Tottenham 2-0 Fulham: Ange Postecoglou makes history as Tottenham go two points clear

Son Heung Min and James Maddison capitalised on Fulham’s defensive errors with both scoring for Tottenham in a 2-0 win against a weak Fulham side to continue their unbeaten league run.

Tottenham now go two points clear at the top of the Premier League, taking 23 points from nine games, which in itself makes history, as Ange Postecoglou sees the best ever start to a Premier League season for a new manager.

Story of the Match

Ange Postecoglou’s side saw one change in the personnel as Pierre Emile Hojberg made his first start to the season following the suspension of Yves Bissouma.

After a minute of silence was dedicated to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, Fulham kicked-off.

Tottenham made a steady start to the game, dominating the possession and chances for the first 20 minutes. Their neat play along the flanks led to a flurry of chances for the home side, many of which came from set pieces, but the final product wasn’t there for any of them.

Fulham’s first chance then came from a corner, but Guglielmo Vicario made an excellent save that denied what was an excellent header from Joao Palhinha,  which was their first attempt on target.

From here Fulham looked to find their feet, but their few possession spells came to no avail, with their best opportunity coming from a long range effort from Sasa Lukic as he drilled his shot wide by some margin.

Aside from that, Fulham’s first half was harmless, and Tottenham continued to dominate both in possession and chances.

Tottenham’s defenders were calm and composed, and managed to keep their momentum as they joined the attack, the likes of Pedro Porro, Destiny Udogie and Cristian Romero made a number of runs up the pitch which lead to a variety of chances that were shared between them, but the Tottenham side were still hunting for their first goal well past the 30 minute mark.

But in the 35th minute, it was Son Heung-Min who broke the deadlock after Richarlison capitalised on a loose ball and laid it off to the club captain, who then took the ball round one before he sent it swivelling into the right hand corner beating Bernd Leno on his far post.

A lively first half closed out Tottenham 1 – 0 Fulham as the home side were unable to find the final product to a lot of shots, only converting one.

It took just eight minutes for Tottenham to find the back of the net in the second half, as James Maddison sent the ball rolling past Bernd Leno from an uncontested position following a pass from Son Heung Min. The goal stood as James Maddison’s first goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and his third of the season. 

Ange Postecoglou made his first change around the 60-minute mark, taking off Destiny Udogie for Emerson Royal. He then followed it up by taking Pape Matar Sarr off in the 62nd minute for Oliver Skipp.

Following the second goal, Tottenham  maintained 60% possession after 20 minutes of the second half, passing it out from the back, their defence made light work of Fulham’s press for the majoity of the game.

The game maintained suite until the 80th minute, when Ange Postecoglou make a triple change, bringing on Alejo Veliz, Brennan Johnson, and Giovani Lo Celso for Richarlison, Son Heung Min and James Maddison.

The changes meant that Tottenham sat back and let Fulham hold the ball for the majority of the final ten.

But Fulham couldn’t capitalise on this, as their best chance came in the 83rd minute from Raul Jimenez,  but Guglielmo Vicario dealt with it well.

After seven minutes of added time the game sizzled out as nothing else came from either side, with final result being a comfortable home victory for Tottenham.

Player of the Match

Tottenham’s win today came from the clinical nature of both Son Heung Min and James Maddison. 

Although Son Heung Min bagged a goal and an assist, James Maddison takes player of the match.

His creative input was in full display today. He was sending pin-point passes between the lines all game, charging the ball around players, and orchestrating the flow and momentum of  Tottenham’s attacking performance.