Donny van de Beek's goal consigned Tottenham to a 1-0 loss in their Champions League semi-final first leg. Did any Spurs players impress?
Wednesday 1 May 2019 06:27, UK
Tottenham's hopes of reaching their first Champions League final were dealt a blow as they suffered a 1-0 loss at home to Ajax in the first leg of their semi-final.
Here's how we rated Mauricio Pochettino's players...
Could he have got out to Donny van de Beek quicker for the goal? The Ajax midfielder seemed to have all the time in the world to pick his spot. He only faced one other shot on target after that, saving smartly from the same player to prevent Ajax taking a two-goal lead in the first half.
Given a torrid time by David Neres in the first half and appeared to play De Beek onside for Ajax's goal. His set-pieces were as dangerous as ever going forwards, but this was another performance to raise questions of his defensive form. One sloppy pass in the closing stages almost led to a second Ajax goal.
Struggled in the first half as Ajax ran rings around the hosts but improved after Spurs switched to four at the back. Showed his aerial threat with a couple of headers which sailed narrowly over the Ajax bar.
Like Alderweireld, struggled badly in the first half, with Neres giving him some particularly awkward moments. Regained some of his composure as the game went on, making more interceptions than any of his team-mates, but his passing was sloppy at times.
A sickening sight to see him almost pass out before being helped from the field following the collision which left his nose and shirt bloodied in the first half. Given the nature of the injury, he should surely never have been allowed back on in the first place.
Showed more fight than most in the first half, making some important tackles and battling away at the back, but caught out of position for the Ajax goal. Had some good moments going forward, seeing one diagonal shot heroically blocked by an Ajax defender before his substitution in the closing stages.
Thrown in for only his ninth start of the season due to Tottenham's injury problems, so perhaps no surprise that he looked rusty. He was completely overrun in the first half, unable to get close to Ajax's midfielders as they swarmed around him from all angles.
A lot was expected of him with Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son ruled out, but the Dane was not his usual self. Bypassed in the first half and, while he had better moments after the break, he was not nearly as influential as he so often is.
Led the Tottenham resurgence after the break, seeing one shot blocked by Matthijs de Ligt and firing another straight at Andre Onana. More comfortable when moved into a more advanced role having failed to provide enough support to Wanyama in the early stages.
At the heart of most of Tottenham's best moments in the first half, showing a willingness to run at Ajax with the ball at his feet. Caught the eye with one clever turn away from Frenkie de Jong in the second half but his end product let him down at times.
The Spaniard only had one effort on goal - a header from a first-half free-kick which sailed narrowly wide - but he did a good job of bringing others into play and his physicality caused Ajax problems throughout. Did his job well for the most part, but Spurs missed Kane and Son's cutting edge.
Not deemed fit enough to start but what a difference he made after replacing Vertonghen. Brought some much-needed presence to a previously floundering midfield, geeing up the home fans with some uncompromising challenges and dictating the play too.
Not on long enough to rate.
Not on long enough to rate.
