Simon Mail was at the Amex, and his report has landed. Thanks for reading this MBM. Nighty night!
Antonio Conte’s turn. “It was a good performance. A difficult game, Brighton is a really good team. Their position in the table shows that. They have really good players, and it is not easy to come here and play a good game. We played with personality, and tried to play with high intensity. I think the victory is deserved, but a great compliment to Brighton, because they are a really good team. A lot of positive things. We go away with good confidence, but on Wednesday we have an important game at home, and I invite our fans to create an amazing atmosphere.”
Roberto De Zerbi speaks to Sky Sports. “We played a fantastic game and the result is not fair, 100 percent. Football is not right sometimes, and today the result is not good for us. I made a mistake [in assessing Tottenham’s initial formation] but after the first 15 minutes, on the pitch it was only Brighton. The players were fantastic today. I gave them congratulations. Now we think about Monday to start working again. Football is not fair.”
Harry Kane speaks to Sky Sports. “It’s been a difficult week to say the least and it was nice to get a win today. It was a scrappy goal but I’m really proud of the boys. It’s been a tough week and a difficult place to come.”
Man-of-the-match Ryan Sessegnon adds: “We knew we had to perform today, and wanted to win because of [Gian Piero Ventrone]. Thankfully we did.”
As for the football … no, it wasn’t a game for the ages. The xG: 0.66 to 0.77. Spurs have regained some momentum in the title race, though, and their performance was much improved on last weekend’s insipid second-half effort against Arsenal. It’s a familiar story for Brighton, though: nothing to show for plenty of pretty build-up. A tale once told by Graham Potter, now narrated by Roberto De Zerbi.
Tottenham’s celebrations are reserved. That was one for Gian Piero Ventrone. It wasn’t a classic, but that’s not really the point: after an emotional week that saw the passing of Tottenham’s beloved fitness coach, the win stands as a tribute to their colleague. An emotional Hugo Lloris walks up to the Tottenham end and holds up a shirt bearing Gian Piero’s name. It’s a lovely, if awfully bittersweet, moment.
Updated
FULL TIME: Brighton & Hove Albion 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur
Harry Kane’s first-half header is enough for Spurs to consolidate third spot.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Arsenal | 8 | 12 | 21 |
| 3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 | 10 | 20 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 8 | 3 | 16 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 9 | 8 | 14 |
| 6 | Brighton | 8 | 5 | 14 |
| 7 | Man Utd | 7 | -3 | 12 |
Updated
90 min +4: Lallana spins on the edge of the Spurs box but can’t find the crucial pass. Lloris snaffles and the clock ticks on.
90 min +3: Sky’s man of the match award goes to Ryan Sessegnon. “Although I’d much rather he was still playing for Fulham, it’s great to see Sessegnon doing well at Spurs at last,” writes Richard Hirst. “He was a wonderful player for Fulham: in my mind’s eye he is always threading the ball past John Terry for Tom Cairney to score the winner against Villa in the 2018 play off final - oh happy day.”
Updated
90 min +2: Spurs deal with the free kick, then play stops because Dunk has taken a whack upside the head.
90 min +1: Mitoma dribbles purposefully down the left. He enters the box but is forced to turn tail. He’s heading back to the corner flag … but is barged in the back by Romero. A daft foul with the Brighton player going nowhere.
90 min: There will be five added minutes.
89 min: Brighton throw the dice, replacing Veltman and Caicedo with Lamptey and Gilmour. Spurs react by replacing Kane – hobbling a little gingerly after taking that whack – with Skipp.
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87 min: Spurs are basically two banks of five now on the edge of their own box. Brighton ping it around. Lallana nearly tees up Trossard but Doherty pokes away. Kane comes back to defend and draws a foul from Mac Allister to release the pressure.
85 min: Mitoma and Lallana perform a couple of elaborate backflicks down the inside-left channel. The move doesn’t quite come off, which is a shame, because that could have led to a very pretty goal.
83 min: Perisic sends a low diagonal ball through the Brighton box from the left. Richarlison reacts late and can’t poke in at the far stick.
