Tottenham Hotspur manager Engie Postecoglou (59) has called for “ruthlessness” from his players.
Tottenham Hotspur faced Leicester City in the first round of the 2024-2025 Premier League at King Power Stadium in Leicester, England, at 4 a.m. on the 20th (Korea time) and drew 1-1.
Tottenham took it out in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Dominic Solanke was at the forefront and Son Heung-min, James Madison, and Brennan Johnson were at the second line of attack. Rodrigo Bentancur-Pape Sarr filled the midfield and Destiny Udogi-Mickey van der Ben-Christian Romero-Pedro four-backed. The goal was guarded by Guglielmo Vicario.
Leicester also faced off with a 4-2-3-1 formation. Jamie Vardy was aiming to score, and Bobby Reed-Pakundo Buonanote-Abdul Patau Isahaku was at the second line of attack. Wilfred Ndidi-Harry Winks was in the midfield, and Victor Christiansen-Bout Pas-Jannik Vestergor-James Justin set up the four-back. Mas Hermansen wore the goalie gloves.
Tottenham scored the first goal. Madison, who was handed a pass by Son Heung-min in the 29th minute of the first half, passed it to the penetrating prisoner, who connected it with an accurate header and scored the net.
Leicester’s equalizer came in the 12th minute of the second half. Christiansen crossed from the left side and Pattau picked it up from the right side before crossing again. Vardy, who was waiting inside the offside line, shook the net with a precise header. It was Vardy’s ninth goal against Tottenham and his eighth in the opening match.
A chaotic situation occurred for a while. At 26 minutes in the second half, Bentancourt, who competed with Pattau for an aerial ball, collapsed holding onto her head, and the game was temporarily suspended as she could not get up for a while. Bentancourt was lifted off the field.
Tottenham changed four players in the 34th minute of the second half. Archie Gray, Lucas Beribal, Timo Werner and Dejan Kulusevski were added instead of Sar, Johnson, Madison and Bentancourt. Leicester also put Mabididi and Sumare without Buonanote and Vardy.
In the 38th minute of the second half, Solanke and Kulusevski targeted the defense with organic pass plays, but the opportunity was canceled as they failed to lead to the last shot.
Leicester swallowed the disappointment in the extra time of the second half. Mabidi, who stole Beribal’s ball from the left side, crossed it as it was and Ndidi connected it with a header. Vicario managed to hit it. Later, Tottenham called Son Heung-min and Porro to the bench and put in Hishalisson and Jed Spence.
Tottenham actively sought to score in the last minute, but rarely attacked Leicester’s defense. In the 9th minute of extra time, Hishalisson header a free kick from Beribal, but the ball went off the goal. The match ended with a 1-1 draw.
Tottenham and Leicester, who scored one point each from the draw, will start the season 12th and 10th, respectively.
“It was a disappointing night,” said Tottenham manager Engie Postecoglou, who was interviewed by British ‘Sky Sports’ after the game.
“We had a great first half and dominated the game, but we lacked scoring ability. We had a similar second half. We had a good start, but Leicester scored a goal and the atmosphere in the crowd was high. We lost our composure,” he said.
In fact, when Leicester City’s iconic player Vardy scored his return goal to the Premier League, the home crowd at King Power Stadium, Leicester’s home stadium, began to cheer enthusiastically.
Postecoglou said, “This was a problem last season as well. We have to continue our offensive work and be ruthless in scoring goals. We often make wrong decisions. In such a dominant game, we have to end the game early.” 안전놀이터
Tottenham had 71 percent of the possession rate in the match and hit twice as many shots (15:7) as Leicester City. They also had a big lead in shooting on target, 7 to 3. This is why they felt sorry for the draw.
Postecoglou said, “All the players who made their debut were good. There is no problem with our soccer style or efforts. We have to be more ruthless in the final third part to get results. Otherwise, we will not be rewarded for our soccer.” 안전놀이터
“The responsibility lies with me. This is why the coach exists,” he added.
On Bentancur’s condition after he crashed his head during the match, he said, “He regained consciousness and talked to me. Of course, the details should be taken care of by the medical team.”