The Soccer Blog: spirited

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Sunday, 31 March 2013

Premier League: Tottenham held off a spirited Swansea fightback to win 2-1

Saturday 30th March 2013 17:05

Tottenham held off a spirited Swansea fightback to secure a vital 2-1 victory at the Liberty Stadium, which kept them on course for a top-four finish.

Sublime goals from Jan Vertonghen and Gareth Bale put Spurs in pole position to get back to winning ways after back-to-back league defeats.

However, the home side rallied in the second half and got themselves back in it thanks to Michu, who headed his 11th home league goal of the season to ensure a nervy end to the game for the travelling Spurs faithful.

The visitors managed to hang on though and moved up to third thanks to results elsewhere, whilst the Swans remain comfortable in ninth.

It did not take long for Spurs get into their stride, and the in-form Bale turned provider for a change, lofting a sublime pass on the turn into the path of the onrushing Vertonghen, who plucked the ball out of the air and prodded a shot past Michel Vorm.

With only one clean sheet in the last nine Premier League games, Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas will not have been sitting comfortably, but just 15 minutes later the same two players combined to devastating effect to double the visitors' lead.

Vorm's poor clearance found its way to Vertonghen, who carried the ball forward, drilled a pass into the feet of Bale and he took one touch before lashing an unstoppable shot past the helpless Swansea keeper.

Michael Laudrup needed a response from Swansea, and the shell-shocked home side upped their game and started to create more opportunities, the best of which was wasted by Nathan Dyer, who could only head Dwight Tiendalli's pinpoint centre onto the underside of the bar from close range.

The home side continued to increase their intensity in the second period, and looked much more of a threat going forward.

A quickly taken free-kick caught Spurs sleeping, but Brad Friedel reacted well to smother Michu's prod towards goal.

The Swans' pressure did eventually tell on 71 minutes as Michu outjumped a flat-footed Michael Dawson to head a right-wing corner into the bottom corner.

Bale did almost make it three, clipping the bottom of the post after a mazy run, but arguably his most important contribution was a last-ditch block in injury-time to thwart Dyer when he looked odds-on to net a dramatic equaliser.

Speaking after the game, Villas-Boas was pleased to see Spurs pick up some momentum in the pursuit of Champions League qualification following recent defeats by Liverpool and Fulham.

"It was an important victory after back-to-back defeats," he said. "We cannot expect to dominate away from home, but we had a couple of chances to make it three which would have helped us. Momentum shifts quickly, but we just have to keep winning."

Swansea boss Laudrup was left to rue a slow start to the game after falling 2-0 down after just 21 minutes.

Laudrup said: "They just started better than us. The second goal we couldn't have done much about, as Gareth Bale made the difference. But the first we should have done much better with. We had five against two in our favour."

View the original article here

Saturday, 12 February 2011

Redknapp delight at spirited display

Harry Redknapp again praised the resilience of his Spurs side after they came from behind to post a 2-1 win over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

After falling behind to an early Asamoah Gyan goal, Spurs hit back through a header from Michael Dawson just before half-time, with Niko Kranjcar producing a stunning long-range winner just before the hour mark to seal all three points for the Londoners.

It was Spurs’ sixth away win this season and lifted them into fourth in the English Premier League, 10 points behind leaders Manchester United.

“This team doesn’t give up and there is a great spirit at the club,” Redknapp said.

“It’s difficult to come back when you go behind in the Premier League but we’ve managed to do it again.”

“Sunderland started brightly and scored their goal but the game settled down after that and I thought there was something in it for us.”

“I just felt if we could score before half-time we’d have a big chance and I fancied us to go on and win the game in the second half.”

“Niko popped up with another fantastic goal and it’s something he practises after training every day. He’s a top, top player.”

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce, meanwhile, lamented the equaliser his side conceded just before half-time as the turning point in the game. The result was his side’s third-straight loss, although they remain in seventh place.

“We started so well but the goal just before half-time killed us,” Bruce said.

“We still haven’t learned our lesson from the Stoke game (a 3-2 loss last weekend), and we’ve talked about it before.”

“It was a simple lack of concentration from a corner and because of that we were deflated going in at half-time.”

“We didn’t pick up Dawson, who’s their best header of the ball – for all our hard work, it’s happened again.”

“For me, that moment cost us the match.”

“I have to hold my hands up for the second goal – it was a wonder strike. But there’s a frustration there because we should have got something from the game.”

Sat 12 February, 2011