Former England international midfielder turned talkSPORT pundit Danny Murphy has highlighted a key area that proved costly for Tottenham Hotspur in the defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Tottenham suffered the mother of all capitulations at the Amex Stadium on Sunday, falling to a deflating 3-2 defeat against Brighton.
Ange Postecoglou’s side raced to a two-goal lead after a dominant first-half display on the South Coast, thanks to goals from Brennan Johnson and James Maddison.
However, Brighton turned the game on its head in the second 45 minutes as Fabian Hurzeler’s side netted three times in 18 minutes via Yankuba Minteh, Georginio Rutter, and Danny Welbeck.
Welbeck’s 66th-minute strike proved to be the matchwinner for Brighton, condemning Spurs to their third Premier League defeat of the season, and Murphy claims Postecoglou’s error cost his side the match.
“Two things happened in the second half,” Murphy said on talkSPORT.
“This isn’t about a huge technical high-line problem. It’s a little bit of mentality because they dropped off a little bit, which is a problem.
“But ultimately, the way Brighton got back in the game was down the right-hand side. Ange [Postecoglou] at half time should have addressed the only problem Spurs were having in the first half.
“The lack of cohesion with Brennan Johnson and [Pedro] Porro dealing with the two left inside.
“The problem they had was Brennan Johnson either sticks with the left back or listens to Porro about when they swap on who marks him.
“They never got it right the whole game.”
The 3-2 defeat at the Amex ended Tottenham’s five-match winning streak across all competitions.
Postecoglou will have a fortnight to stew on the deflating defeat as club football embarks on a hiatus due to the international break.
The north Londoners will host capital rivals West Ham United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after the break, hoping to get back to winning ways.
