2-1 v Middlesbrough FC - 24 September 2016 - Away

Tottenham Hotspur Badge

Spurs 2

Middlesbrough FC

Middlesbrough FC

1

  • Gibson
    65'
Details
Match Number

7193

Opposition
Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough FC

Competition
Premier League

Premier League

Season

2016/17

Date

24th September 2016

Kick Off

15:00

Venue

Riverside

Attendance

32,703

Referee

Graham Scott

League Position

2nd

Opposition League Position

15th

Opposition Form

LDLWD

Weather at Kick Off

20.1° - Overcast

Facts & Milestones
  • 7157th overall match (3405 wins, 1580 draws, 2159 losses)

  • 5577th competitive match (2501 wins, 1312 draws, 1764 losses)

  • team

    95th match vs Middlesbrough FC (36 wins, 24 draws, 35 losses)

  • competition

    930th Premier League match (378 wins, 241 draws, 311 losses)

  • 6546th match in England (3068 wins, 1475 draws, 1990 losses)

  • 14th match at Riverside (4 wins, 5 draws, 5 losses)

  • 8th consecutive match with a goal scored

  • There were 8 changes to the starting lineup from the last match.

Report

Son Heung-min scored two superb goals as Tottenham moved up to second in the Premier League with victory at Middlesbrough.

On a windy day at the Riverside Stadium, Spurs took the lead when Son feinted to shoot twice in the area before striking a low 10-yard effort.

The South Korean made it 2-0 when he wriggled out of a tight position and curled in from edge of the area.

Boro improved after the break and pulled a goal back through Ben Gibson.

Tottenham's win means they have made their best start in the top flight for 51 years.

Since joining Spurs at the start of last season, Son has often been the foil to Harry Kane's role as lead striker.

The 24-year-old's industry and unselfish play around the attacking areas has complemented the more predatory Kane, who has grabbed the goals, headlines and adulation.

With Kane injured, though, Son showed himself a more than able understudy.

Both of his goals were wonderful. The first saw him play a one-two with Vincent Janssen, fool both Adam Clayton and Calum Chambers, then shoot past Victor Valdes.

His second was better.

There looked to be little threat to the Boro goal as Son reached the byeline on the right of the area. However, the forward then wriggled out of his tight position, before turning and firing a fantastic low curling shot into the far corner.

Spurs fans will not want to be reminded of their side letting leads slip.

In the last four games of the 2015-16 campaign, it happened on three occasions - two resulted in draws and one in a 2-1 defeat by Southampton. Not only did their title hopes evaporate but they also failed to hold on to second spot.

On Saturday, they dominated a flaky Boro side during the first half. But after the break, Mauricio Pochettino's side appeared to ease off the pressure, allowing the home side back in.

Had Boro been more potent in attack, it might yet again have been a case of 'one that got away'.

Boro boss Aitor Karanka will have been buoyed by the turnaround in the second half. The only thing missing was the player to link midfield and attack.

There was little penetration in the attacking third, until Adama Traore was brought on in the 59th minute.

The former Aston Villa midfielder displayed bravado that had been missing when he twice ran through the heart of the Spurs midfield, but with no end product. If he gets that part of his game right, he could be crucial in Boro's aim to stay in the Premier League.

The home side's goal came from a familiar source when Stewart Downing delivered a free-kick from the left that Gibson nodded down past the diving Hugo Lloris.

Middlesbrough boss Aitor Karanka: "It's frustrating for me to work for seven days to try to show them how Tottenham play and how good they are if we let them play, then we go on the pitch and seven minutes later we are losing 1-0.

"These mistakes were made last week and the week before, but the worst and most frustrating thing for me was the attitude, especially in the first half because in the second half we were completely different."

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino: "We fully deserved the result - the most important thing is the victory. Son was fantastic but it was a collective effort.

"The first half was great and we should have scored more than two. We need to learn to be more aggressive and clinical."

Timeline
Location
League Table
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Manchester city
5 5 0 0 15 4 11 15
2
Everton
5 4 1 0 10 3 7 13
3
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
5 3 2 0 8 2 6 11
4
Arsenal
5 3 1 1 12 7 5 10
5
Chelsea
5 3 1 1 10 6 4 10
6
Liverpool
5 3 1 1 11 8 3 10
7
Manchester united
5 3 0 2 8 6 2 9
8
Crystal palace
5 2 1 2 7 5 2 7
9
Watford
5 2 1 2 10 9 1 7
10
West bromwich albion
5 2 1 2 6 5 1 7
11
Leicester city
5 2 1 2 7 7 0 7
12
Hull city
5 2 1 2 6 7 -1 7
13
Middlesbrough
5 1 2 2 5 7 -2 5
14
Southampton
5 1 2 2 4 6 -2 5
15
Swansea city
5 1 1 3 4 7 -3 4
16
Burnley
5 1 1 3 3 8 -5 4
17
Afc bournemouth
5 1 1 3 3 9 -6 4
18
West ham united
5 1 0 4 7 13 -6 3
19
Sunderland
5 0 1 4 3 9 -6 1
20
Stoke city
5 0 1 4 3 14 -11 1
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Manchester city
6 6 0 0 18 5 13 18
2
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
6 4 2 0 10 3 7 14
3
Arsenal
6 4 1 1 15 7 8 13
4
Liverpool
6 4 1 1 16 9 7 13
5
Everton
6 4 1 1 10 4 6 13
6
Manchester united
6 4 0 2 12 7 5 12
7
Crystal palace
6 3 1 2 10 7 3 10
8
Chelsea
6 3 1 2 10 9 1 10
9
Southampton
6 2 2 2 7 6 1 8
10
West bromwich albion
6 2 2 2 7 6 1 8
11
Watford
5 2 1 2 10 9 1 7
12
Leicester city
6 2 1 3 8 11 -3 7
13
Hull city
6 2 1 3 7 12 -5 7
14
Afc bournemouth
6 2 1 3 4 9 -5 7
15
Middlesbrough
6 1 2 3 6 9 -3 5
16
Swansea city
6 1 1 4 5 10 -5 4
17
Burnley
5 1 1 3 3 8 -5 4
18
West ham united
6 1 0 5 7 16 -9 3
19
Stoke city
6 0 2 4 4 15 -11 2
20
Sunderland
6 0 1 5 5 12 -7 1
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