Tottenham beat Champions League-chasing Aston Villa 2-1, lifting them out of the relegation zone and breathing new life into their fight to remain in the Premier League.
West Ham’s 3-0 defeat at Brentford on Saturday opened the door for Spurs, and Roberto De Zerbi’s side stepped through it with confidence despite a twist in the repechage.
Spurs have shown a different side under De Zerbi. The way they pressed all over the pitch and won the ball back was reminiscent of De Zerbi’s Brighton and suggested Spurs were good enough to remain in the top flight next season.
Aston Villa, who have made seven changes since losing to Nottingham Forest in the Europa League semi-final first leg, were second best from the first whistle, with first-half goals from Conor Gallagher and Richarlison almost killing them.
Richarlison heads to celebrate after giving Spurs a 2-0 lead
Villa’s much-anticipated comeback did not occur in the second half, and despite Emi Buendia’s header in stoppage time, it was Spurs’ night, arguably their best performance of the season at such a crucial point in the season.
Randall Kolo Muani cheers up Spurs supporters after being substituted
Spurs have won consecutive league games since their first two games of the season and are one point ahead of 18th-placed West Ham with three games left in the season, making them favorites to break away from the top spot. And with a home game against Leeds coming up after the Hammers’ home game against Arsenal, there is a chance they could move further up the table next week.
However, De Zerbi remained cautious.
“The season isn’t over yet,” he said. “We have three more games against Leeds from Monday night and they are very tough games.
“Leeds are playing very well. They deserve to stay in this place in the table. We can’t forget the situation before the Wolverhampton game, but before that it was a very sad situation. These memories will be in your head every day, especially this week after this win.”
It was Spurs’ best performance of the season, but Villa, with their eyes clearly focused on Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest, produced their worst performance of the season.
Heartbroken Matty Cash and Victor Lindelof leave the pitch at half-time
Villa remain in fifth place, six points behind sixth-placed Bournemouth, and have lost three consecutive games in all competitions, missing out on a chance to almost seal a spot in next season’s Champions League.
Unai Emery’s side must fight back from a lackluster display to overcome a one-goal deficit against Forest on Thursday.
This is a big result for Spurs. Didn’t see that coming. Villa were on the back foot, but Spurs made the most of it with their desire and intensity from the start.
mica richards
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De Zerbi: Spurs showed what we’re capable of
Spurs manager Roberto De Zerbi told TNT Sports:
“We played against Aston Villa, who are a very good team with a lot of very good players and a great manager, but I thought we played very well for 60 minutes, both with the ball and without the ball.”
“Then we suffered with Watkins, we suffered with Buendia and we conceded goals. The only bad thing on the pitch was the goals we conceded.
“We could have scored more goals, especially in the first half, but I’m happy with this performance from the players. I know how much they’ve struggled this season and I’m very proud of them.”
On what pleased him most about Spurs’ performance, he added: “High pressure, for sure, because high pressure is a mentality. And then possession, because we were calm and played very well. When we had to attack space or go for a shot, we did it. When we had to hold the ball, we did it.”
“I love playing football. Especially when you have these players on the team, my job is to help them, get them in the best condition to play and show them what they are capable of.”
Emery: “We have to accept this defeat”
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery told TNT Sports:
“We couldn’t have deserved better. Tottenham played a very good game today. They scored two goals quickly and then dominated the first half more than we had planned.”
“We reacted well in the second half. We pushed harder and played better than in the first half. We tried to react and scored one goal, but we were able to do it at the end of the game. We have to accept this defeat.”
“Yes (the first half was below standard), but we were playing against Tottenham, they are at the bottom of the table but they are a very good team.
“Last week we lost against Fulham, which players played against Fulham? We played against Nottingham Forest and lost. Today we played a different player and lost.”
Regarding Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second leg, he added: “It’s a different game, a different competition. We’re in the semi-finals, but of course we’re going to enjoy the game and enjoy the process. It’s great to play in the Europa League semi-finals. We haven’t played a game like this in the last three years.”
“Supporters forget we are having a great season and we are level with Liverpool on 58 points.”
