Tottenham 2-2 Man City: City drop points as Solanke nets brace to inspire Spurs

Solanke’s brace ensured Tottenham recovered from two goals down to claim an impressive 2-2 draw with Man City, whose EPL title hopes are dented by finishing the weekend six points behind leaders Arsenal. 

Match Report

Thomas Frank’s side wouldn’t have relished returning to PL action, bearing in mind they came into this holding the second-worst home record in the division at a fortress that had been breached far too often. You could hear a pin drop inside the ground during the opening exchanges, and a subdued atmosphere was flattened even further when Rayan Cherki broke the deadlock in the 11th minute. Bernardo Silva intercepted Yves Bissouma in midfield before picking out Erling Haaland, who played in the Frenchman to fire home a deflected right-footed finish past Guglielmo Vicario.

Spurs showed little in the way of a response, and nearly conceded a second when Haaland’s attempted lob landed on the roof of the net after the Norwegian was picked out by Rodri’s long ball. Cherki was in the mood to create further damage on this sluggish Spurs backline, bamboozling both Cristian Romero and Radu Drăgușin in the box, only to be denied by Vicario’s right hand. However, Semenyo doubled City’s advantage with HT approaching, following some more woeful Spurs defending, as Rodri intercepted Drăgușin’s clearance and Silva played in the former Bournemouth man to slot home past Vicario.The hosts desperately needed to show more fighting spirit after the break, and they almost halved the deficit when Gianluigi Donnarumma parried away Destiny Udogie’s effort shortly after the restart. 

Frank’s men did manage to reduce the arrears, though, as Solanke held off Abdukodir Khusanov in the box before appearing to kick through Marc Guehi’s leg when shooting past Donnarumma. Tottenham’s fans were encouraged by the side’s resurgence, and they found an equaliser in what will go down as one of the goals of the season. Solanke latched onto Conor Gallagher’s cross with an outrageous scorpion kick finish to restore parity and complete a comeback that seemed scarcely possible after their dour first-half display. Wilson Odobert could have fired Spurs in front moments later, but they were indebted to Donnarumma for another fine save. 

The Italian was largely a spectator in the first half, but was called into action again to tip over Simons’ dipping deflected strike. Frank’s side were firmly in the ascendancy, but Tijjani Reijnders almost headed City back in front when he missed the target from Silva’s cross. The Dutchman had another chance to put City in front with a diving header, but the points were ultimately shared.

This morale-boosting result extends Tottenham’s unbeaten run to four games across all competitions, but their lowly position of 14th means there is still plenty of work needed to salvage a thoroughly disappointing domestic campaign to date. Meanwhile, these two dropped points for City and Aston Villa’s defeat earlier in the day made it a day to remember for Arsenal without even kicking a ball.

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

0' Frank's reaction after Cherki scores to put City in lead

2' Semenyo latches on to a precise pass and fires a strike but Vicario makes a save

11' GOAL! Cherki produces a precise strike to beat Vicario! Tottenham 0-1 Man City

15' Cherki is down on the ground after being tackled and he takes medical treatment

18' Haaland latches on to a precise cross and strikes the ball just over the bar

18' Khusanov makes a tackle to block Spurs' effort inside the box

21' Yellow Card! Khusanov booked as he makes a bad tackle on his opponent

25' Cherki unleashes a shot after his solo run, but Vicario denies the effort

34' Tuchel is in the stadium to watch the game

38' Yellow Card! Xavi Simons is booked after bringing down Rodri

44' GOAL! Semenyo extends the lead as Bernardo assists! Tottenham 0-2 Man City

44' What a celebration by Semenyo after coring the second goal for City

46' Romero is replaced by Pape Matar Sarr

48' Yellow Card! Solanke booked for his blatant foul on Khusanov

51' Udogie receives a precise low pass and strikes but Donnarumma makes a great save

53' GOAL! Solanke pulls one back for Spurs! Tottenham 1-2 Man City

70' GOAL! Gallagher sets up Solanke to net a back-heel goal! Tottenham 2-2 Man City

70' Cherki is replaced by Reijnders

73' Odobert takes a good first touch but Donnarumma to make a save

74' Xavi Simons unleashes a strong shot, but his effort is denied by the keeper

82' Haaland appeals for a hand-ball in the box but the ref takes no action

85' A lofted ball meets with a header by Reijnders, but it flies narrowly wide

85' Xavi Simons attempts to send a cross but it is cleared by Guehi

87' Haaland is down in the box but the ref signals no penalty

Line-ups

Tottenham XI: Palhinha, Solanke, Vicario, Bissouma, Cristian Romero, Muani, Gallagher, Udojie, Dragusin, Xavi Simons, Gray

Subs: Pape Sarr, Kinsky, Tel, Odobert, Rio Kyerematen, Callum Olusesi, Souza, Jun'ai Byfield, James Rowswell

Man City XI: Bernardo Silva, Donnarumma, Rodri, Haaland, Guehi, Antoine Semenyo, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Matheus Nunes, Cherki, Nico O'Reilly, Abdukodir Khusanov

Subs: Ake, Foden, Omar Marmoush, Reijnders, Nico González, James Trafford, Lewis, Max Alleyne, Ryan McAidoo