Tottenham Hotspur registered a 2nd successive win in all competitions with a 1-0 Europa League victory over AZ Alkmaar at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday evening.
The London heavyweights came on top after a solitary goal from the penalty spot. Richarlison converted the spot kick to extend Spurs’ perfect start to the Europa League campaign. The club are 2nd in the league, behind Lazio on goal difference.
There were plenty of stand-out performance in Spurs’ midfield, but Rodrigo Bentancur must be lauded after a superb all-round showing. As per SofaScore.com, the Uruguayan ace had 111 touches with 94% accurate passes and 100% take-ons won.
He also registered 5 successful ground duels and created Spurs’ goal with a through ball into the path of James Maddison, who won the penalty. Richarlison converted the resultant spotkick after a brief altercation with Maddison over who should take it.
Bentancur also made a crucial challenge in the box to deny Ernest Poku a free shot on goal.
Faith repaid
Bentancur had a tough previous season due to injuries and he was limited to 23 league appearances. He was only a late substitute in the 4-1 rout of West Ham United last weekend, but showed his quality yesterday with a superb midfield performance.
The ex-Juventus man repaid the faith shown by manager Ange Postecoglou and he should start against Crystal Palace in Sunday’s London derby. Ange went with a free-flowing midfield of Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski partnering Yves Bissouma last weekend.
However, he may go with a slightly defensive setup away from home at Selhurst Park. Bentancur looks to be finding his peak form ahead of a crucial period for Tottenham and he deserves to make the starting 11 against the Eagles this weekend.
Madison and Yves Bissouma should keep their places too and it could be Kulusevski making way from the Hammers win. Spurs are within touching distance of the top 4 with a 4-point gap and have the opportunity to close the deficit with another victory.
