What went wrong in the second half against Brighton

Today we once again saw Spurs let slip of a comfortable position that they were in. We saw the 'Spursy' tag seriously come in to play. So, what went wrong in the second half at the Amex, and what reoccuring themes did we see?

Spurs need to seriously improve when it comes to facing adversity. When other teams towards the top end of the table concede goals, it only makes them more focused to sort it out. When Spurs conceded, they fold like a deck of cards.

We saw it at Leicester City on the opening weekend of the season. Spurs had been in total control of the game, before conceding a goal out of nothing. For at least 30 minutes after the equaliser, heads had dropped and Spurs could not wrestle back the momentum.

The exact same happened today. Spurs conceded a goal early in the second half out of nowhere, and they never regained control of the game. You could see the game getting away from them straight away. Brighton smelled blood and took full advantage. They caught Spurs cold. This cannot happen if Spurs have serious aspirations.

Ange should have made changes a lot earlier. Whilst we can appreciate that the options from the bench are not currently optimal, the Sarr and Bissouma changes could have come earlier. Spurs were getting overran in midfield, and the legs of either of those two, particularly Sarr could have made a difference - had they been introduced much earlier in the game.

As well as helping out with his athleticism, Bissouma would have helped Spurs control the game better and give them a foothold in the game. Instead, Ange let the game drift away from them as Fabian Hurzeler made a number of changes.

Often, when Spurs have dropped points - a key point has just been that they did not take their chances. There weren't any proper ones in the second half. The team was not set up to be able to create chances and pin Brighton in.

So, to summarise, the things that need to change as soon as possible;

Temperament in games. Control emotions, don't get too high with leads and don't get too low with setbacks.

Better in game management. When the tide is turning, make changes. It doesn't even always have to be personnel, sometimes tactical tweaks with the players already out there. But either way, make adjustments.

Finally, and very simplistically, be switched on. In the build up to some of the Brighton goals today, it felt like Spurs players were playing in slow motion. Udogie looked like he was lagging. The atmosphere began to increase and the Brighton players thrived off it, whilst the Spurs players shrank, whilst seemingly delaying their actions on and off the ball as a result.