Tottenham Hotspur suffered a dismal 3-0 Premier League defeat away to Nottingham Forest on Sunday, and here are the Spurs player ratings following a deeply disappointing performance.
Thomas Frank made two changes from the side that beat Slavia Prague in midweek, with Rodrigo Bentancur and Randal Kolo Muani returning to the starting XI in place of Joao Palhinha and Wilson Odobert, as Spurs reverted to the lineup that defeated Brentford last weekend.
Forest threatened early and should have taken the lead when Ibrahim Sangare’s free header struck the post, forcing Guglielmo Vicario into a full-stretch save from Neco Williams’ rebound.
Spurs handed the hosts the opener after 28 minutes. Archie Gray asked for the ball from Vicario on the edge of the box but failed to release it first time to Cristian Romero. Sangare closed him down, won possession, and although Vicario initially saved, Callum Hudson-Odoi reacted quickest to tap in the rebound.
Hudson-Odoi doubled Forest’s lead soon after with a fortunate goal, as his deep cross looped over everyone and dropped into the far corner.
The scoring was completed in the 79th minute. Hudson-Odoi skipped past Pedro Porro before laying the ball off to Sangare, who fired an outstanding outside-of-the-foot strike from distance that flew in off the post.
Player ratings:
Guglielmo Vicario (4): Produced an excellent early save and nearly rescued Gray’s mistake, but was caught out by Hudson-Odoi’s looping cross. Had little chance with Sangare’s long-range effort and made a late save from a free-kick.
Pedro Porro (3): Looked unsettled throughout, poorly positioned for the second goal and weak in his attempt to stop Hudson-Odoi for the third.
Cristian Romero (5): Showed aggression at the back but failed to properly marshal the defence when leadership was needed.
Micky van de Ven (4): Passing was erratic and the defensive line looked disorganised throughout.
Djed Spence (5): Appeared hampered by a knock early on and reacted angrily to being substituted, though he struggled to make an impact.
Rodrigo Bentancur (4): Passing was inconsistent and he failed to provide support or control in midfield.
Archie Gray (4): At fault for the opening goal, though he did register Spurs’ only shot on target before being booked. A tough learning experience.
Mohammed Kudus (3): Lacked quality and decision-making, repeatedly running into trouble with no end product.
Xavi Simons (5): Couldn’t influence the game as usual but worked hard defensively until the end.
Randal Kolo Muani (6): Spurs’ brightest attacking outlet, beating his man regularly despite limited final quality.
Richarlison (3): Missed an early header and offered little thereafter, failing to hold up play.
Substitutes:
Lucas Bergvall (4): Energetic but careless in possession.
Joao Palhinha (5): Made some solid challenges but couldn’t change the flow of the match.
Ben Davies (5): Defended competently after replacing Spence.
Mathys Tel (N/A): Little impact in his brief cameo.
Brennan Johnson (N/A): Hardly involved against his former club.