82 min: Lallana replaces Gross.
81 min: A huge let off for Sanchez, who puts Mac Allister into all sorts of bother with a weak pass out from the box. Hojbjerg closes the midfielder down immediately and nearly deflects the ball back into the unguarded goal. It flies inches wide right.
80 min: Perisic comes on for Son.
78 min: It continues. Welbeck advances down the inside-left channel and drags a shot weakly across the face of goal.
76 min: Mac Allister spins elegantly away from Son and should release March to his right, but misplaces the pass. Trossard picks up possession and lines up a shot, but can’t get that away. Brighton are playing well up until the final third. The old Graham Potter story now told by Roberto De Zerbi. Lloris has had very little to do this evening.
74 min: A long ball down the middle. Son takes up possession, tees himself up just to the right of the D, and curls spectacularly into the top left. What a shot! Except it’s not a goal. Son doesn’t bother celebrating, knowing full well he’d gone a split second too early. Offside.
Updated
73 min: Welbeck very nearly releases Trossard into the Spurs box with a ball down the left channel. Romero reads the danger and intercepts just in time.
72 min: A free kick to Spurs out on the right. Son swings in. Kane flicks it on. The ball’s always heading wide left of the target, but Sanchez loses his bearings and flings himself dramatically at it. Fortunately for Brighton, he doesn’t get there, and therefore doesn’t concede a needless corner. Goal kick.
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71 min: Spurs make their first change of the evening, replacing Bissouma with Richarlison. The former Brighton man departs with pantomime boos ringing in his lugs.
69 min: Mitoma comes again, dribbling in from the left and replicating the first half of Ricky Villa’s famous goal in the 1981 FA Cup final replay. He can’t do the second bit, though, and chases the ball out of play. A lively run, though, and one that got the crowd going.
68 min: Mitoma is immediately in the thick of it, cutting in from the left and sending a curler in the direction of the bottom right. Hojbjerg flings himself in the road to block.
67 min: Mac Allister looks for Estupinan with a shovelled pass down the inside-left channel, but the ball flies out for a goal kick. That’s Estupinan’s last involvement, as he’s replaced by Mitoma.
65 min: Brighton string a lot of passes together and go absolutely nowhere.
63 min: March sashays in from the right and attempts a quick one-two with Mac Allister down the channel. Sessegnon does extremely well to hold his ground and make sure March can’t latch onto the return pass, ushering the ball back to his keeper. Smart play all round.
62 min: Spurs are suddenly carrying a threat again. Kane spins Dunk down the inside right and lashes a low shot across the face of goal and inches wide of the left-hand post.
Updated
61 min: Caicedo strips Son in the middle of the park and very nearly releases Welbeck down the middle. Dier intercepts, and Spurs counter. Kane advances down the inside right and rolls a diagonal pass infield for Son, who prepares to shoot only for Dunk to slide in and deflect the ball back off the striker and out for a goal kick.
Updated
60 min: Sessegnon strides into space down the left, sent scampering clear by Bentancur. The resulting low cross doesn’t get past Veltman, which is just as well for Brighton as Son was waiting to slot.
59 min: All a bit scrappy. Not a whole lot going on.
57 min: Brighton started the half quickly, but that’s all blown out now. Spurs look fairly comfortable at the moment.
55 min: Webster channels his inner Beckenbauer and strides down the inside-left channel. He takes a whack from distance. Romero bravely opens his legs to deflect the shot out for a corner, his fruit bowl taking most of the blow. He’s soon up again, after a few deep breaths and a quick inventory check, and nothing comes of the resulting corner, so it was all worth it in the end.
53 min: Sessegnon rolls a pass down the left to set Son on his way. Son reaches the edge of the box and considers shooting. He’s got options, too: Kane in the middle, Sessegnon on the overlap. He does nothing, though, eventually trying to dribble his way into the box and shipping possession in short order. Strangely indecisive.
51 min: Spurs slow things down a bit with some patient passing in the middle of the park.
