Tottenham Hotspur suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of rivals Arsenal in the north London derby on Sunday.
Ange Postecoglou’s side were unable to outsmart the Gunners’ weakened squad and failed to score past the formidable defensive pairing of William Saliba and Gabriel.
But who impressed the most during the derby? Here’s Tottenham’s best and worst players according to 90min’s player ratings.
Micky van de Ven – 6/10
Micky van de Ven was sometimes a little shaky when passing out the back but otherwise a major threat for Spurs’ side. His recovery pace was firmly on show against Arsenal, as was his ability inside the box.
The defender made sure to get himself in the right place at the right time to snuff out Arsenal’s attack and proved to be calm when in possession.
The result didn’t favour Spurs, but Van de Ven’s performance was worthy of an applause.
Honourable mention
Dominic Solanke – 6/10
Dominic Solanke finally got the chance to make another appearance for his new north London side after missing the last two games with an ankle injury – yet he was unable to etch his name onto the scoresheet.
It was still a promising performance from the former Bournemouth man, who held the ball up well against Arsenal’s colossal defence. Solanke also came close to earning a chance in front of goal – but seemed to be caught up over whether to shoot or pass.
It won’t be long before Solanke earns his first goal for Spurs.
Tottenham’s worst player vs Arsenal
Brennan Johnson – 4/10
Brennan Johnson was part of an attacking lineup who failed to create anything of note as Spurs were unable to score anything past David Raya.
Johnson symbolised one of the weaker players in Spurs’ attack, failing to cause any real problems for the Gunners. Jurrien Timber handled any of Johnson’s pursuits with ease and the Spurs winger did not utilise any space on offer to him.
While all of Tottenham’s forward players were underwhelming, Johnson was especially poor against Arsenal.
Dishonourable mention
Cristian Romero – 5/10
Cristian Romero decided to defend in a kamikaze style against Arsenal: fast, loose and somewhat crazy.
He often lunged into challenges, rushed out of the defensive line for no real reason and ran around the pitch with no real aim. The Spurs defender also allowed Gabriel to head Arsenal’s winning goal after failing completely to mark his man.
His hot-headed mentality reared itself on the pitch – with Romero’s carelessness symbolising some of the worst parts of Tottenham’s defence
