Tottenham Hotspur manager Roberto De Zerbi finally gave Xavi Simons the start, and the young Dutch star rewarded Spurs with a goal and an assist to help them get a 2-2 draw against De Zerbi's former employers Brighton. Without Simons, though, Spurs would have definitely lost this game, as the rest of the front line was atrocious - no surprise, Dominic Solanke and Randal Kolo Muani have been two of the worst strikers in the league lately - and the defense doesn't know how to close the deal.
So while Spurs were more positive than they were in their previous losses to Sunderland and Nottingham Forest when they didn't even score a goal, the Lilywhites remain in one of the three Premier League relegation places and look almost certain to go down.
Compounding that sentiment was what happened elsewhere in the relegation fight. Because, once again, a team just ahead of Spurs was impressive and got the job done in a big way at the same time that Spurs could not.
Nottingham Forest extended their lead on Tottenham Hotspur further by beating up on Burnley 4-1, another team in the relegation battle - albeit one ranked much lower than Spurs and not really in the competition.
Morgan Gibbs-White should have been on Spurs
To make that Forest win look even worse for Tottenham, the catalyst and the difference in it was a hat trick from Morgan Gibbs-White. You know, the top Premier League attacking midfielder they could have signed this past summer transfer window had Daniel Levy and Co. actually fought harder when Evangelos Marinakis threw that ridiculous tantrum over a perfectly fair and valid release clause.
Tottenham could have had both Gibbs-White and Xavi Simons together in the attack. Instead, Gibbs-White is being the difference for Nottingham Forest in the relegation battle, rattling off three goals in succession to erase a 1-0 deficit against Burnleyt that initially had Spurs fans getting their hopes up for an upset from the Clarets.
Now, Tottenham have to rely on a pretty incompetent and dysfunctional Crystal Palace side, led by lame duck manager Oliver Glasner, to score a win over West Ham United on Monday Night Football in order for Spurs to get closer to safety.
Gibbs-White was the worst possible person to sink Tottenham further into the relegation abyss, because they easily could have signed him. And a player of that quality would definitely be the difference in the table to where Spurs are now and where Forest are in the relegation fight.
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