A perfect ending to an imperfect game
It was absolute bedlam. The fans were going crazy in the stands and on the pitch the Tottenham Hotspur players were swarming from everywhere.
Captain Son Heung-min sprinted off the bench to join in, goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario ran the length of the turf to leap into the celebrations and Spurs’ young Dutch giant Micky van de Ven picked up Pedro Porro clean off his feet and lifted him into the air before roaring towards the west stand.
If you want to look at how much of a tight-knit squad Ange Postecoglou has already created you might only look at the players who all came off the bench to make such a huge impact but you could also peer across at those not even involved on the day.
Youngster Alejo Veliz went crazy when the goal went in, screaming and yanking the advertising hoarding back and forth in front of him with Bryan Gil, while teenage defender Ashley Phillips bellowed his delight alongside them.
On the other side of Veliz, Rodrigo Bentancur was equally ecstatic while trying not to spill the drink of maté he had in his hand and beside him Giovani Lo Celso pumped his fists into the air over and over again.
After the final whistle, Eric Dier, Fraser Forster, Porro and Son all ran for Richarlison before the players on the pitch jogged in a line holding hands towards the south stand to enjoy a moment with the fans who had pushed them on, all of the team pushing Richarlison to the front and pointing at him to ensure he soaked up a huge impactful occasion after his recent tough time.
READ MORE: Tottenham player ratings vs Sheffield United: Richarlison, Kulusevski and Perisic’s huge impact
Yves Bissouma pulled up the neck of the back of the Brazilian’s shirt so his name was on full display to the fans before launching himself up on to the crossbar. The Mali international pulled himself up above it and roared at the jubilant supporters before dancing before them and then danced all the way off pitch, after jumping into Son’s arms.
Rival fans will say ‘it was only Sheffield United’, but this felt like a special moment for such a young team so early in its gestation.
It was the latest winning comeback in Premier League history and it was the first real test of this Tottenham side’s character and ability to break down the most stubborn of teams and they came through it.
Postecoglou was so calm and collected throughout the chaos in the aftermath of the winning goal. He pumped his fists a couple of times and assistant head coach Chris Davies gave him a big hug, which the Australian accepted for a moment before a ‘release me now’ pat on his shoulder before turning to organise the back four which was a little makeshift after he made the changes to win the game.
This was not perfect football but it provided the perfect way to end the game. Sheffield United had been impressively organised but ultimately it was the amount of time they wasted, mostly through goalkeeper Wes Foderingham, that handed Spurs the chance they needed to turn things round under the new rules.
The match stats read 70% possession to Tottenham, with 535 passes to the Blades’ 181. They had 28 shots at goal to the visitors’ seven, with 10 efforts on target to their five, forcing the away side into 35 clearances, nine blocks and eight saves.
Despite United’s goal, Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven were dominant throughout as their partnership continues to flourish.
At the other end, Tottenham have now scored two or more goals in all five of their Premier League games under Postecoglou, something only four other managers have managed in the competition.
The style of football under Postecoglou, who is now unbeaten in 50 home matches and broke the Manager of the Month curse with a bang, gives him more patience from the fans.
In recent seasons had Spurs been 1-0 down to a promoted side in the 73rd minute let alone 97th minute, the atmosphere would have been toxic. There would have been boos for the players collectively and for some individually and chants against the chairman.
With Postecoglou, the fans can see what he’s doing and they contributed loudly, with the odd geeing up from James Maddison, in pushing on the players despite the lateness of it all.
“The fans played their part today. It was a real frustrating game, in terms of there was a lot of stoppages and dead time,” said the Tottenham boss. “Sometimes we didn’t deal with it well, talking to referee in unnecessary moments instead of getting on with the game.
“It would have been easy for our fans to get frustrated but I do think our supporters are seeing in this team, even when things weren’t going to script today and we were 1-0 down, they can see the team trying to play the kind of football they want to see and I think that helps. They can resonate with that.
“That’s what they want to see in their team. They want to see aggression when we have the ball and aggression when we don’t have the ball. I think they’ve bought into that because they can see that’s what the players are trying to do.
