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Tottenham vs. Crystal Palace: Defenders’ player ratings in 1-0 win

By Gary Pearson

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 05: Paulo Gazzaniga of Tottenham Hotspur makes a save during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on November 5, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 05: Paulo Gazzaniga of Tottenham Hotspur makes a save during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on November 5, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /
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Spurs did what they must against Crystal Palace yesterday, keeping their third clean sheet in four home matches to secure all three points in the narrow victory. 

The three points is all that really matters in a match where Spurs obviously weren’t at their best. They’ll take a modicum of confidence from the clean sheet, even if keeping Palace from scoring isn’t an achievement worth writing home about.

Palace haven’t scored an away goal in eight consecutive Premier League matches, but that won’t phase Spurs, who will gladly take a clean sheet any way they can. Here’s how Tottenham’s backline fared in the nail-biting home win.

LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 05: Paulo Gazzaniga of Tottenham Hotspur makes a save during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on November 5, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 05: Paulo Gazzaniga of Tottenham Hotspur makes a save during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium on November 5, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) /

Paulo Gazzaniga 8/10:

Paulo Gazzaniga, in his first Premier League start for Spurs, saved his team’s blushes with at least three crucial, game-saving stops. Two of the three key saves came from a close-range header. He also got down well on a venomous drive set for the bottom corner in the second 45 and commanded his box, particularly on aerial balls. He also gave Mamadou Sakho a right hook worth praising in the opening minutes. Gazzaniga made one error in judgement, which fortunately didn’t cost him. His decision to come out against Wilfried Zaha was ill-advised, but the Palace front man failed miserably in his attempt at scoring on an open goal.

Jan Vertonghen 7.5/10:

The Belgian international enjoyed a surprisingly busy afternoon at the office, as Palace were relentless on the counter. Vertonghen had four tackles, three interceptions, seven clearances, an attempted shot on goal while making two key passes in a well-rounded performance.

Eric Dier 7.5/10:

Eric Dier showed his underrated and unheralded pace, keeping up with Wilfried Zaha at top flight. Dier made some technically sound slide tackles, particularly in the first half to keep Palace’s speedy front man in check. He completed 93 percent of his passes and made nine clearances to go along with two blocked shots.

Davinson Sánchez 6.5/10:

While the Colombian was solid, he didn’t perform as well as his defensive colleagues. However, he still helped keep Palace from scoring, so it’s not as if he endured a miserable outing. Sánchez made one interception and cleared the ball six times. He also had two attempted shots on goal.