Son and Perisic perform
Going into Saturday's match against Bournemouth knowing that a win would see them draw level with Newcastle United on 56 points after the Magpies tasted defeat at Aston Villa in the early kick-off, it looked very promising indeed for Tottenham as they took an early lead in N17.
Son Heung-min, after his wondergoal against Brighton & Hove Albion, was the man who netted after linking up well with Ivan Perisic before finding the net with a low finish. His 12th goal in all competitions this campaign, it was the first time he had netted in successive Premier League games in 2022/23. thus highlighting his woes this campaign.
Many fans have pointed to the South Korean and Perisic failing to click as a reason for his struggles but they linked up very well a number of times on Saturday afternoon. Son, who was most certainly one of Tottenham's better performers on the day as he took the game to the visitors, went close to a second goal only for Neto to get a strong hand to his drive that was destined for the top corner.
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Perisic also delivered one of his best Tottenham displays since joining and looked more like the player of old after failing to hit the heights in the Premier League despite chalking up 11 assists. Running at his opponent and showcasing his quality in the final third with a number of twists and turns before getting the ball into the box, the Croat contributed with three key passes, four dribbles, three shots, three accurate long balls, 19 crosses and his assist.
Tottenham need more of the same from Son and Perisic in the run-in, especially as they missed some a good opportunity to draw level with Newcastle on Saturday.
Danjuma takes his opportunity
Tottenham fans finally got to see Arnaut Danjuma in action for a decent amount of time after previously having to make do with minutes here and there before coming against former club Bournemouth on Saturday. Making an impact in his 12 minutes against Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend, the Netherlands international had to contend with a spot on the bench once again but he was introduced just prior to the hour mark with Tottenham trailing.
Criminally underused since making the move from Villarreal in January, the attacker was intent on making an impression against the Cherries and that's exactly what he did. Instantly involved in the action as he put himself about, Danjuma had two shots on target, one shot blocked and recorded 100 per cent accuracy with his one cross and one dribble.
His display went down well with Tottenham fans and he got the goal his performance deserved two minutes from time with a low drive from the edge of the area that found the goal via a slight deflection. Amazingly, given his lack of minutes in a Tottenham shirt, Danjuma is now level on two goals for the season with Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison.
His impact on proceedings has just raised further questions as to why Antonio Conte did not turn to the player more often. An unused substitute seven times in the Premier League, the 26-year-old can feel extremely hard done by as there were plenty of opportunities for both Conte and Cristian Stellini to introduce him, notably in the Wolves and Everton games and also the Champions League tie vs AC Milan when they needed so much more in the final third.
Danjuma has done himself no harm at all with his performance against Bournemouth and he should be firmly in Stellini's plans for the starting XI at Newcastle United next Sunday. It's just a crying shame that the Lagos-born start has seven games remaining to make his mark at Tottenham as he should have featured frequently after his loan move at the end of January.
Danjuma has demonstrated to Conte in the past two games that he can have a big say on proceedings for Spurs. Hopefully much more is to come.
Richarlison's rotten luck
Whereas Danjuma was on the scoresheet as he netted his second goal for the club, Richarlison's rotten luck in front of goal continued on Saturday afternoon. Entering the fray in the 77th minute with Tottenham chasing an equaliser as Stellini went with all five of his attackers on the pitch, the Brazil international made a nuisance of himself and tried to cause big problems for the Bournemouth backline.
Much has been made of the fact he has yet to score a Premier League goal for Tottenham, something he will be looking to finally achieve at some point over the next seven games. Richarlison did have the ball in the net prior to Danjuma's equaliser, however, but it was ruled out for offside.
The ex-Everton man was not the player in an offside position as it was Danjuma who was adjudged to have been off by the linesman. Richarlison did take his opportunity on goal very well and his effort left Neto with no chance as it found the corner.
It is now the third time in the Premier League he has seen a goal ruled out, with VAR denying him at the start of September against Fulham and then last month against Nottingham Forest. Richarlison really does have no luck when it comes to seeing goals ruled out and hopefully that will soon change, both for the player and also for the team.
Sanchez reaction
Unfortunately one of the main talking points from the 3-2 defeat against Bournemouth was the treatment that came Davinson Sanchez's way in his 23 minutes on the pitch. Introduced ten minutes before the break after Clement Lenglet had sustained an injury, the Colombian was withdrawn himself in the 58th minute to a chorus of boos from thousands of fans inside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Dominic Solanke's strike in the 51st minute to put Bournemouth 2-1 up was a key moment in the contest and Sanchez's role in the goal saw a number of fans turn on him. Turned easily by Marcus Tavernier on the edge of the box, the centre-back tried to win the ball back but in the end prodded it into the path of Solanke to net with a lovely finish.
On a couple of occasions after that goal, Sanchez was booed when he touched the ball and it made for very uncomfortable viewing. In the end, Stellini elected to withdraw the former Ajax defender, and Sanchez, who was greeted by a booming cheer when he made way, looked like he wanted the ground the swallow him up when he took his place back on the bench.
It was reminiscent of the treatment that Emerson Royal had to contend with against Leeds United in November and captain Hugo Lloris hit out at supporters after Saturday's game in a post-match interview. Sanchez may have made errors in his game over the past few years and maybe he is one of the players that should have been moved on to help the club rebuild and go forward once again, but he did not deserve that reaction and the booing is counterproductive and achieves nothing as neither the player in question or the team benefit from it.
An opportunity missed
Tottenham will be kicking themselves for missing a huge opportunity to move level on points with Newcastle in the top-four race. Having seen the north east club defeated 3-0 at Aston Villa in the early kick-off, many expected Spurs to take full advantage of Newcastle's setback by beating lowly Bournemouth.
That wasn't to be the case, however, and Tottenham remain three points off the final Champions League place. In-form Aston Villa are now three points behind Stellini's side and could quite easily leapfrog them in the final seven fixtures, with Brighton & Hove Albion also having a glorious opportunity to move ahead due to their two games in hand.
Now set to come into a huge week needing points against Newcastle, Manchester United and Liverpool, a Champions League spot may no longer be on the agenda for Tottenham at the start of May if they repeat their Bournemouth showing and struggle in the three aforementioned games. It really is going to be a long end to the campaign if their upcoming nightmare week does not go to plan.
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