Three positives from Tottenham’s 3-2 loss to Saints
By Gary Pearson
After somehow finding a way to swallow that enormously foul and bitter pill, there were, on reflection, a few positives from Tottenham’s 3-2 loss to Southampton.
Though, admittedly, it took some time to cool off after seeing Tottenham throw the match away within a three-minute span.
The negatives will be covered exhaustively in a sister article, but focussing on the positives in this piece, while it won’t help lessen the fierce blow, will hopefully remind everyone that is just one match, and there’s still a lot to look forward to.
3. Lucas Moura‘s two exquisite passes
The Brazilian only got credited for one assist, though the outside-of-the-boot poke that led to Tottenham’s opener was definitely deserving of another. The deftest of touches took ingenuity, wherewithal, an uncanny presence of mind and the skill to pull it off. Pierre Hojbjerg made the penetrating run and Moura created space on the turn to find the Dane brilliantly.
Moura doubled down, following that first unofficial assist with an encore helper in the second half. His low, curling cross was hit with pinpoint precision and weight, leaving Son Heung-min with a comparatively easy finish.
Unfortunately Moura didn’t have it all his own way otherwise. He wasn’t able to muster a shot on target, had only one attempted shot and, contrary to his two exquisite passes that led directly to goals, only completed 66 percent of his passes.
But those two passes. Boy oh boy, were they ever exquisite.