Tottenham 0-1 Man City: Five talking points as Aguero strike downs Spurs
Monday 4 May 2015 09:25, UK
After Manchester City claimed a narrow 1-0 win against Tottenham, we look back on five talking points from White Hart Lane.
Sergio Aguero’s first half strike was enough for Manuel Pellegrini’s men, who lost their Premier League crown earlier in the day after Chelsea’s victory over Crystal Palace.
The victory put City three points clear of Arsenal in second place, while Spurs’s hopes of sneaking into the top four were dealt a killer blow.
Super Silva
Match-winner Aguero and goalkeeper Joe Hart took most of the plaudits for City’s win, but David Silva was equally important. The Spanish schemer made 53 passes – the joint-most of any City player – with a 94.3 per cent success rate, including the assist for Aguero’s breakaway winner.
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“He would have been my man of the match, because he did some stuff today that you don’t normally associate him with,” said Sky Sports pundit Thierry Henry.
The former Arsenal striker was referring to Silva’s performance off the ball. As well as pulling the strings for City in the final third, the 29-year-old produced an industrious defensive performance to help nullify Spurs.
Silva made four tackles – more than any other City player – and gained possession on six occasions in total. “He played in a way today that we don’t usually see,” added Henry.
Silva has created more chances (82) than anyone else at City this season, but his performance at White Hart Lane showed he is more than capable of mucking in to help grind out a win when needs be.
“We were talking about the goal and how brilliant they were on the counter-attack but they were defending well as a team. We haven’t seen that for a very long time,” said Henry.
Hart shines
While Henry picked Silva as his man of the match, Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino opted for Hart, who made a number of important saves to keep his 12th clean sheet of the Premier League campaign.
Hart’s best stop came at the feet of Harry Kane after the Spurs striker beat Martin Demichelis to a through ball in the second half. “I made it a little bit uneasy coming out and me and Martin had a bit of a mix up but we managed to defend,” Hart told Sky Sports. “I saved it but I felt that Fernando was directly behind me. I just had to keep (Kane) guessing for as long as possible.”
Hart also provided the throw to release Silva for City’s goal, but the England international was modest about his role in the strike. “Sergio takes a lot of defenders with him with his speed and David snuck up around the back and made it an easy throw for me,” he said.
In front of Hart, City’s back four also performed well after recovering from a chaotic opening in which Spurs threatened to take an early lead. Eliaquim Mangala has struggled badly at times in his first season in England but the French international improved as the game wore on, making six interceptions and seven clearances – more than anyone else in a City shirt.
Aleksandar Kolarov also impressed with a dynamic performance at left-back, and Hart praised City’s collective effort: “We defended with our lives at the back,” he said.
Kane v Aguero
At the other end, Aguero outshone Tottenham’s Harry Kane and took a step closer to the golden boot with his 22nd league goal. The Argentine has now scored 10 goals in seven league games against Spurs, and his latest effort was one of the very best.
“I loved it,” said Henry. “That was counter-attacking at its best.” Hugo Lloris will be disappointed to have been beaten at his near post, but Aguero’s high finish was an example of just how clinical the Argentine can be.
“They’ve shown the difference in class when you need to put the ball in the net,” conceded Spurs defender Danny Rose, who felt the hosts deserved at least a point.
Aguero almost doubled his tally in the second half but he couldn’t quite steer his close-range effort on target after rounding Lloris following a superb one-two with Fernandinho.
Kane, meanwhile, had six shots on goal without finding the net, and the Sky Sports punditry team felt he could have set up a team-mate for the chance saved by Hart in the second half. “After he’s got control of the ball you would like to see him get his head up and see what’s around him,” said former Chelsea player Eidur Gudjohnson.
Spurs still lacking top four quality
The defeat keeps Spurs seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester United with just three games to play, effectively ending their Champions League hopes for another season.
Spurs had more shots (21 v 15) and more possession (54 per cent v 46 per cent) than City, and Gudjohnson felt it was an opportunity missed for Pochettino’s men, who have only won two of their 10 league games against City, Chelsea, Arsenal, United and Liverpool this season.
“It’s a big opportunity lost for them,” said Gudjohnson. “Typical Spurs, around that sixth place and they just can’t find that step to break into the top four.”
His comments were echoed by Henry. “I think they’ve done a great job of bringing some youngsters through at the Lane, but at some point something has to be done,” he said. “You can’t always be fifth or sixth in this league. They have an amazing training ground and everything is there for them to make that step, but they are not making it.”
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher feels this summer’s recruitment is imperative if Spurs are to mount a stronger challenge next season. “On the back of the Gareth Bale money, Soldado was the big name striker from Valencia, and it just hasn’t worked out for him. When they have the chance to go out and buy players, they have got to get it perfect.”
What next for City?
On the day that they surrendered their Premier League crown to Chelsea, Carragher felt City provided a reminder that they don’t need a “major overhaul” in the summer to mount a stronger challenge next season.
“It’s not about City needing a major overhaul,” said the former Liverpool centre-back. “At the start of the season and maybe even now, they’ve still probably got the best squad. Chelsea have won the league and they’ve been the best team, no doubt, but they’ve still got Drogba at (37 years old) and Remy, who has had injury problems and is not top drawer. You compare that to the strikers City have got – they’ve got the better squad.”
But City have lost to the likes of Burnley, West Ham and Stoke this season, and – despite their encouraging performance against Spurs – Gudjohnson feels their mentality is the main area for improvement. “At times this season we haven’t seen enough desire from the Man City players, we haven’t seen enough hunger to win games,” he said.
Henry, meanwhile, believes the future of Yaya Toure could be key. The Ivorian missed the Spurs clash through injury and has been criticised for the level of his performances this season, and Henry feels City must either sell him or move him into a more advanced position.
“For me Yaya Toure is the key because if he does leave you’re going to get some money and you’re going to try to get some other players to replace him,” said Henry. “But if he does stay, he has to play higher than playing in front of the back four.”
Manuel Pellegrini’s future is another area of uncertainty, but the City boss refused to comment on the subject after the game.
