The major winners and losers as Spurs return to winning ways against Hughton’s Brighton

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Tottenham Hotspur ended their three-game losing streak by beating Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1.

After what was a drab first half, Spurs took the lead just before the break as Harry Kane converted from the penalty spot after Glenn Murray was penalised for handball.

And Erik Lamela came off the bench in the second half to earn Spurs all three points and end their three-match losing streak, despite a late scare from Anthony Knockaert’s goal.

Here are the winners and losers from the match.

Winner: Harry Kane

To say Harry Kane has endured a poor few weeks would be an understatement as the striker has looked tired and failed to score for both club and country.

And for 42 minutes against Brighton it was more of the same, with Kane having just 11 touches of the ball fewer than any other Spurs player during that period.

But Kane was handed a golden opportunity to get himself back among the goals as Spurs were awarded a penalty, and the Englishman duly converted giving Mat Ryan no chance at saving it.

The goal was Kane’s first in five games for Spurs and England, last netting in Tottenham’s 3-0 win over Manchester United. And Kane’s goalscoring has been somewhat linked to the form of his teams, with the Three Lions’ friendly win over Switzerland the only time the striker has been on the winning side in that run – and even then he only came on as a substitute.

Loser: Glenn Murray

Like Kane, Murray had a tough opening 42 minutes of the match, barely getting a touch of the ball as Brighton set up to defend against Spurs – though the striker will be used to that and has adapted his game accordingly.

But while Kane’s game got better before half-time, Murray found himself the villain of the piece as he was punished for a handball when defending a Kieran Trippier free-kick.

Some Brighton fans may feel agrieved over the decision, but referee Chris Kavanagh was spot on to award a spot kick, as Murray needlessly stretched his arm across the faces of who defenders to palm Trippier’s effort away – a save Mathew Ryan would have been proud to make.

His side, who had defended and kept Spurs at bay well, were punished for Murray’s moment of madness and as a result had to open themselves up in the second half.

Winner: Erik Lamela

Erik Lamela is proving himself to be a fine impact sub for Tottenham, scoring once more after coming on from the bench.

His first, last week against Liverpool, was purely an injury-time consolation but against Brighton he came on to help consolidate Tottenham’s lead, scoring their second as the home side were beginning to threaten.

Playing central alongside Kane, and often pushing ahead of him, the Argentine was a new threat for the Brighton defenders to deal with using his aggression and technical abilities to link up with his fellow attackers.

For his goal, Lamela held back well inside the box as the defenders followed Kane, giving Danny Rose an easy option and Spurs a more comfortable lead.

If he keeps on this path, Lamela may threaten to earn a starting role for Spurs.

Loser: Michel Vorm

When the team sheets were released an hour before kick-off, Spurs fans were happy to see Michel Vorm’s name not included among the starters or subs.

Vorm has not had the best time recently, filling in for the injured Lloris, having played a bit in each of Tottenham’s three consecutive defeats.

While Vorm’s absence was not due to form, with manager Mauricio Pochettino revealing a knee injury, both the fans’ reactions and the match itself does not read well for the Dutch goalkeeper.

His replacement, Paulo Gazzaniga, was largely uninvolved throughout the match, but did enough when called upon – Knockaert’s consolation aside.

Winner: Paulo Gazzaniga

One man’s loss is another man’s gain, as the saying goes. And that is the case with Paulo Gazzaniga at Tottenham.

Spurs’ third-choice goalkeeper would not have expected to make many appearances for the club this season, so when Hugo Lloris became injured the Argentinian would have been grateful for the spot on the bench.

But against Brighton on Saturday, Gazzaniga started with Vorm injured and did well throughout, making a save to deny Anthony Knockaert from pulling his side level after half-time.

Despite being beaten in injury-time, the goalkeeper kept his nerve to hold onto Knockaert’s late effort from outside the box to prevent Spurs from dropping two points.

Loser: Chris Hughton

Chris Hughton did a commendable job in keeping Brighton in the Premier League last season but the 59-year-old’s task looks to be considerably harder this year.

After six games the Seagulls have won just once, drawing twice and losing three. Though that sole win did come against Manchester United at home, Brighton’s players have been giving themselves far too much to do in recent matches.

The game against Spurs represented the third time in a row Brighton have gone 2-0 down in the Premier League, against Fulham, Southampton and Tottenham.

Despite fighting back to earn a point in two of those fixtures, Brighton would do better in their fight for safety without giving opponents two goal leads especially when a lot of the attacking movement relies on a less-than mobile Glenn Murray.

The post The major winners and losers as Spurs return to winning ways against Hughton’s Brighton appeared first on Squawka News.



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