Let’s take a look at the Player Ratings from the Premier League match between Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur at Elland Road.
Tottenham’s Champions League qualification hopes suffered a major blow in a 3-1 defeat to Leeds United on Saturday afternoon.
After a convincing 4-0 win over Sheffield United, Spurs hoped to extend their good run of form under interim coach Ryan Mason at Elland Road and close the gap to the top-four.
35 – There is an age difference of 35 years and 327 days between Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa and Tottenham’s Ryan Mason, the second biggest gap between two managers meeting in the competition, after Bobby Robson and Chris Coleman (37 years, 112 days). Spectrum. pic.twitter.com/8p3fIzCip8
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 8, 2021
But while Leeds haven’t always excelled at home this season, they deservedly entered the break with a 2-1 lead. Stuart Dallas broke the deadlock in the 13th-minute with a simple rebound.
Heung-min Son responded 12 minutes later by scoring an equalizer for his 17th Premier League goal of the season. That was, however, Spurs’ only real chance in an otherwise lackluster first-half.
In fact, Leeds keeper Illan Meslier was rarely tested unlike his Spurs counterpart Hugo Lloris.
Thanks to some clever team play down the flanks, Patrick Bamford restored the Whites’ lead shortly before the break. It was the former Chelsea man’s 15th goal of the campaign, and left Spurs on the back burner.
4 – Patrick Bamford is just the fourth Englishman to score 15+ goals for Leeds in a single Premier League campaign after Lee Chapman (15 in 1992-93), Rod Wallace (17 in 1993-94) & Michael Bridges (19 in 1999-00). Spearhead. #LEETOT
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 8, 2021
In all, it was a frustrating afternoon for the London club.
Harry Kane, in particular, struggled to make a difference after having two goals ruled out for offside. The England captain even hit the bar from a free-kick, but the goals just simply wouldn’t come his way.
Substitute Rodrigo Moreno put the final nail in the coffin by scoring a late third goal after Raphinha beat the offside trap to set up the unmarked Spaniard for a left-footed strike.
The result marked Mason’s first Premier League defeat as a manager and leaves Spurs five points outside the top-four. The two teams directly above them – West Ham and Chelsea – have a game in hand.
For Leeds, meanwhile, it was a deserved home win. Marcelo Bielsa’s men have moved, for the time being at least, back into the upper half of the league table in ninth-place.
Player ratings
Leeds: Meslier (6); Ayling (7), Llorente (7), Struijk (7), Alioski (8); Koch (7); Dallas (8), Roberts (6), Klich (7), Harrison (7); Bamford (8).
Bench: Raphinha (7), Rodrigo (8), Phillips (6).
Tottenham: Lloris (7); Aurier (6), Alderweireld (6), Dier (5), Reguilon (5); Lo Celso (6), Hojberg (6); Bale (7), Alli (7), Son (7); Kane (6).
Bench: Lamela (6), Moura (5), Ndombele (5).
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