Tottenham suffered a heavy 3-0 defeat at Brentford on the opening day of the Premier League campaign. The north London club’s new signings were immediately thrown into action, with four of their six summer acquisitions named in Roberto De Zerbi’s starting eleven. Sandro Tonali, Jan Paul van Hecke, Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi all featured from the kickoff, while Mateus Fernandes and Martin Dubravka were among the substitutes.
Prior to kickoff, the Italian manager acknowledged that injuries had left the club short of attacking options. Negotiations are reportedly underway to bring Manchester City forwards Savinho and Omar Marmoush to the club. For this match, Conor Gallagher operated as the number 10, flanked by Mikey Moore and Mathys Tel, with Richarlison leading the line.
Archie Gray made history by becoming Tottenham’s youngest ever captain in a competitive fixture at 20 years and 163 days old, surpassing the previous benchmark set by Steve Perryman at 20 years and 260 days.
Brentford’s organised unit proved too strong for Tottenham’s experimental side in the early exchanges. The home team broke the deadlock after 12 minutes when Mamadou Sangare was released into space and found Keane Lewis-Potter in an even more advantageous position, who finished coolly past the goalkeeper.
Vitaly Janelt doubled the hosts’ advantage. A sloppy piece of hold-up play from Richarlison, followed by a weak challenge from Bergvall, allowed Mathias Jensen to capitalise and Antonin Kinsky could only push his effort into the path of Janelt for a simple finish.
De Zerbi introduced Fernandes and Rodrigo Bentancur at the interval, replacing Bergvall and Gallagher. However, within four minutes of the restart, the deficit grew to three goals. Kinsky managed to keep out Sangare’s effort but the rebound fell to Michael Kayode, who finished into the top corner.
Shortly afterwards, Bentancur conceded a penalty when he brought down Kevin Schade inside the area. Brentford were handed a reprieve as Igor Thiago’s spot kick struck the left-hand post and bounced to safety.
Tottenham were unable to mount a comeback and Brentford secured their first-ever victory over the north London club at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Player ratings from the match:
Antonin Kinsky: Helpless for Lewis-Potter’s opener but should have dealt better with Jensen’s shot for the second goal, pushing it straight to Janelt. Made a reasonable stop from Sangare only for nobody to deal with the loose ball as Kayode capitalised. Stopped an effort from Ajer in the 84th minute. 5
Archie Gray: The youngest captain in the club’s history. Was outplayed alongside Van Hecke for the opening goal. A difficult afternoon for the 20-year-old, though a few decent defensive interventions were outweighed by inferior performances elsewhere. 4
Jan Paul van Hecke: Lost numerous aerial and ground duels during the first half, with his partnership alongside Senesi appearing completely uncoordinated. 4
Marcos Senesi: Struggled to match the pace of the contest initially and occasionally looked cumbersome. He has had fewer minutes than his teammates and did show improvement as the match wore on. 4
Andy Robertson: The most effective part of the Tottenham rearguard, which admittedly wasn’t a high bar. Cleared an early Brentford set-piece just over his own crossbar. Delivered an excellent pass for Moore in the second period that should have resulted in a goal. 5
Lucas Bergvall: Far too easily bypassed as Sangare raced through for Brentford’s opener. Offered no resistance for the second goal, attempting a weak dribble when under pressure, while his distribution was also poor. Substituted at half time with little grounds for complaint. 3
Sandro Tonali: Struggled to find his rhythm before the interval, striking a volley almost out of the stadium before half time. Improved after the break with Fernandes and Bentancur providing support. 5
Mikey Moore: Hardly involved in the opening period. Passed up two promising opportunities within minutes of Brentford’s third goal, firing both efforts at Kelleher before being denied a third time by a smart stop. Found dangerous positions but squandered them. Converting just one or two of those chances could have given Tottenham a lifeline. Replaced by Maddison with over 20 minutes remaining. 4
Conor Gallagher: Dragged an early attempt well wide of the Brentford goal and contributed little else. Offered no creative threat in the number 10 position, which will remain a concern. 3
Mathys Tel: The sole member of the attacking trio who looked capable of making things happen in the first half but failed to do so. Moved to the right flank later in the contest and had a couple of attempts that came to nothing. 4
Richarlison: Lost possession in the build-up to Brentford’s second goal, which epitomised his entire performance. Received little service but failed to help himself either. Too slow to react when Kayode scored. 3
Substitutes:
Mateus Fernandes: Made an encouraging impact after coming on, demonstrating some of his ball-carrying abilities. 6
Rodrigo Bentancur: Entered the field and almost immediately gave away a penalty with his challenge on Schade. Otherwise showed that Tottenham require more control from him in the centre of the park. 5
James Maddison: Appeared ring-rusty, having not started a competitive fixture for 16 months and having only completed 45 minutes of pre-season action. 4
Dominic Solanke: Also looked short of match fitness and saw little of the ball. 4
Destiny Udogie: Came on for Gray in the closing stages. N/A