49 min: Veltman is booked for a slide tackle on Son. He’d hooked the ball away from the Spurs striker, and was making off with it, so he’s livid. But the referee views that he’s gone through his man.
Updated
48 min: Caicedo robs Bentancur in the centre circle. He can’t turn and start an attack, because Bentancur holds on. The Spurs midfielder is fairly fortunate not to go into the book.
47 min: Estupinan hooks in from the left but neither Trossard nor Welbeck, six yards out, can connect. Romero’s presence too much for them.
46 min: March immediately takes on Sessegnon down the right and loops into the Spurs box. Lloris comes out and flaps, but does just enough to get the ball away from danger.
Brighton get the second half underway. Neither manager has made a change during the break.
Half-time entertainment.
HALF TIME: Brighton & Hove Albion 0-1 Tottenham Hotspur
Nothing happens in the extra minute. Spurs started strongly and deserved their early lead, but Brighton worked their way back into the game and came close to equalising on a couple of occasions. All set up nicely for some second-half fun!
45 min: There will be one minute added to the end of this first half.
44 min: Caicedo wins possession on the edge of the Spurs box. He slips a pass down the inside-left channel for Welbeck, who pelts towards the bottom-left corner. Lloris parries, as he should.
42 min: Sessegnon strips the ball from Veltman on the edge of the Brighton box. He prepares to turn and set himself up to strike, but the whistle goes for a foul. That was a pretty generous reading of the defender’s plight, and Brighton get away with one there.
40 min: Another Brighton corner, this time out on the left. Spurs deal with it easily enough. This is a good response from Brighton after their slow start.
39 min: Mac Allister tees up March, just to the right of the Spurs D. He takes a touch inside and creams a low drive millimetres wide of the right-hand post. Had that been on target, Lloris, rooted to the spot, was never getting there. Brighton getting closer and closer.
38 min: Davies flips a clever pass down the inside-left channel and nearly releases Sessegnon into the Brighton box. Webster comes across to shepherd the ball out for a goal kick, and it turns out Sessegnon was offside anyway, but that was a cute ball from Davies.
36 min: Gross sends an outswinger towards Dunk, on the edge of the six-yard box. Dunk rises highest and should work Lloris at the very least, but in aiming for the top left, sends his header inches over the bar. Very close to an equaliser.
Updated
35 min: Romero recovers and gets back up. March’s first corner from the left leads to another. That second one is worked to the other wing, and now Brighton will be sending a corner in from the right.
Updated
34 min: Brighton continue to push Spurs back. March loops in from the right. Estupinan’s presence forces Romero into the concession of a corner. Romero goes down, having winded himself in collision with his own man Doherty.
32 min: The resulting free kick is sent into the mixer. Bissouma makes up for his mistake by blocking Trossard’s shot.
31 min: … all of which frustrates Spurs, Bissouma ploughing through the back of Mac Allister and going into the book. The home fans wanted their one-time hero sent off, but yellow seems about right, even though Mac Allister will have felt that no-nonsense challenge.
30 min: Brighton are enjoying a little more time on the ball now. They ping the ball around and push Spurs back.
28 min: … but Brighton aren’t out of this, and Caicedo reminds Spurs he’s there, creaming a low drive towards the bottom left from 25 yards. Lloris does well to parry clear.
27 min: Kane takes a quick throw down the left, sending Sessegnon into acres. Sessegnon whistles a low cross out of play on the right, Son never likely to meet it. Spurs look well up for a second.
26 min: Bad news for Brighton: Spurs have won 17 of the 21 games in which they’ve scored first under Antonio Conte. They’ve drawn three of the other four.
24 min: Kane is nearly in again, but can’t get a shot away. The ball breaks to Son, who tries his luck from a tight angle on the right. That’s blocked, and then Bissouma drags harmlessly wide left. Brighton are rocking here, and the scoreline is no more than Spurs deserve.
23 min: Brighton initially claimed an offside, but March was way deeper than everyone else in the home defence, playing everyone on. Kane points to the heavens. That one was for Gian Piero.
