Tottenham defeat Bournemouth to maintain unbeaten start to season
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Tottenham Hotspur players celebrating after scoring their second goal in the 2-0 win over Bournemouth.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Follow topic:
LONDON – As Tottenham Hotspur saw out their 2-0 English Premier League win at Bournemouth on Saturday, their fans could be heard chanting: “We’ve got our Tottenham back!”
Such was the positivity that new manager Ange Postecoglou has brought to Spurs since he was appointed in the off-season
It is still early in the season, but the signs are looking good even after the departure of their record scorer Harry Kane
No Kane, no problem as new signing James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski netted to maintain Postecoglou’s unbeaten start to life in north London – Spurs have two wins and a draw so far.
“(Maddison is a) £45 million (S$76.7 million) bargain? I don’t know what world you live in! There wasn’t anyone happier than me when we got him. I think there’s more to come. I’m delighted we’ve got him,” Postecoglou said.
On his team’s performance, he added: “Some of our football, our tempo, our play, was excellent. I thought they (Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Ivan Perisic) also did really well. That gave us a platform to get our second goal. We controlled the game really well after that.”
Maddison opened his account for Tottenham with the first goal in the 17th minute.
The England midfielder, signed from relegated Leicester City, maintained his impressive start for his new club with a close-range finish.
“Really happy with that. I’m really happy with the goal – it was such a great move and I made a nice run, which I’ve been working on because I want to get more goals,” he said.
“I’ve set myself a target for goals and assists, but I’m not gonna tell you what it is! It’s been very easy to fit in, not just on the pitch. You develop relationships (with teammates) over the course of pre-season and on the training pitch.”
Bournemouth threatened to get back in the game in the second half, but Kulusevski doubled Spurs’ lead just past the hour with a neat finish following a slick build-up.
“The second goal came at a beautiful time. It gave us a bit of breathing space and I thought we were comfortable after that,” Maddison added.
As Maddison shone, Richarlison is struggling to fill the boots of Kane. The striker had another frustrating afternoon before being replaced after an hour.
The Brazilian should have doubled Tottenham’s advantage before the break when he tried to cut inside when clean through, allowing Lloyd Kelly to get just enough of a touch with a last-ditch tackle to divert the ball to safety.
“He’s just got to keep working hard and keep contributing to the team,” added Postecoglou.
All was good in the end as Spurs brought home all three points.
REUTERS
