Tottenham Hotspur didn’t just secure a point at Anfield on Sunday. Against Liverpool, they did something even better: they remembered how to play football.
Richarlison came up trumps at his nemesis’s ground, as he has done on numerous occasions in the past. This time, though, Spurs held their nerve and left with a crucial point to keep them ahead of Nottingham Forest and West Ham United in the Premier League relegation battle.
It wasn’t the perfect performance by any stretch, but it was undoubtedly the strongest of the Igor Tudor era (such as it is).
And now, the Croatian coach has a platform to build from over the next few weeks as he looks to preserve Tottenham’s place in the Premier League.
How Spurs claimed a point at Anfield
Liverpool have had their own troubles this season, and while Arne Slot’s side left a lot to be desired, this is in large part because of Tottenham’s work rate and mentality after the break, rallying after a poor opening half.
Sure, the Lilywhites’ confidence or even any kind of coherence during parts of the contest, but the fight and desire on show could prove the difference-maker over the coming weeks, especially when considering Forest are up next in what the purists would coin a ‘six-pointer’.
Liverpool dominated the ball, but they only created one big chance throughout the entire encounter. Spurs created two, and they also won 53% of the ground duels and were more effective in carrying the ball forward, fuelled by Richarlison’s tenacious effort in the final third.
The Brazilian proved the difference, and no mistake, but his effort only accentuated some of his peers’ shortcomings, with the defence porous and disjointed (understandable, given the amount of injuries).
However, another of the club’s senior stars endured another tough outing, but the conundrum is that Tudor can’t possibly drop him.
Spurs must sell their new Aurier & Ndombele
Tottenham have seen a number of senior players fall by the wayside over the years, and it looks like Guglielmo Vicario is sinking into that undesirable category, joining the likes of Serge Aurier and Tanguy Ndombele in failing to use his experience to shine.
The 29-year-old is still relatively young in goalkeeping years, but at Anfield, he made his 92nd appearance in the Premier League, marking the occasion with a weak effort to stop the home side’s first-half goal.
Mistakes are a part of football, but there’s no excusing the number that Vicario makes in front of Tottenham’s goal. Conceding a free-kick to Dominik Szoboszlai is nothing to be ashamed of, but this was one of the Hungarian’s tamer efforts, failing to reach the corner of the net but still foiling Vicario’s weak parry.
When considering the number of errors the Italy international makes, and his “embarrassing” lack of leadership, as was pointed out by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher earlier in the campaign, it does look like Vicario will leave Tottenham with a place in the same bracket as the likes of Aurier and Ndombele.
Those players were of high stock. Aurier plied his trade for Paris Saint-Germain before moving to Spurs, and Ndombele arrived for a club-record £60m fee in 2019.
|
Vicario in the Premier League (Error Count) |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Apps |
Errors |
|
25/26 |
28 |
4 |
|
24/25 |
24 |
6 |
|
23/24 |
38 |
2 |
Neither enjoyed much success at the club, and both left with their tails between their legs. It now looks like Vicario is going to follow suit, and fans would embrace that scenario, especially if reminded of their rich goalkeeping history with a talented replacement between the sticks next year.
Like Aurier, like Ndombele, Vicario is naturally gifted. He arrived in England with the potential to become one of the division’s top goalkeepers.
That hasn’t happened, and though he’s been hampered by injury after injury across his backline, the Italian has actually saved only 63.7% of his shots faced in the top flight this term, putting him 21st out of 23 players on that list.
While Antonin Kinsky cannot be called upon after his nightmarish experience in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid, it is imperative that Vicario is cut from the squad this summer, be that for a Tottenham side retaining their top division status or tumbling into the second tier.