Tottenham Hotspur fell to an embarrassing loss at the Etihad as they failed to create enough chances and succumbed to a team that is playing some spectacular football at the moment. Pochettino’s men managed to keep City from playing their sparkling brand of football in the first half but went down to an early goal from Ilkay Gundogan, who was left unmarked, six years out, from a corner.
Though the visitors started the second half well, they did not do anywhere close enough before City pepped up their game to score three goals in the last 15 minutes of the game. Christian Eriksen scored a late goal, which meant nothing for the game and here are the player ratings for Pochettino’s men in this tie:
Hugo Lloris (5):
Dreadful with his distribution all night and also should have stopped two of the goals on a rather dreadful night for the Frenchman.
Kieran Trippier (3):
Constantly harassed and hassled by Leroy Sane on the wing as he afforded him too much space on the flank to create chance after chance, pushing his side on the backfoot.
Eric Dier (3):
Gave away the penalty on De Bruyne and was also at fault for Sterling’s second on a night where not much went well for the versatile midfielder.
Jan Vertonghen (5):
Was wayward with his passing and was constantly troubled first by Aguero and then by Jesus and Sterling in a game which he will want to forget.
Danny Rose (8):
Easily the best defender for Spurs on the night, Rose made three crucial blocks, negated Sterling’s threat on the flank and also put in a couple of decent crosses at the other end.
Harry Winks (4):
Invisible for most of the first half and did not create one chance of note as he failed to control the tempo of the game in the middle of the park.
Mousa Dembele (4):
Was outdone in the midfield, where he failed to keep a check on the City passing and was also not his usual self, losing possession too often for his team’s liking.
Heung Min-Son (5):
Used his pace well against the likes of Mangala but was just not smart enough in the final third, as he failed to open up the City defence.
Dele Alli (4):
Lucky to not see a red for his challenge on De Bruyne but just as well, as he was often isolated and did more defensively than he did at the other end.
Christian Eriksen (5):
Scored a goal late on but was lethargic in possession and was off-colour, against an impressive City side.
Harry Kane (6):
The best attacker for Spurs on the night, Kane put himself on the line, won the ball back well and was the only player to even test Ederson on the night.
Substitutes:
Erik Lamela (5):
Came on with 20 minutes to play and made a couple of mazy runs, creating a couple of half chances at a time when his side was struggling to keep hold of the ball.
Moussa Sissoko (N/A)
Ben Davies (N/A)
