Mauricio Pochettino’s men had a golden chance of making it four wins out of four against Watford at Vicarage Road but the Lilywhites witnessed a disastrous last half hour which saw them suffer their first defeat this season.
Both teams had a lacklustre first-half with Spurs being slightly in control of the proceedings. However, the second half was quite eventful. Abdoulaye Doucoure’s touch off Lucas Moura’s cut-back into the box beat Ben Foster at his near post and gave Spurs the lead in the 53rd minute. However, the joy was short-lived for the away side and Pochettino’s team gradually faded away as the game wore on.
The Hornets drew level at the 69th minute when Jose Holebas set up Troy Deeney with a brilliant cross from a free-kick and the forward headed it in powerfully. The equalizer clearly buoyed the spirits of Javi Gracia’s men and Watford totally dominated the game thereafter.
To be honest, Watford just outplayed Tottenham Hotspur in the last half hour or so. Things got worse for the Lilywhites in the 76th minute when Holebas’ corner was converted by Craig Cathcart to give Watford a 2-1 lead. And it stayed that way for the rest of the game as Harry Kane missed the easiest of chances and failed to rescue a point for Spurs.
Let us take a look at three takeaways from the defeat.
Hugo Lloris is arguably one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League and Spurs were hit hard in his absence. Veteran Dutchman Michel Vorm had little to do in the first half but could not do anything when called into action. Vorm could have done better to prevent Deeney’s header and Cathcart’s winner.
Pochettino utilized Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen as quarter-backs in a back three formation. The Belgian duo did well in the first half but could not cope with Watford’s hungry attackers in the second half. Alderweireld almost put the ball into his own net when his header hit the woodwork and could not prevent Cathcart from scoring the winner.
As the Watford attackers pushed for a winner, Davinson Sanchez was exposed as the weak link in the defence. Although the Colombian was pretty solid in the first half, he was dispossessed way too easily by Deeney in the second half.
It would not be unfair to say that the defenders brought about their own downfall.
The midfield of Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli and Moussa Dembele dominated the game in the first half and maintained their stranglehold on the Hornet’s attackers.
However, it was a different story altogether in the second half as Moussa Dembele seemed to be outrun by Etienne Capoue and Abdoulaye Doucoure. Dembele was almost non-existent in the last half hour of the game and Pochettino could have done better by taking the Belgian off for Eric Dier. Dier could have added that solidity to the central midfield with his energy and physicality.
Dele Alli had a poor game and was caught offside in compromising positions more often than not. The Englishman was guilty of missing a golden chance in the first half and tried to bring Spurs back into the game after Cathcart’s goal but the end result wasn’t satisfactory enough.
Capoue, with his power and range of passing, was instrumental in Watford’s dominance in the second half.
Harry Kane has always held the key to Spurs’ successes in the recent past. However, he had a relatively poor day at the office and let the team down.
Cathcart and Christian Kabasele gave Kane a tough time with their tight marking. The striker only managed two shots in the match and could have earned a late point for Spurs. Unfortunately for the Englishman, he could not keep his header on target.
Lucas Moura was probably the best player for Spurs in the attacking third but the Watford defence did enough to keep him at bay.