GOAL! Brighton 0-1 Tottenham (Kane 22)
The corner from the right is half cleared. Hojbjerg recycles possession, dinking down the inside-right channel for Son, who checks and curls a shot goalwards. The shot is turned into a cross by Kane, who flicks an instinctive header into the left-hand side of the net from six yards!
Updated
21 min: … so having said that, Bentancur’s powerful shot flies through a crowded box and towards the bottom right. Sanchez does extremely well to react just in time, and palm the ball out for a corner. From which …
20 min: It’s been a lively and fairly entertaining first 20 minutes, even if neither keeper has had any serious work to do yet.
18 min: More catcalls directed at Kane, who is booked after slyly sweeping the ball past Webster with his hand as he zipped into the Brighton box. Kane looks perplexed, but it looked like a deliberate action, and he can have no complaints.
17 min: Mac Allister slips a pass down the inside-right channel for Welbeck, who reaches the edge of the box and takes an early shot. He drags the ball across Lloris and inches wide of the left-hand post. Not a bad effort by any means, though had he rolled infield, Trossard, ahead of the last man, would have surely slapped home from 12 yards.
Updated
16 min: Ah, you can hear the home fans now, as Kane lumps an uncharacteristically dreadful pass, intended for Sessegnon down the left, out for a goal kick. They enjoy goading the Spurs captain, whose playmaking is usually so much better than that.
15 min: Spurs have done a good job of silencing the home crowd. It’s the away section you can hear, marching in, all that.
13 min: Son drops a shoulder to make himself some space, 30 yards out. The resulting shot flies 30 yards over, but Spurs continue their impressive start. They’ve enjoyed 70 percent possession so far, Brighton being played at their own game.
11 min: Son sends Sessegnon into space down the left. Sessegnon crosses long. Doherty arrives at the right-hand edge of the Brighton D and screams a volley high and wide. It wasn’t an easy chance. It would have been some goal.
10 min: Brighton finally show in attack, Trossard and Welbeck linking well down the right. March fires in a cross. Half cleared. He tries again. Cleared again. Finally Mac Allister floats … what? A cross? A shot? Either way, it’s an easy catch for Lloris.
9 min: … but Spurs continue to fly, and Kane romps down the right. His shot is blocked. The ball comes back to him, and he looks for Sessegnon in the middle, only for his dinked cross to be cleared. This is a decent start by the visitors.
7 min: Bentancur rolls a pass down the inside-right channel to release Doherty, who has a yard on Estupinan and strides into the penalty area. Doherty should either shoot or roll across for Sessegnon, in acres on his own in the Brighton box, but hesitates, loses control of his feet, and clumsily toe-pokes out for a goal kick. Big chance spurned.
6 min: Spurs are hogging the ball during these early exchanges. They were pretty passive against Arsenal last weekend, so their fans will appreciate this return positivity. Let’s see if they keep it up.
4 min: Spurs take their sweet time to line up the free kick. Then Son loops the free kick over the wall and down towards the bottom left. Accurate but light on power. Sanchez is behind it all the way and parries clear.
2 min: Spurs start confidently, and Kane is found just to the left of the Brighton D. Mac Allister panics and clumsily barges into him from behind. A free kick in a very dangerous position here.
An emotional moment of heartfelt applause for Ventrone. Then the knee, a gesture met with more warm applause. Respect and love the top note all around the Amex. Poor Conte looks drained. Spurs get the ball rolling.
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The teams are out. Brighton wear their blue and white stripes, while Spurs sport second-choice purple. The players will take the knee before kick-off, with the Premier League’s No Room for Racism campaign taking place over the next two rounds of games. Premier League captains decided before the start of the season to concentrate on several points during the campaign to add emphasis to the gesture against racism and other forms of discrimination. Love and solidarity. We’ll be off in a couple of minutes.
Spurs have been warming up in t-shirts dedicated to Ventrone. Both teams will wear black armbands and there will be a minute of silence before kick-off.
