Van de Ven and Porro top player ratings for Spurs’ 2-1 win over Burnley

An excellent display across much of the starting XI under Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou, 'Ange-ball' looked to be in full effect this weekend.

The starting back-four of Porro, Van de Ven, Cristian Romero and newly minted left-back Oliver Skipp played steady if not standout play at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Let’s dive in and see how well the lineup and their substitutes performed.

GK - Guglielmo Vicario: 6/10. Despite allowing the opening goal to Burnley’s Jacob Bruun Larsen, the Italian stopped the other two shots on target from the visitors and delivered one of his better performances in recent weeks.

RB - Pedro Porro: 7/10. A very good performance by the Spanish full-back, as he notched Spurs’ opening goal of the game to tie the score at 1-1 in the 32nd minute; Also wasn’t a slouch on defense, as he cleaned up his act after a rough past few matches on the defensive side of the ball.

CB - Micky Van de Ven: 8/10 (MAN OF THE MATCH). Another outstanding display from the Dutch center-back, one of his best of the season. The 23-year-old scored the game winner for Spurs in the 82nd minute, following some nifty footwork from substitute Dane Scarlett (more on him below). Matches like these are why Van de Ven is already seen as a major piece of Tottenham’s future plans.

CB - Cristian Romero: 6/10. A solid display again from the vice captain, as he was steady and calm next to Van de Ven all afternoon. Had a good chance at goal denied by Burnley’s keeper Arijanet Muric, but not a bad day at the office overall for Romero.

LB - Oliver Skipp: 5/10. Not a bad performance from Skippy as he filled in at left-back. The position has been ravaged by injuries (Destiny Udogie and Ben Davies are out for the rest of the season), but Skipp didn’t play too poorly in his first match at the position. Often times he acted like a fourth midfielder throughout the contest.

CM - Yves Bissouma: 5/10. A better performance from the Malian international today, but he seemed to tire as the match wore on. Replaced in the 75th minute by Rodrigo Bentancur, it looks as if Bissouma is ready for a break from an already long season.

CM - Pape Matar Sarr: 6/10. Also notched an improved performance on Saturday. Played decent enough on both sides of the ball, even if he was caught off guard en route to Burnley’s goal. Deserves a chance to finish the season on a high note in the starting lineup.

CAM - James Maddison: 7/10. Back in the starting lineup after missing the mark the last couple of matches, Maddison looked like himself from earlier in the campaign. The English international had an exciting and dangerous performance, missing a couple opportunities to score but looking like the creative conduit that he was back before his injury against Chelsea.

LW - Dejan Kulusevski: 5/10. Started on the left instead of his preferred right side, the Swedish international didn’t have his best performance of the season by a wide margin. Still, he offered a couple of decent looks at goal for Spurs during the course of the match.

ST - Son Heung-min: 6/10. A decent performance from Spurs’ captain, Son looked stronger after he switched over to the wing following a series of substitutions in the 75th minute. The South Korean had to start at striker following Richarlison’s absence due to injury, but hopefully the Brazilian will be back for the last two matches of the season.

RW - Brennan Johnson: 5/10. Had an assist as well as a near-goal off a cross from Son, but still wasn’t the former Nottingham Forest man’s best outing. Hopefully his form improves against Manchester City on Tuesday. He’ll be sorely needed in what could be a display of offensive fireworks.

SUBSTITUTES

CM - Rodrigo Bentancur: 6/10. Helped to establish some more movement and creativity in the midfield after coming on for Bissouma in the 85th minute. Good to see a positive performance from Bentancur today.

ST - Dane Scarlett: 5/10. A nice cameo today from the young starlet, as his movement in the middle helped lead to Van De Ven’s game winner in the 82nd. Subbed on for Kulusevski in the 75th minute.

CB - Radu Dragusin: 6/10. Finally given a chance to make an impact after Emerson Royal’s rough match last weekend, Dragusin played rather well with both Van de Ven and Romero. Inserted for Skipp in the 75th minute, the January signing hopefully clinched more playing time for himself over the next two matches with today’s showing.

CM - Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg: N/A. Subbed on for Sarr in the 88th minute, he wasn’t really given enough of an opportunity to try and make a difference today.

CM - Giovani Lo Celso: N/A. Came on in the 88th minute for Maddison, but once again wasn’t given enough time to make an impact. If Postecoglou had given him more of a chance in these last two matches, the Argentinian might've surprised him.