ben Davies earned his first Premier League start of the campaign in the absence of Destiny Udogie, but the 30-year-old stalwart was hooked during the break and replaced by the more energetic Emerson Royal, who was in the thick of the action and actively progressed the play.

Maddison’s whipped delivery, forcing an own goal, put the Lilywhites in the driving seat shortly after the break while Heung-min Son’s eighth goal in seven Premier League matches confirmed that three points would be returning to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

With another win in the bag, Tottenham’s manager praised the “disciplined” performance, and it was indeed the kind of composed and controlled display that was often elusively out of reach last term, as the north London club slumped to an eighth-placed league finish and conceded a staggering 63 goals.

Postecoglou deserves all the plaudits for the transformative effect that he has instilled, but there is little doubt that the signings made across the summer have been nothing short of superlative, with the likes of Maddison, Micky van de Ven and goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario steering the ship on course.

James Maddison was “superb” again
Maddison, of course, has been the standout so far since joining from Leicester City for £40m in the summer, having scored ten goals and supplied nine assists in the English top flight despite only starting 28 times as his outfit plummeted into the Championship.

This term, he has already posted three goals and five assists from the opening ten games of the Premier League term, winning August’s Player of the Month award, and while he did not add to his tally at Selhurst Park, he was once more at the centre of the success.

Hailed for his “superb” link-up play by football.london’s Alasdair Gold, the England international warmed into his role in the second half, and after forcing Joel Ward to turn into his own net, he served reliably as the conduit, ensuring his teammates had apt supplementation.

James Maddison vs Crystal Palace (Sofascore)

Metric

#

Minutes played

89

Touches

57

Pass completion

31/16 (86%)

Key passes

2

Ground duels won

4

Dribble attempts

1/3 (33%)

Tackles

1

Clearances

1

It was by no means his most impressive display for the club, but it is an illustration of how consistent his performances have been since the summer, and as Spurs march on, he will continue to serve as the centrepiece.

Maddison is the obvious player to shower effusive words upon, but it was the performance of Pape Sarr that perhaps went under the radar despite exhibiting the sheer collective value of this newly-vitalised team.

Pape Sarr is Postecoglou’s true hero
Sarr, aged 21, moved to Tottenham from Metz in a £15m deal in 2021 but returned to the French side on a season-long loan, and while he sat on the periphery last season, he is now very much at the core of the midfield.

Praised for his “unbelievable” performance by scout Lee Mayes, who remarked at how well he “ran the whole midfield”, the Senegalese starlet took 92 touches and completed 89% of his passes – very much omnipresent in his duties.

Making two interceptions and clearances apiece and succeeding with his one dribble, he was everywhere on that pitch and played a big part in both of Tottenham’s goals, with Gold among those waxing lyrical after the match.

Gold said: “Forgot to mention Pape Matar Sarr, who was terrific again. Never stopped running, providing an outlet and using the ball well on the whole. Played a big part in the second goal and still mad to think he’s only 21. He’s only going to get better and better under Postecoglou.”

Against Crystal Palace, he demonstrated a maturity and energy that evades all but the select few midfielders who sit atop the pile, and it really is frightening to consider how good he might become over the coming years.

As per FBref, the all-action midfielder ranks among the top 10% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, the top 19% for assists, the top 18% for progressive passes and the top 20% for passes attempted per 90.

Frankly, there is so much more to come, and Tottenham really have unearthed a jewel in this rising star, who has been sensational in the early phase of the campaign and a large reason behind such a relentless start.

And while Tottenham are currently five points clear in their table-topping position, both Arsenal and Manchester City have the opportunity to close the gap this weekend.

Nonetheless, the job that Postecoglou has done so far has been remarkable, and there would have been scant optimism that such a position of strength could have been established mere months ago.

With gifted stars like Sarr in the centre, there is every possibility that this season’s success will endure, and Tottenham will prevail.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Angus Sinclair • Freelance Football Writer
(1549 Articles Published)
Angus is a freelance analytical writer for Football FanCast.

Having graduated from Southampton Solent University with a degree in Sport Journalism in 2022, Angus found a home at FFC after previously writing for Vavel and OurSoundMusic.

A passionate Liverpool supporter and a lover of statistics, Angus also holds a fondness for MMA and Tennis.

Outside of football, he is a voracious reader with a particular love for fantasy and historical fiction.