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A sombre Antonio Conte speaks to Sky about the loss of their fitness coach Gian Piero Ventrone, who passed away earlier this week. “To find words for Gian Piero is very difficult at this moment. I’m … and we are … devastated by the pain of what has happened. No-one expected this situation. Sometimes life is not always a positive situation. And for this reason we have to cope in the best possible way, and also because I know Gian Piero wanted us to stay strong. We will continue to do our work in the way he taught us.”
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Roberto De Zerbi talks to Sky Sports. “I didn’t want to change things so much. This week we have worked to find more order and organisation, and to continue as we did against Liverpool. I didn’t want to change the first XI because in Liverpool it was a good game, and for the moment I want to continue in this way.”
This was a match-up between third and fourth this morning. The 3pm kick-offs have altered that, though. Brighton have been knocked down a couple of places to sixth, thanks to Chelsea’s 3-0 win over Wolves and Newcastle’s 5-1 rout of Brentford. Manchester City have gone top, by the way, two points clear of Arsenal after dispatching Southampton 4-0, but our table generator, tasked to concentrate on Spurs and Brighton, doesn’t want to show that. To be fair, it also doesn’t want to show Bournemouth rising to eighth after their 2-1 comeback win over Leicester, but what you gonna do. Anti-City bias! Cherry-hating agenda!
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Arsenal | 8 | 12 | 21 |
| 3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 | 9 | 17 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 8 | 3 | 16 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 9 | 8 | 14 |
| 6 | Brighton | 7 | 6 | 14 |
| 7 | Man Utd | 7 | -3 | 12 |
Updated
If It Ain’t Broke dept. In the wake of Brighton’s 3-3 draw at Anfield, a result that seriously flattered Liverpool, Roberto De Zerbi names an unchanged side. Moises Caicedo passed a late fitness test to retain his place.
Spurs make four changes to the side that drew 0-0 at Eintracht Frankfurt on Tuesday. Ryan Sessegnon, Matt Doherty, Ben Davies and former Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma come in for Richarlison, Ivan Perisic and Clement Lenglet, who are benched, and the suspended Emerson Royal.
The teams
Brighton & Hove Albion: Sanchez, Veltman, Dunk, Webster, March, Mac Allister, Caicedo, Estupinan, Gross, Welbeck, Trossard.
Subs: Lamptey, Colwill, Lallana, Sarmiento, Undav, Mitoma, Steele, Gilmour, Turns.
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Romero, Dier, Davies, Doherty, Bissouma, Hojbjerg, Bentancur, Sessegnon, Son, Kane.
Subs: Skipp, Sanchez, Richarlison, Gil Salvatierra, Perisic, Forster, Spence, Sarr, Lenglet.
Referee: Tony Harrington (Cleveland).
Preamble
Welcome to the big meridional meeting between two erstwhile titans of the Southern League: the 1909-10 champions Brighton & Hove Albion and 1899-1900 winners Tottenham Hotspur. However, while it’s one title apiece from those non-league days, Spurs have authored a vastly superior resumé during the subsequent Football League years: champions of England twice, plus eight FA Cups and four League Cups, set against Brighton’s … but football’s not just about winning trinkets, is it.
Still, this illustrates much about size and concomitant expectation. And that in turn explains why Spurs – currently third, just four points off the top – go into this weekend on something of a downer, while Brighton – three points behind in fourth – are high on life. Tottenham had their shorts and pants handed to them by league leaders and rivals Arsenal last Saturday lunchtime, Antonio Conte’s brand of rope-a-dope football failing to wow the punters. Brighton by contrast could have had six or seven at Anfield, playing football so easy on the eye they’re melting hearts all across the land (with the possible exception of Croydon and surrounding areas).
So this is teed up intriguingly. Will Goliath grind out a win? Or will David show them how it should be done? Brighton will want to back up the good notices they received after the 3-3 at Liverpool with another progressive performance against one of the big boys. Spurs may feel they need to make a statement by putting on a show themselves. Brighton have won two of the last three against Spurs. Conte is unbeaten in four matches against Roberto De Zerbi, winning three and drawing one with Inter against Sassuolo. Good luck calling it, then! Kick off is at 5.30pm BST. It’s on!
