Swansea vs. Tottenham: Score, Grades and Reaction from EPL Game
Christian Eriksen scored a late winner to give Tottenham Hotspur a 2-1 victory at Swansea City on Sunday in the Premier League.
Harry Kane gave Spurs the lead in just the fourth minute before Swansea equalised via the excellent Wilfried Bony early in the second half. With the match seemingly headed for a draw, Eriksen guided in the winner in the 89th minute to give Tottenham all three points.
With the win, Tottenham moved ahead of Swansea and into seventh place with 24 points through 16 matches. Spurs trail rivals Arsenal by only two points and sit four points outside the top four. Tottenham will continue their quest for a top-four spot next Saturday with a home match against Burnley.
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Swansea will try to bounce back next Saturday at Hull.
Spurs defender Kyle Walker made his first Premier League appearance since March following a long-term injury layoff. The right-back made his first-team return Thursday at Besiktas in the Europa League.
Tottenham needed little time to open the scoring, going ahead in just the fourth minute. Eriksen picked out Kane with a curling corner from the right, as the latter created space for himself with intelligent movement in the direction of the goal. Towering over his marker, Kane planted a firm header into the net for a 1-0 Spurs lead.
Swansea had a first chance in the ninth minute following a fine bit of interplay in midfield. Wayne Routledge played an incisive pass through to Bony, who stung Hugo Lloris' palms with a low drive from distance.
Kane, clearly full of confidence, had a go from long distance in the 19th minute, but this time, his low shot trickled well wide of the far post. One minute later, at the other end, Tottenham's Ben Davies made a timely tackle to dispossess Bony inside the box after the Swansea man slipped free behind the defence.
Bony, who was proving to be quite a handful, had another chance in the 26th minute, redirecting a cross on target from close range. Lloris made a fine save, but Bony was ruled offside regardless.
Spurs were fortunate to escape possible red cards on two occasions midway through the half. First, Erik Lamela caught Swansea's Jefferson Montero with a high elbow in the 31st minute. Referee Robert Madley did not call a foul on the incident, nor did he brandish a card. Then, in the 35th minute, Jan Vertonghen clattered into Routledge with a two-footed tackle, but he escaped with only a yellow card as Swansea's players lobbied for a red.
The final chance of the first half fell to Bony, whose shot from inside the box deflected off target in the 43rd minute.
After being frustrated in the first half, Swans quickly found their equaliser in the opening minutes of the second half. The move started down the right flank, Rangel freeing Routledge with a pass over the top. Routledge crossed into the middle for Bony, whose first volley was blocked. The Ivorian made no mistake on the rebound, sweeping in to make the score 1-1.
Finally back on level terms, Swansea continued to attack in search of a go-ahead goal. In the 60th minute, an unmarked Ki Sung-Yueng headed over the bar from a corner. At the other end, Kane swung a dangerous shot just past the top corner in the 62nd minute.
Swansea increased the pressure as the second half progressed. In the 71st minute, Swansea substitute Jonjo Shelvey had a shot deflected wide after Gylfi Sigurdsson played him in. Two minutes later, Ki headed wide from a corner, moments after Jefferson Montero's shot was deflected off target.
Spurs posed a threat of their own, Kane flashing a header inches wide of the post from a 78th-minute corner.
The contest remained tight in the final 10 minutes as both managers made their third and final substitutions. But with only a minute left to play, it was a starter who made the difference for Spurs.
Following a giveaway deep in Swansea's half, Tottenham worked the ball to Eriksen along the edge of the box. With a defender bearing down, Eriksen moved the ball to his favoured right foot and guided his shot into the bottom corner for the winner.
Spurs had another chance to score in the fist minute of stoppage time as Kane ran free in Swansea's box after holding off Shelvey. Kane placed a curling shot on target, but Gerhard Tremmel saved.
Grades
| Gerhard Tremmel | 7.1 |
| Angel Rangel | 7.2 |
| Kyle Bartley | 6.5 |
| Ashley Williams | 8.2 |
| Neil Taylor | 7.1 |
| Leon Britton | 6.8 |
| Ki Sung-Yueng | 6.8 |
| Wayne Routledge | 6.7 |
| Gylfi Sigurdsson | 6.6 |
| Jefferson Montero | 8.6 |
| Wilfried Bony | 8.0 |
| Jonjo Shelvey (for Britton, 55') | 6.2 |
| Ashley Richards (for Rangel, 70') | 5.6 |
| Bafetimbi Gomis (for Bony, 85') | 6.0 |
| Hugo Lloris | 6.7 |
| Kyle Walker | 7.0 |
| Federico Fazio | 7.7 |
| Jan Vertonghen | 7.2 |
| Ben Davies | 8.0 |
| Ryan Mason | 6.1 |
| Nabil Bentaleb | 6.9 |
| Erik Lamela | 6.7 |
| Harry Kane | 8.4 |
| Christian Eriksen | 8.5 |
| Roberto Soldado | 6.1 |
| Mousa Dembele (for Soldado, 56') | 6.4 |
| Benjamin Stambouli (for Mason, 70') | 6.7 |
| Nacer Chadli (for Lamela, 83') | 6.0 |
Reaction
Swansea manager Garry Monk (via BBC Sport):
"It was a difficult start and we gave away a cheap goal but we started to create after that. There looked to be only one winner in the second half when we levelled and then there was the classic sucker-punch. An individual mistake has ended up costing us. It's mesmerising how we didn't win that game. We didn't deserve that and we came away with no points from such a great effort.
"
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino (via BBC Sport):
"We showed character, it was a difficult game because Swansea are a very good team. In the second half, they pushed us a little bit but we defended well and we were always alive in the game.
The victory is important for us. It's true that we are brave and we look forward to trying to win the points whether we are at White Hart Lane or away. Harry Kane scored again, he's still young but he has potential and he needs time to play and work hard.
"