“In this early phase it’s crucial because that hopefully fast tracks our development as a football club because there’s no doubt that the players got energy from the supporters today. No doubt about it.”
It is Tottenham’s best start to a league season since 1965. They sit second and unbeaten in the fledgling Premier League table with four wins in a row after that opening draw at Brentford.
“There was a fair bit going on out there today,” Postecoglou told football.london with a smile. “A great ending, in terms of what we’re trying to build, there’s the football side of it but there’s also trying to build the spirit and character and resilience within the group and they showed bags of it today.
“Hopefully it gives us the opportunity to fuel that further. Every time you have to deal with adversity and you overcome it, I think it helps in what you’re trying to grow.”
Something is growing at Tottenham Hotspur under Postecoglou and it’s sprouting even more quickly than he expected.
Just what Richarlison and Spurs needed
As scripts go, you couldn’t have written much of a better way for Richarlison to end this week.
It was a week that began with tears in the dugout, an admission that he needed to speak to a phycologist as life off the pitch had hit him hard over the past five months and then a Spurs team that gathered around him.
The Tottenham fans also let the Brazilian know their thoughts after he spoke about his mental health, giving him a huge cheer when he came on late in the game and he responded in the best way possible.
Richarlison had spent a long time on the sidelines warming up, constantly looking across at the bench, just waiting for the nod and at one point even seemed to make a substitution sign with his hands to someone over there.
When the forward did come on he immediately gave Spurs a focal point, heading over a cross from Porro, before making that great untracked run to head in Ivan Perisic’s corner in the 98th minute, a kick earlier won by a blocked header from another substitute Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
The look on Richarlison’s face said it all, he knew it was only an equaliser at that point but he roared with delight after doing his bit for the team as he ran back to the centre circle, Hojbjerg having grabbed the ball out of the net.
It was Richarlison’s first home goal for Spurs and his 50th in the Premier League, making him only the third Brazilian to reach that landmark after Roberto Firmino and Gabriel Jesus.
He was not done though as Spurs won the game with a beautiful flowing move from the Postecoglou playbook.
First Destiny Udogie made a battling, crucial interception and played the ball to Hojbjerg, he fed it to Perisic who picked out Richarlison with an instinctive first time pass and the now fully confident Brazilian ran on and passed it inside at the perfect moment to Dejan Kulusevski, who took a touch and buried his shot to take the roof off the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Spurs players split, all taking a moment to celebrate with both the Swede and the Brazilian, who had contributed a goal and assist in just 10 minutes or so of action.
Postecoglou’s substitutes had all made a crucial difference. Perisic is becoming a huge influence late in matches for the Australian with his experience as has Hojbjerg for the same reason.
However, this was all about Richarlison and Postecoglou told football.london that he was delighted for the 26-year-old.
“Richy was great. I thought all the subs who came on really helped, but that’s been a consistent theme,” he said. “For Richy I think it’s the point I was trying to make yesterday – for him to understand that you try to maintain a balance in life, and his football hasn’t been that bad, he’s still been contributing for us.
“Sometimes when you struggle with certain parts of your life you let it go into other areas, but the football is one area where he can control, and he works hard every day in training and really got his rewards today.
“Hopefully that gives him a bit more of a settled feel to deal with the other areas in his life. For everyone, it’s about not letting it overwhelm you, and hopefully a day like today helps him.”
When asked whether he spoke to Richarlison before the game about his mental health, Postecoglou made it very clear that he would leave that to people who could make a real difference.
“No I didn’t speak to him. That’s not my area of expertise, not just for Richy but for all the boys. If they have issues we have people who are much better equipped to handle those kind of things,” he explained.
“For me, I try to provide an environment for the players where they can feel comfortable to come into that space. I didn’t want to overwhelm Richy by asking him a million questions or offering advice for stuff I don’t really know and probably shouldn’t because that’s for him to work out with people better equipped than me.
“My role is to provide an environment here at the football club that allows them to feel secure in this part of their life. So I didn’t really have anything to say to him. I’m sure it’s a group of players and they’ve been around him, and you saw at the end how happy they were for him.”
