Luton Town 0-1 Tottenham: Micky van de Ven sends 10-man visitors top of the Premier League with hard fought win after Yves Bissouma’s first half red card
- Micky van de Ven scored early in the second half with the defender turning in James Maddison’s cut back
- Tottenham went ahead despite Yves Bissouma being sent off for two bookable offences in the first half
- Luton will rue a glaring miss from Elihjah Adebayo while the hosts had a first half effort disallowed for a foul
Ange Postecoglou savoured the rarefied air at the top of the Premier League in the knowledge his Tottenham team are forged defensive steel to go with their attacking flair.
They needed it at Kenilworth Road, where they played more than half the game with 10 men after Yves Bissouma had been sent off for a dive and Luton made them roll up their sleeves and scrap to defend the goal scored by Micky van de Ven, early in the second half.
Spurs knew they had been in a fight as the celebrated at the end, in front of supporters who sang about reaching the summit and it might have been a much more comfortable afternoon had they taken some of the chances they created in the first 20 minutes.
The first couple fell to Richarlison, who was unable to turn a cross from Dejan Kulusevski on target as it zipped up off the turf at the back post. It seemed as if he only had to get something on the ball, but he did get smoething on the ball and still missed.
Thomas Kaminski then saved an altogether better effort by Richarlison, making the block with his left foot.
Micky van de Ven scored his first goal for Tottenham to send Ange Postecoglou’s side top of the Premier League
The Dutch defender scored from close range in the opening minutes of the second half following James Maddison’s cutback
Yves Bissouma was sent off for two bookable offences in the first half with the second given to the midfielder for diving
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Luton boss Edwards had tweaked his usual back three into a 4-4-2 formation with Reece Burke at right back. Burke adjusted after the early threat from Richarlison but Tottenham’s wingers stretched the back-four wide and opened channels for advancing midfielders and full backs.
Pedro Porro burst forward and fired wide, another glorious chance lacking a precision finish. On the side, Postecoglou threw his hands to his head. Then Heung-min Son wriggled free in the penalty area and fired over.
Tottenham’s intensity forced Luton into errors on the ball. James Maddison nicked the ball from Tom Lockyer, who picked up a yellow card as he lunged to recover.
Luton resisted the early pressure and slowly started to get out of their own half, create pressure of their own and win some set-pieces, from which they were always dangerous.
Kaminski made a fabulous save, low from Kulusevski at the end of a Spurs counterattack but the home team were the first to find the net.
Lockyer headed in from close range only to find the goal ruled out for a foul.
The incident was a free kick, angled into the deep by Alfie Doughty and headed back across goal where Elihjah Adebayo and Cristian Romero tussled.
The Luton striker hooked the ball towards goal, it looped onto a post bounced down and Lockyer headed it in, taking a hefty boot in the face as he did so.
Spurs had missed several chances in the opening stages of the match with Richarlison turning a close range effort wide
Tom Lockyer thought he had headed Luton in front in the first half but the hosts saw the goal ruled out due to a foul
Elijah Adebayo was penalised for a foul on Tottenham defender Cristian Romero in the build-up to the disallowed goal
MATCH FACTS
Luton Town (4-4-2): Kaminski 7; Burke 6, Lockyer 7 (Barkley 81), Andersen 6.5 (Mengi 59), Doughty 7; Brown 6 (Berry 67), Mpanzu 6 (Chong 67), Nakamba 7.5, Ogbene 7.5; Morris 6, Adebayo 6 (Woodrow 67)
Subs: Krul, Kabore, Giles, Johnson
Booked: Morris, Lockyer
Manager: Rob Edwards 7
Tottenham (4-3-3): Vicario 7; Porro 6, Romero 7.5, Van de Ven 8, Udogie 6 (Davies 82); Sarr 7, Bissouma 5, Maddison 7 (Skipp 76); Kulusevski 7.5(Veliz 90+2), Son 6 (Royal 76), Richarlison 5 (Hojbjerg 46, 6).
Subs: Forster, Gil, Dier, Lo Celso
Goals: Van de Ven
Bookings: Bissouma, Hojbjerg
Red cards: Bissouma 45+4
Manager: Ange Psotecoglou 7.5
Referee: John Brooks 6
Attendance: 10,929
Carlton Morris also required treatment for blow to the nose but the officials ruled the on a push by Adebayo on Romero.
The game restarted with Luton reduced to nine men as the players who had treatment had to go off. Morris returned, charging around angrily with tissue paper stuffed up his nostrils.
Bissouma had been shown a yellow card for a foul leading to that led to the free-kick and was sent off in stoppage time at the end of the first half when he picked up another for diving.
He was on a driving run towards the penalty area, accelerating through a crowd looking for contact but there was none and there was no dispute when he threw himself to the ground in the hope of a free-kick 20 yards out.
Richarlison went off in the reshuffle and, in the opening minutes of the second half, Adebayo missed a chance very similar to the one the Brazilian missed at the start of the game, sliding in at the back post with the goal open to meet a low cross.
Elijah Adebayo missed a golden chance to put Luton ahead in the opening minutes of the second half at the far post
Adebayo miscued in front of goal with the forward taking the ball out for a goal kick after getting it stuck under his legs
The Tottenham defence held firm in the closing stages of the match to protect their 1-0 lead and secure a hard-fought victory
The result keeps Tottenham unbeaten in the Premier League and moved Ange Postecoglou’s side top of the table
He miscued horribly and got the ball struck under his own legs before his momentum took it out of play for a goal kick.
The missed chance took on new significance when Tottenham went ahead, moments later. A short corner went into Maddison who turned his marker and picked out Van de Ven who scored his first for the club with an angled finish.
From, here the contest was a breathless frenzy with Luton making chances to equalise.
Spurs keeper Guglielmo Vicario, looking a more inspired signing with every game, stood up amid the chaos to make saves from Morris and Cauley Woodrow, who had only just come on and whose finish was tame when clean through.
Jacob Brown headed perhaps the best chance over when unmarked and Postecoglou made changes to protect the lead.
That Spurs ended the game with a back five, three ball-winners in midfield and one up front was testament to Luton’s spirit. They coped well on their first outing against any of the Premier League’s traditional big six but took no points.
The points went to the visitors and took them to the top of the league.
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